Eye pattern margin measurement and receiver stress detection device
AssigneeCommunications Technology Corporation
InventorsDavid E. Jones, Robert E. Gewin, Ronald W. Jackson
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system and method are provided wherein binary communications signals are received, and sequences of values of like types of these, such as positive ones, positive zeroes, negative ones, and negative zeroes, are observed. Responsive to a sequence of like-type signals, a reference potential is driven generally in the direction of value of these signals, and most responsively in the direction of the greatest signal degradation. A reference potential for each type is then stored, and the one of these having the most degraded amplitude is selected, and an indication of the percentile of its degradation is provided.
Claims19
A system for monitoring communications signals comprising:
- signal discrimination means responsive to communications signals, for separately providing at least one value indicative signal responsive to, and representative of, values of at least one discrete characteristic type of communications signal;
- at least one degraded signal detection means including signal generating means for generating a variable value reference, and driving means responsive to a said value indicative signal for driving said signal generating means, and thereby a value of said variable value reference toward a value of a said discrete characteristic type of communications signal, said driving means being most responsive to said value indicative signal which is of a value indicative of a greater degradation than a value of said variable value reference;
- and
- at least one reference comparison means responsive to said variable value reference resulting from said discrete characteristic type of communications signal, and a discrete nominal signal value for providing an output indicative of a degree of impairment of said characteristic type of communications signal.
A method for providing an indication of impairment of a communications signal on a signal line comprising the steps of:
- (1) receiving communications signals which include intelligence signals from said signal line,
- (2) selecting like coded portions of said intelligence signals from at least one sequence of said communications signals,
- (3) comparing said like coded portions as they occur in said sequence to a reference signal,
- (4) varying amplitude of a said reference signal such that it is in converging relation with respect to intelligence signals evidencing degradation in amplitude, and more greatly favoring convergence toward said intelligence signals evidencing greatest degradation in amplitude of said intelligence signals during a said sequence, and
- (5) comparing the amplitude of said reference signal with amplitudes of a nominal signal for providing an indication of impairment of said communications signals.
A method for providing an indication of the condition of impairment of a communications signal on a signal line comprising the steps of:
- (1) receiving communications signals which include intelligence signals from said signal line;
- (2) selecting like coded portions of said intelligence signals from at least one sequence of said communications signals;
- (3) comparing said like coded portions as they occur in said sequence to a reference signal;
- (4) varying the amplitude of a said reference signal by a selected amplitude of each occurrence of a said intelligence signal, evidencing a greater degree of degraded amplitude characteristics than said reference signal, and varying said reference signal by a selected amplitude for a discrete multiple of said intelligence signals, evidencing a lesser degree of degraded amplitude characteristics than said reference signal, weighing said reference signal toward those intelligence signals in each said sequence having the most degraded amplitudes;
- and
- (5) comparing the amplitude of said reference signal with the amplitudes of a nominal signal for providing an indication of impairment of said communications signals.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.