Serial link fault detection system and method

A method for using a hardware fault detection system in a transmission system, comprising:

• receiving a first communication signal on a first programmable logic device from a second programmable logic device via a first serial link;
• receiving a second communication signal on the first programmable logic device from the second programmable logic device via a second serial link, wherein the first serial link and the second serial link are parallel serial links disposed on a single conduit, and the first communication signal and the second communication signal are representative of identical information;
• comparing the first communication signal and the second communication signal in the first programmable logic device to detect a fault in the first serial link, the second serial link, or both;
• and
• when a fault is detected, determining whether the transmission system can continue operation despite the fault;
• wherein comparing the first communication signal and the second communication signal comprises detecting an error in the first communication signal, the second communication signal, or both, and wherein determining whether the transmission system can continue operation despite the fault is based at least in part on a nature of a system utilizing the transmissions system, a status of the serial links, whether the error is correctable in real-time, a nature of the information transmitted in the communication signals, a history of previous errors, or any combination thereof.

A method for operating a fault tolerant transmission system, comprising:

• detecting a fault in a first serial link, a second serial link, or both by detecting an error in a first communication signal transmitted on the first serial link or a second communication signal transmitted on the second serial link with only hardware detection in a first programmable logic device, wherein the first and second communication signal are transmitted from a second programmable logic device to the first programmable logic device in parallel and are representative of identical information;
• when a fault is detected, determining a status of the first serial link, the second serial link, or both based at least in part on the error detected;
• and
• determining whether to continue operation of the transmission system based at least in part on the status of the first serial link, the second serial link, or both;
• wherein the programmable logic device is a triple modular redundant (TMR) controller comprising:
• a third serial port configured to be communicatively coupled to a third serial link, wherein the third serial port is configured to receive a third transmission signal from the third serial link;
• a fourth serial port configured to be communicatively coupled to a fourth serial link, wherein the fourth serial port is configured to receive a fourth transmission signal from the fourth serial link, wherein the third serial link and the fourth serial link are disposed in parallel with each other and are configured to communicate over a second single conduit, and the third communication signal and the fourth communication signal are representative of identical information;
• a fifth serial port configured to be communicatively coupled to a fifth serial link, wherein the fifth serial port is configured to receive a fifth transmission signal from the fifth serial link.