JP5933642B2 - Network test apparatus and network test method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a network test apparatus and a network test method capable of performing a plurality of types of measurement of a device under test (DUT) based on various wired communication standards with a single device.

  As specific signal systems, for example, various measurements of measured objects based on various wired communication standards such as SDH (Synchronous Digital Hierarchy), PDH (plesiochronous digital hierarchy), OTN (Optical Transport Network), Ethernet (registered trademark), etc. In a network test apparatus having a function of performing a plurality of measurements, a plurality of measurement hardware and a plurality of measurement applications are provided in one apparatus. In this type of network test apparatus, each measurement application measures a measured object by controlling predetermined measurement hardware according to a predetermined procedure, and provides the measurement result to the user.

  For example, a measurement apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 below is known as a network test apparatus including a plurality of this type of measurement hardware and a plurality of measurement applications in one apparatus. The measuring device disclosed in Patent Document 1 is connected to a common unit in which a plurality of measurement applications of various measurement contents are stored, and a battery unit, with connectors connected so as to sandwich a measurement unit as measurement hardware, The measurement unit can be added, removed and recombined according to the measurement contents.

  Thus, not only one measurement application controls one measurement hardware, but one measurement application controls a plurality of measurement hardware in conjunction with each other, or a plurality of measurement applications on one measurement device. It is possible to start and execute in parallel at the same time, and to measure an object to be measured in various forms.

  In the following Patent Document 2, as a similar network test apparatus, a plurality of transmission / reception modules having a plurality of ports are accommodated in a housing, and the device under test is obtained by transmitting and receiving data between these transmission / reception modules and the device under test. A measuring apparatus for performing various measurements is disclosed.

JP 2010-25863 A JP 2003-46508 A

  By the way, the conventional network test apparatus including Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 described above has a self-diagnosis function for determining whether or not the apparatus itself can operate normally. In this type of network test equipment, the measurement unit can be added, removed, and recombined according to the test content desired by the user, and the usage environment may change irregularly. Self-diagnosis was performed every time when was started.

  As described above, since the conventional network test apparatus performs the self-diagnosis every time it is started, the waiting time until the self-diagnosis is completed sometimes causes stress for the user. Moreover, even if the self-diagnosis is unnecessary, it is always executed, so that extra time is consumed, and measurement of the object to be measured cannot be started immediately after the apparatus is started.

  For this reason, when measuring an object to be measured, it is desired to provide a network test apparatus that can perform self-diagnosis only when necessary, shorten the start-up time, and quickly shift to a usable state. It was.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a network test apparatus and a network test method that can shorten the startup time.

In order to achieve the above object, the network test apparatus according to claim 1 of the present invention is detachably attached to the slot S of the apparatus body in accordance with the measurement contents of the device under test, and is based on a wired communication standard. A network test apparatus comprising a plurality of measurement hardware 5A for measuring the object to be measured and a plurality of measurement applications 11 for controlling the plurality of measurement hardware in any combination according to setting contents 1 and
The resource management unit 7a for managing the resources of the network test apparatus; when the date changes, when the operating time of the apparatus has passed a specified time, when the operating time of the measurement hardware has passed the specified time, the measurement When the hardware is replaced, when the specified time has passed since the last self-diagnosis, when the measurement hardware abnormality is detected, or when any self-diagnosis abnormality is detected, Or whether a condition that selectively combines the conditions is a self-diagnosis execution condition, and whether or not the self-diagnosis execution condition is satisfied when the apparatus is started based on the use status, time information, and date information of resources managed by the resource management unit and a determination unit 7c to determine, with the processing control unit 7 to perform a self-diagnosis only when 該判another unit determines that satisfy the self-diagnosis execution condition during device activation It is characterized in.

The network test apparatus according to claim 2 is the network test apparatus according to claim 1,
When the start of measurement is instructed, the resource management unit (7a) attaches at least the measurement hardware (5A) for each slot (S), the vacant state of the measurement port (5a) for each slot, User information for each measurement port and types of measurement hardware for each slot are managed as resources of the network test apparatus (1) .
The network test apparatus according to claim 3 is the network test apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
The specified time is preset according to a difference in usage pattern of the network test apparatus (1) for each user and a usage frequency for each measurement hardware (5A).

Network test method described in claim 4, the slots S of the apparatus main body in accordance with a plurality of measurement hardware 5A for the measurement of the measured object based on a wired system communication standard to measure the content of the object to be measured A network test method in which the plurality of measurement hardware is controlled by any combination of the plurality of measurement hardware according to the setting contents, and the plurality of measurement hardware is controlled by the plurality of measurement applications 11.
Managing resources of the network test apparatus 1;
When the date has changed, when the operating time of the device has passed the specified time, when the operating time of the measuring hardware has passed the specified time, when the measuring hardware has been replaced, or when the previous self-diagnosis was performed When the specified time has passed, when the measurement hardware abnormality is detected, or when any self-diagnosis abnormality is detected, or a condition that selectively combines the conditions, the self-diagnosis execution condition And determining whether or not the self-diagnosis execution condition is satisfied at the time of starting the apparatus based on the usage status of the resource to be managed, time information, and date information;
Characterized in that it comprises the step of performing a self-diagnosis is satisfied the self-diagnosis execution condition during device activation.

