An error-locating signature analyzer to identify faulty units in digital systems

In traditional signature analysis, faulty units are identified by mismatch between the actual and reference signatures. The amount of reference signatures can be quite large in complex systems, which complicates the error-detection procedure. We show how under certain restrictions this amount can be reduced preserving the diagnosis resolution and the aliasing rate. As a result, we construct a signature analyzer that slightly differs from the traditional one, but it is also capable of locating faulty units. If the analyzer is implemented in the external automated test equipment, the throughput of the latter may be significantly increased.