Patent ID: 8081736

Claim:
A method for measuring electrical properties of a communication line that runs from a central office terminal to end users using a chipset operably coupled to the communication line, the communication line comprising a first line and a second line, the first line connected to a first line driver of the chipset and the second line connected to a second line driver of the chipset, the method comprising: a) setting the first line driver to a high impedance state using the chipset; and b) determining the electrical properties of the communication line by performing at least one measurement with the first line driver in the high impedance state using a measurement circuit of the chipset, the determining including: applying two different voltages to said second line while the first line driver is set to a high impedance state using the chipset; and measuring a current flowing via said second line and/or measuring a voltage present at said second line for each of the two different voltages using the measurement circuit.