The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Oct. 05, 2004
Filed:
Mar. 10, 2003
Stephen Hird, Fort Collins, CO (US);
John E Siefers, Loveland, CO (US);
Kevin G Chandler, Loveland, CO (US);
Agilent Technologies, Inc., Palo Alto, CA (US);
Abstract
A method and apparatus for detecting a resistive fault in an electrical conductor is presented. The apparatus of the invention includes an oscillating signal generator that applies an oscillating signal to the electrical conductor under test. The apparatus includes a measuring device for measuring the potential between the electrical conductor under test and a reference node. Such measurements are obtained both when the apparatus is disconnected from the electrical conductor under test and when the apparatus is connected to the electrical conductor under test. A difference in the measurements indicates that the connectivity of the electrical conductor is intact, whereas no difference indicates that a resistive fault exists somewhere in the electrical conductor. For greater accuracy, the longitudinal balance of the disconnected apparatus and connected apparatus measurements are calculated to determine connectivity. In an automated test environment, the measuring apparatus is part of the tester hardware and the connections to the electrical conductor under test are made through tester interface pins and fixture probes.