Patent ID: 8264389

Claim:
An analog-to-digital converter, comprising: a first generator configured to generate a first analog value according to a configuration signal when the analog-to-digital converter is operating in a first phase of a test mode; a digital-to-analog converter adapted to generate a second analog value according to a control signal when the analog-to-digital converter is operating in a second phase of the test mode; a second generator configured to generate a digital value from a comparison of the first analog value with respect to the second analog value according to a successive-approximation algorithm when the analog-to-digital converter is operating in the second phase of the test mode; a controller adapted to receive a signal indicating the test mode, and adapted to: generate in the first phase the configuration signal; receive in the second phase the digital value and generate therefrom the control signal to control the generation of the second analog value according to the successive-approximation algorithm; and generate, from the digital value, an alarm signal indicating a failure within the analog-to-digital converter or indicating a degradation of the performance of the analog-to-digital converter.