Diagnosis of automata failures: a calculus and a method

  • Authors:
  • J. Paul Roth

  • Affiliations:
  • Thomas J. Watson Research Center, Yorktown Heights, New York

  • Venue:
  • IBM Journal of Research and Development
  • Year:
  • 1966

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Abstract

The problem considered is the diagnosis of failures of automata, specifically, failures that manifest themselves as logical malfunctions. A review of previous methods and results is first given. A method termed the "calculus of D-cubes" is then introduced, which allows one to describe and compute the behavior of failing acyclic automata, both internally and externally. An algorithm, called the D-algorithm, is then developed which utilizes this calculus to compute tests to detect failures. First a manual method is presented, by means of an example. Thence, the D-algorithm is precisely described by means of a program written in Iverson notation. Finally, it is shown for the acyclic case in which the automaton is constructed from AND'S, NAND'S, OR'S and NOR'S that if a test exists, the D-algorithm will compute such a test.