Method for system-prompted fault clearance of equipment in communcation systems

A method for system-prompted fault clearance of equipment in a communication system having a central control means in which sequence at least one fault treatment procedure and at least one diagnostic procedure, and having hardware equipment including assemblies each having a respective control means, a respective timer controlled by said respective control means and a plurality of sub-modules located in a respective hardware equipment, the hardware equipment being interrogated by the fault treatment procedure or the diagnostic procedure sequencing in the central control means for verification of operating condition thereof, comprising the steps of:

• given an occurrence of a malfunction on at least one of the hardware equipment, transmitting via the respective control means a fault message to the central control means, whereupon the central control means, without substantial interruption of operation of the communication system, executes a fault verification/fault location procedure in which the central control means, first, updates a current fault picture of all hardware equipment present in the communication system that is stored in a fault table, the current fault picture being updated with information obtained from the fault verification/fault location procedure, and, second, sends an alarm message to an operator location, or when a malfunction of the respective hardware equipment has occurred such that the respective control means cannot forward a fault message, the respective timer controlled by this respective control means drives the respective optical display means when time runs out on the respective timer, the malfunction of the hardware equipment being recognized by the central control means at least on the basis of a routine test cyclically installed by said control means for updating a fault picture for the communication system;
• identifying, via the central control means, without substantial interruption of operation of the communication system, that utilizes the information obtained, maintenance parameters, stored in the central control means via an evaluation procedure sequencing in the central control means, that indicate a current degree of redundancy of hardware equipment associated with said malfunction, and comparing the identified maintenance parameters with parameters representative of the current fault picture;
• in response to the comparison of the identified parameters indicating availability of redundant:
• hardware equipment, initiating a control procedure in the central control means, without substantial interruption of operation of the communication system, with which an optical display means is driven on the hardware equipment associated with said malfunction, to thereby indicate that replacement of the hardware equipment associated with said malfunction is both permitted and required;
• and
• after replacement by an operator of the hardware equipment, associated with said malfunction, with a redundant hardware equipment and after automatically placing the redundant hardware equipment in service by the central control means, implementing, via the central control means, without substantial interruption of operation of the communication system, an automatic verification of freedom from malfunction and updating, via the central control means, without substantial interruption of operation of the communication system, the optical display means associated with the hardware equipment that had said malfunction.

A method for system-prompted fault clearance of equipment in a communication system having a central control means in which sequence at least one fault treatment procedure and at least one diagnostic procedure, and having hardware equipment including assemblies each having a respective control means, a respective timer controlled by said respective control means and a plurality of sub-modules located in a respective hardware equipment, the hardware equipment being interrogated by the fault treatment procedure or the diagnostic procedure sequencing in the central control means for verification of operating condition thereof, comprising the steps of:

• given an occurrence of a malfunction on at least one of the hardware equipment, transmitting via the respective control means a fault message to the central control means, whereupon the central control means, without substantial interruption of operation of the communication system, executes a fault verification/fault location procedure in which the ,central control means, first, updates a current fault picture of all hardware equipment present in the communication system that is stored in a fault table, the current fault picture being updated with information obtained from the fault verification/fault location procedure, and, second, sends an alarm message to an operator location and when the automatic verification implemented by the central control means shows that a respective hardware equipment is only partially malfunctioning, indicating that the respective hardware equipment still has at least one operational sub-module, a change from a malfunctioning sub-module of the respective hardware equipment to said at least one operational sub-module of the respective hardware equipment ensues, an optical display means of the respective hardware equipment, that is only partially malfunctioning, being driven dependent on there still being adequate redundancy for the change to the at least one operational sub-module of the respective hardware equipment that is only partially malfunctioning;
• identifying, via the central control means, without substantial interruption of operation of the communication system, that utilizes the information obtained, maintenance parameters, stored in the central control means via an evaluation procedure sequencing in the central control means, that indicate a current degree of redundancy of hardware equipment associated with said malfunction, and comparing the identified maintenance parameters with parameters representative of the current fault picture;
• in response to the comparison of the identified parameters indicating availability of redundant hardware equipment, initiating a control procedure in the central control means, without substantial interruption of operation of the communication system, with which an optical display means is driven on the hardware equipment associated with said malfunction, to thereby indicate that replacement of the hardware equipment associated with said malfunction is both permitted and required;
• and
• after replacement by an operator of the hardware equipment, associated with said malfunction, with a redundant hardware equipment and after automatically placing the redundant hardware equipment in service by the central control means, implementing, via the central control means, without substantial interruption of operation of the communication system, an automatic verification of freedom from malfunction and updating, via the central control means, without substantial interruption of operation of the communication system, the optical display means associated with the hardware equipment that had said malfunction.