Computer-controlled test apparatus for composite electrical and electronic equipment

Claim 1

AN EXCLUSIVELY COMPUTER-CONTROLLED TEST APPARATUS FOR COMPOSITE ELECTRICAL AND MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT AND ELEMENTS THEREOF WHICH ELIMINATES THE NEED OF AND USE FOR PERFORATED TAPES AND TAPE CONTROLS AS SOURCES OF PROGRAM MATERIAL FOR A PREDETERMINED SERIES OF TESTS TO BE APPLIED TO SAID EQUIPMENT AND ELEMENTS SAID TESTS APPARATUS COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, DIGITAL COMPUTER MEANS AS THE SOLE TEST SIGNAL STORAGE AND CONTROL MEANS OF SAID APPARATUS, SAID COMPUTER MEANS HAVING ELECTRICAL CIRCUITS AND ELEMENTS PROVIDING AT ITS OUTPUT TERMINALS SEQUENTIAL CODED TEST SIGNALS IN ACCORDANCE WITH A STORED PROGRAM OF TESTS TO BE MADE ON SAID EQUIPMENT AND ELEMENTS THEREOF, A FIRST GROUP OF SIGNAL RESPONSIVE TEST CIRCUIT ELEMENTS INCLUDING ROUTING CONTROL CIRCUITS AND OUTPUT RELAYS EACH CONNECTED TO A DIFFERENT ONE OF SAID COMPUTER OUTPUT TERMINALS AND RESPONSIVE TO THE SIGNAL OUTPUT THEREFROM, AND EACH HAVING A PAIR OF OUTPUT LEADS ONE OF WHICH IS AT ONE FIXED CONTROL VOLTAGE REPRESENTING A BINARY 1 AND THE OTHER OF WHICH IS AT A DIFFERENT FIXED CONTROL VOLTAGE REPRESENTING A BINARY 0, MEANS CONNECTED WITH SAID OUTPUT LEADS FOR DECODING THE OUTPUT VOLTAGES OF SAID SIGNAL-RESPONSIVE ELEMENTS TO PROVIDE CODED CONTROL SIGNALS BASED UPON AND A MULTIPLE OF SAID CODED TEST SIGNALS, MEANS FOR GENERATING STIMULI REPRESENTING TEST CONDITIONS TO BE APPLIED TO THE APPARATUS, A SECOND GROUP OF SIGNAL-RESPONSIVE TEST-CIRCUIT ELEMENTS INCLUDING SWITCH CONTROL CIRCUITS, CONTROL MEANS RESPONSIVE TO ONE OF SAID CONTROL SIGNALS CONNECTED FOR APPLYING AND MAINTAINING A CONTROL VOLTAGE ON SAID APPARATUS WHEREBY SAID SECOND GROUP OF SIGNAL-RESPONSIVE ELEMENTS IS SELECTED FOR OPERATION AND MADE RESPONSIVE TO SUBSEQUENT CONTROL SIGNALS, SAID SECOND GROUP OF CONTROL SIGNAL-RESPONSIVE ELEMENTS INCLUDING CONTROL SWITCH MEANS PROVIDING PATHS FOR SELECTIVELY CONTROLLING AND APPLYING SAID TEST STIMULI TO SAID EQUIPMENT AND ELEMENTS THEREOF TO DERIVE MEASUREMENT DATA THEREFROM, MEANS FOR APPLYING TO THE DIGITAL COMPUTER MEANS CONVERTED MEASUREMENT DATA THEREFROM FOR EVALUATION, AND MEANS FOR DERIVING AN INDICATION OF THE EVALUATION AND TEST RESULTS FROM SAID COMPUTER MEANS.