Apparatus for physically locating faulty electrical components
US4918693A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jan 28, 1988 |
| Grant date | Apr 17, 1990 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jan 28, 2008 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F11/22
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
In a computer system in which addressable components are physically organized on separately-replaceable printed circuit boards each containing an array of separately addressable components, diagnostic apparatus operates in the event of a component failure to assist a technician in physically locating the circuit board which contains the failed component. Each array includes a selection circuit which responds to component addresses located in the component array on that board. In the case of a component failure, diagnostic circuitry detects the address of the faulty component and places the address on the system address bus. The diagnostic circuitry controls each array to forward the output signal from the selection circuit on the associated printed circuit board to a register which has a position associated with each printed circuit board. Since only the selection circuit in the array which contains the faulty component responds to the address of the faulty component, the diagnostic register can be examined by the diagnostic circuitry to detect the position of the faulty board.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.