Apparatus providing power-over-ethernet test instrument

A system for measuring characteristics of a plurality of Power Over Ethernet (POE) Power Sourcing Equipment (PSE) devices, the system comprising:

• a chassis power supply;
• a chassis trigger bus;
• a chassis controller;
• and
• at least one POE PSE test and measurement device in communication with said chassis controller, each of said POE PSE test and measurement devices comprising:
• a port controller;
• a programmable current loading circuit in communication with said port controller;
• a programmable resistance loading circuit in communication with said port controller;
• a programmable capacitance loading circuit in communication with said port controller;
• a load current measuring circuit in communication with said port controller;
• a voltage measuring circuit in communication with said port controller;
• and
• an input network connection capable of receiving power signals from a network and coupling said power signals to at least one of said current loading circuit, said resistance loading circuit, said capacitance loading circuit, said voltage measuring circuit, and said load current measuring circuit and wherein said port controller utilizes a set of test primitives which are accessed interactively in real time via a user interface to execute test sequences for characterizing PSE devices, and wherein said characterizing comprises measuring signaling protocols, signal levels, signal timing parameters, loading thresholds, and load limiting behaviors to ensure they are in compliance with IEEE 802.3 Clause 33 specification.