Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system – Display driving control circuitry – Controlling the condition of display elements
Patent
1997-06-11
2000-06-27
Teska, Kevin J.
Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system
Display driving control circuitry
Controlling the condition of display elements
39550005, 39550004, 345433, 345964, G06F 1750
Patent
active
060816570
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
DEFINITION OF TERMS
CAD data file and possibly additional intermediate data file in an internal data format of the CAD system concerned.
Widely standardized, output data file for graphical representation of the circuit diagram, intended for the user.
Arbitrary elements of the circuit: components, component terminals (pins), networks.
The electrically conductive connections connecting the component terminals.
Component designations contained in the graphical circuit diagram data, possibly as a text data file.
Circuit diagram page and X-Y-coordinates or raster field information of a circuit element on a circuit diagram.
Process steps in the functional testing of electronic component groups, concerned with preparation, carrying through and evaluation. The preparation includes also the provision of test programs and automatic test devices.
DESCRIPTION
The invention relates to a method of locating and representing circuit elements in an electronic circuit, for the functional testing of the circuit, the circuit diagram information of which circuit is stored as internal data of arbitrary format and as graphical data for the production of a circuit diagram.
In many areas of the production, functional testing and monitoring of electronic circuits a rapid access to the circuit diagram representation of an electronic component group of the circuit plays an important role. It is therefore usual to employ circuit diagrams drawn on paper. With extensive circuits, which are in particular spread over several pages, the search for the desired component or the desired component group can involve expenditure of much time and therefore be expensive. It is thus advantageous to represent such circuits, the circuit diagram information of which is available as graphical output data files for the production of the circuit diagram, on screen. The advantages of a screen representation of the circuit plan information of a circuit to be tested or repaired are, however, only fully manifest when it is ensured that it is easy to locate a particular component, network node or a component group.
In the state of the art this is, however, only possible when a search term is contained in the graphic data file as text information; that is, the description of a component is stored for example as a "label" command in text format in the graphics output data file.
One such manner of component selection on the basis of data in text format in the graphic output data file is described for example in the "Proceedings of the IEEE 1993", Custom Integrated Circuits Conference, May 9th 1993, 1321, 1323. Through selection of text data displayed on the screen the data associated with the selected component can be displayed. It is, however, increasingly unusual to store component designations in this way in the form of text data.
Further, in the above-mentioned citation there is described the screen representation of internal CAD data through selection of a hierarchical block displayed on the screen. Thereby, direct use is made of the internal CAD data, which is possible only with very great effort due to the variety of CAD internal data formats and the adaptation thereby made necessary.
Thus, it is the object of the invention to propose a method which makes possible location and subsequent representation of arbitrary circuit elements or component groups of a circuit, the circuit diagram information of which circuit is stored as graphical output data and as internal circuit diagram data of arbitrary format.
This object is achieved by means of the features set out in claim 1.
From the graphical output data there is represented on the screen a section of a circuit diagram. From the internal circuit diagram data, the circuit diagram coordinates of arbitrary circuit elements are determined and stored in a search data file. Through access to this search data file, selected circuit elements can be sought and represented on a screen. The designation is effected by means of selection of the correct circuit plan section and optionally by means of additional marki
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Martin et al. ("A CAD Tool for Circuit Diagram Extraction from VLSI Layout Cells", IEEE Proceedings of the 32nd Midwest Symposium on Circuits and Systems, vol. 2, pp. 8-17-820, Aug. 14, 1989).
Kik Phallaka
Teska Kevin J.
Test Plus Eletronic GmbH
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