The network test method according to claim 5 is the network test method according to claim 4 ,
When the start of measurement is instructed, at least the measurement hardware (5A) for each slot (S) is mounted, the measurement port (5a) for each slot is empty, the user information for each measurement port, The method includes the step of managing the type of measurement hardware for each slot as a resource of the network test apparatus (1) .
The network test method according to claim 6 is the network test method according to claim 4 or 5,
The method includes a step of setting the designated time according to a difference in usage pattern of the network test apparatus (1) for each user and a usage frequency for each measurement hardware.

  According to the present invention, since the self-diagnosis is performed only when the self-diagnosis condition is satisfied, it is possible to shorten the start-up time and make the apparatus usable promptly without impairing the purpose of the self-diagnosis.

It is a block diagram which shows the whole structure of the network test apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is an operation | movement flowchart at the time of performing a self-diagnosis using the network test apparatus which concerns on this invention.

  Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  The network test apparatus and the network test method according to the present invention are wired systems such as a specific signal system (for example, SDH (Synchronous Digital Hierarchy), PDH (plesiochronous digital hierarchy), OTN (Optical Transport Network), Ethernet (registered trademark), etc. A single device can measure multiple types of devices under test (for example, data transmission systems having a plurality of ports such as routers, hubs, transmission devices, etc.) based on various communication standards), and are determined in advance when the device is activated. Only when the self-diagnosis execution condition is satisfied, the apparatus has a self-diagnosis function for determining whether or not the apparatus itself can operate normally.

(About the overall configuration of the network test equipment)
As shown in FIG. 1, the network test apparatus 1 includes an operation unit 2, an input / output unit 3, a storage unit 4, a measurement hardware unit 5, a display unit 6, and a processing control unit 7. I have.

  In the network test apparatus 1, a plurality of slots S (three slots S1, S2, and S3 in the example of FIG. 1) are provided in a casing that forms the apparatus main body. In each of the slots S1, S2, and S3, a plurality of measurement hardware 5A (measurement hardware A, measurement hardware B, measurement hardware C) of the measurement hardware unit 5 is arbitrarily set according to the measurement contents of the object to be measured. It is attached so that it can be attached and detached.

  The operation unit 2 is provided in a casing that forms the apparatus main body, and includes, for example, various keys, switches, buttons, and the like. When the operation unit 2 gives an instruction to start or stop the measurement of the object to be measured, and when various settings of the setting file 12 to be described later are performed on the display screen of the display unit 6, detailed contents of the self-diagnosis execution condition 14 to be described later are displayed. It is appropriately operated when deciding.

  The input / output unit 3 includes an external interface connected to, for example, an external terminal (such as a PC) or an external storage medium (such as a USB memory or an external hard disk). The input / output unit 3 controls the exchange of information between the external terminal and the external storage medium by the processing control unit 7, and inputs and outputs a setting file 12 and a measurement result file 13 described later.

  The storage unit 4 stores a measurement application 11 (two measurement applications 11a and 11b in the example of FIG. 1), a setting file 12, a measurement result file 13, and a self-diagnosis execution condition 14 that are indispensable for various measurements of an object to be measured. doing.

  The measurement application 11 is a predetermined type of measurement of an object to be measured when the processing control unit 7 controls a plurality of measurement hardware 5A in any combination (for example, error detection measurement, delay measurement, packet loss measurement, throughput measurement, etc. ) Is composed of software consisting of a series of processing programs. The measurement application 11 is selected according to the type of measurement contents of the measurement object such as error detection measurement, delay measurement, packet loss measurement, and throughput measurement, and the signal system such as SDH, PDH, OTN, Ethernet (registered trademark). The

  In the example of FIG. 1, the measurement application α and the measurement application β are illustrated as the measurement applications 11 (11a, 11b), but the numbers are not limited.

  The setting file 12 is a file indicating what kind of measurement is desired to be performed on the measurement object. When the measurement object is measured by the network test apparatus 1, the operation unit 2 corresponds to the measurement content of the measurement object. And is stored and stored temporarily in the storage unit 4. The setting file 12 is generated at an arbitrary timing by a user operation regardless of the end / start of measurement. However, it is assumed that the user has performed necessary setting operations.

  More specifically, the setting file 12 includes basic setting information, used communication method / rate information, port number information, and used port information.

