Patent ID: 6961317

Claim:
A test system comprising a generator, and an analyzer acting cooperatively to test a device having a plurality of device communication channels, said device connecting an input of each of said communication channels to an output of one of said communication channels, said generator comprising a plurality of generator channels, each test pattern channel comprising a generator pattern reference memory for storing a test sequence to be communicated to an input of said device, and a circuit for repetitively sending said test sequence to one of said channels of said device, said analyzer comprising a plurality of analyzer channels, each analyzer channel comprising an input for receiving a channel input signal, an analyzer pattern reference memory for storing a reference pattern utilized by that analyzer channel, and a compare circuit for comparing that reference pattern with a signal received on one of said communication channels of said device, said compare circuit providing a bit error value indicative of the extent of mismatch between said reference pattern and said received signal, and said analyzer and generator further comprising a program for operating said analyzer and generator, said program: (a) causing one of said generator and said analyzer to load said reference memories included therein with a set of mutually exclusive mapping test patterns such that each reference memory has a unique test pattern stored therein; (b) causing the other of said generator and said analyzer to load one of said set of mapping test patterns into all of said memories; (c) causing each analyzer channel to compare said channel input signal received on that channel with said reference pattern stored in that channel; (d) determining if one of said bit error values provided by said compare circuits is less than a bit error threshold value, and if so, mapping said analyzer channel for which said bit error value is less than said bit error threshold value to said generator channel having the same mapping test pattern.