GB2298337A

GB2298337A - Method for testing a switching device

Info

Publication number: GB2298337A
Application number: GB9603814A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Robert Jaeger
Original assignee: Siemens AG
Current assignee: Siemens AG
Priority date: 1995-02-22
Filing date: 1996-02-22
Publication date: 1996-08-28
Also published as: DE19506110C1; IT1282080B1; GB9603814D0; ITMI960190A0; ITMI960190A1; FR2730887A1

Description

METHOD FOR TESTING A SWITCHING DEVICE 2298337 The invention relates to a

method for testing a switching device, in which method the recall of user facilities in the switching device is tested.

Modern communications terminals, both digital and analogue, are connected inside an extension unit, by way of peripheral processing means and subsequently connected output means, i.e. a device handler, to call processing means. The general structure of such an extension unit is described in the printed publication "ISDN im BUro, HICOM, Sonderausgabe, Telcom Report und Siemens-Magazin Com11 (ISDN 3- 8009-3846-4) (see here pages 69 and 70 in particular). In order to recall user facilities, an appropriate activation message is given by the terminal to the call processing means, which thereupon makes available to the terminal the user facility which is desired. Such user facilities may be, for example, dial repetition, ring back, call transfer, broker's call, conference, appointment, _parking call number memory, or operation of a server such as, for example, voice mail, text-fax-server, or answering machine.

In the case of the integrations tes and the system test, operability of many user facilities has to be tested by continuous tests. In these tests, attention is paid to wrong reactions of the user facility system or of the call processing means, such as, for example, an error message, a restart and such like. A base load up to the high load or overload is also necessary as a background load for the manual test, or as a load test itself.

The user facility test In-the call processing means is realised by connecting external machines, in which the test of the user facilities is carried out by special scenarios written for these machines or by manual tests. Testing by the external machines is expensive because the hardware in analogue networks is very expensive and- there is high expenditure on the cabling. For the same reasons, fast installation is likewise not possible. In the case of the manual test, person-intensive work is required to input the respective activation message by key depression stroke at the terminals. - The invention seeks to present a method for testing of the type mentioned in the introduction, which method can be carried out without special-purpose machines and costly installation expenditure.

According to the present invention, there is provided a method for testing a call processing means to which at least one communications terminal is connected, in which method the following steps are carried out:

storing a copy of an activation message from the communications terminal for recalling a user facility in the call processing means together with a predeterminable time value; retrieving the stored activation message after a period of time corresponding to the predeterminable time value has elapsed,-in order to recall the user facility.

In the case of the test method in accordance with the invention, any scenario can be put together in a simple manner. Furthermore, a base load or even a high load can likewise be realised.

The idea underlying the invention is to use the terminals, which are installed in each test unit for manual tests, for the continuous test or for creating the test scenario as well. In order to achieve this, the key d--'Pression strokes for recalling the chosen user facilities have to be repeated at a terminal after a certain time, in order to thus constantly repeat a scenario.

In the case of call processing means for an extension unit which functions according to the message principle, i.e. in which extension unit the user facility is recalled by an activation message, a procedure is implemented in the call processing means, in accordance with the invention, which procedure copies the activation message of a key depression stroke and repeats it after a predetermined time.

For a better understanding of the present invention, and to show how it may be brought into effect, reference will now be made, by way of example, to the accompanying drawing, which shows one embodiment of the invention.

In the single Figure, the circuit components of an extension unit that are necessary for the understanding of the invention are represented as a block circuit diagram. In detail this is a communications terminal EG which is connected by way of peripheral processing means PP and subsequently connected device handler DH to the call processing means CP. These individual circuit components and also the way in which they work together are described in greater detail in the piece of literature "ISDN im BUroll which was mentioned in the introduction. On the basis of a key depression stroke at the terminal EG, the latter gives an activation message M to a user facility system LS in the call processing means CP. The user facility system LS thereupon makes available to the terminal EG a user facility L, which is recalled by this activation message M. 30 In accordance with the invention, this activation message M is copied for the call processing means CP. The copying process is carried out in the device handler DH, for example. In order to achieve this, the activation message M is written in a memory SP, for example by way of a switch S1. A time value ZW is stored together with the activation message M. After a period of time (which corresponds to the time value ZW) has elapsed, a message generator MG again fetches out the activation message M from the memory SP, by way of a switch S2. This leads in this way to a repeated recall of the user facility L from the user facility system LS.

When a switch S1 is closed, the activation messages M are copied during an activation period and are stored together with a time value ZW. When a switch S2 is closed, these activation messages M which have been copied are fetched out again during an operation period and lead to a renewed recall of user facility L. At the same time, when a switch S1 is still closed, each of these copied activation messages M is once again copied into the memory SP.

The marking and the first copying of an activation message M is activated by the switch S1 on the basis of a key depression stroke at the terminal EG, so that a scenario can be programmed and developed. The message generator MG is activated by the switch S2 so that each activation message M that has already been copied and marked is copied again and again.

In order to avoid mistakenly startihg the test method in the field, the jumps into the copying procedure are introduced into the source program only in the test field as a result of a code matching.

Claims

1. Method for testing a call processing means to which at least one communications terminal is connected, in which method the following steps are carried out:

storing a copy of an activation message from the communications terminal for recalling a user facility in the call processing means together with a predeterminable time value; retrieving the stored activation message after a period of time corresponding to the predeterminable time value has elapsed, in order to recall the output feature.

2. Method according to claim 1, in which the activation messages are copied during a selectable activation period.

3. Method according to claim I or 2, in which the activation messages which have been copied are fetched out during a selectable operation period.

4. Method according to any preceding claim wherein the method also.includes the further step of storing the retrieved activation message. S. Method as claimed in any precedi ng claim wherein the storing and subsequent retri6val of the activation message is enabled only when testing is required, by means of a code matching. 6. A method substantially as herein described, with reference to the accompanying drawing. 7. A device handler substantially as herein described, with reference to the accompanying drawing. 30 B. Method for testing switching technology to which at least one communications terminal is conner-ted, in which method the following steps are carried out: messages from the communications terminal for recalling output features in the switching technology are copied together with a predeterminable time value; the activation messages which have been copied are fetched out after a period of time which corresponds to the time value has elapsed, in order to recall the output feature and can be simultaneously copied again.