  The basic setting information includes basic setting information for each measurement application 11 (11a, 11b) necessary for measurement of an object to be measured by the measurement hardware 5A. Specific examples of basic setting information include selection of a signal generation reference clock (internal crystal or external signal capture), selection of a signal multiplexing stage in SDH / OTN, and a protocol stack configuration of a test Ethernet (registered trademark) frame (for example, Ethernet (registered trademark) with IPv4 or IPv6, whether to attach a VLAN tag, whether to apply an MPLS label, etc.), various types of Ethernet included in the test Ethernet (registered trademark) frame Contents of protocol header (for example, what IP address should be used, VLAN tag or MPLS label ID value, etc.), contents of various overhead bytes included in test OTN / SDH frame (for example, provision of carrier code) Etc.), test transmission Ethernet (registered trademark) frame Setting of transfer rate (for example, what percentage is transmitted with respect to full wire rate, what period of transmission is repeated, etc.), selection of test pseudo random bit sequence signal (for example, PRBS7 / PRBS9), There are threshold values for pass / fail judgment, sampling period for obtaining measurement results, and the like.

  The used communication method / rate information is information relating to the communication method used (for example, a wired communication standard such as SDH, PDH, OTN, Ethernet (registered trademark)) and the rate of the communication method used.

  The port number information is information regarding the number of ports required by the measurement application 11 to be used.

  The used port information is information related to the logical port number associated with each measurement port 5a of the measurement hardware 5A controlled by the measurement application 11 used, and the type of connector and optical transceiver used.

  The same logical port number is assigned to the measurement ports 5a belonging to the same group. The setting file 12 described above is read from an external terminal or an external storage medium (not shown) via the input / output unit 3 and temporarily stored in the storage unit 4 when the measurement object is repeatedly measured under the same setting conditions. Stored in memory.

  The measurement result file 13 is a file related to the measurement result of the object to be measured that is executed by controlling the measurement hardware 5A by the measurement application 11 based on the setting contents, and is measured at a predetermined sampling period based on the setting contents of the setting file 12. This is history information (including graph and table information based on the measurement result of the object to be measured) indicating the measurement result of the object.

  The measurement result file 13 is created at the end of the measurement, and information related to the measurement result of the object to be measured is temporarily stored in the storage unit 4 in association with the setting file 12 at the time of measurement.

  The self-diagnosis execution condition 14 is indispensable information for performing the self-diagnosis. The self-diagnosis execution condition 14 is (1) when the date changes, (2) when the operation time (energization time) of the apparatus has passed the specified time, and (3) the operation time (energization time) of the measurement hardware 5A. When the specified time has elapsed, (4) when the measurement hardware 5A has been replaced, (5) when the specified time has elapsed since the last self-diagnosis was performed, and (6) an abnormality in the measurement hardware 5A was detected. (7) Any condition when a self-diagnosis abnormality is detected, or a condition obtained by selectively combining the conditions (1) to (7). Each designated time is set in advance according to the difference in usage pattern of the network test apparatus 1 for each user, the usage frequency for each measurement hardware 5A, and the like.

  The measurement hardware unit 5 includes a plurality of measurement hardware 5A (three measurement hardware 5A1, 5A2, and 5A3 in the example of FIG. 1).

  Each measurement hardware 5A includes a measurement port 5a that is wired to a measurement object to be measured, and can be arbitrarily combined with the slot 1a of the housing constituting the apparatus body according to the measurement contents. It is attached to the detachable and replaceable.

  Each measurement hardware 5A (5A1, 5A2, 5A3) includes an FPGA (field-programmable gate array) 5b connected to the measurement port 5a. The FPGA 5b is an integrated circuit that allows the user to set the configuration after manufacture, and is controlled by the processing control unit 7 so that the measurement application 11 performs data measurement with the measurement application 11 so that predetermined measurement based on the setting of the setting file 12 is performed. Sending and receiving.

  The display unit 6 includes a display device such as a liquid crystal. The display unit 6 displays a setting screen when appropriately setting the setting contents of the setting file 12 by the operation of the operation unit 2 under the control of the processing control unit 7, displays a measurement result based on the setting contents of the setting file 12, and the like. Is going.

  The processing control unit 7 includes, for example, a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), and a RAM (Random Access Memory), and includes an operation unit 2, an input / output unit 3, a storage unit 4, and measurement hardware. The unit 5 and the display unit 6 are collectively controlled.

  The processing control unit 7 controls the measurement hardware 5A of the measurement hardware unit 5 based on the setting of the operation signal from the operation unit 2 and the setting file 12 so that the measurement object desired by the user is measured. Yes. Further, the process control unit 7 executes the self-diagnosis only when it is determined that the self-diagnosis execution condition 14 stored in the storage unit 4 is satisfied when the network test apparatus 1 is powered on and activated. doing. Further, the processing control unit 7 includes a resource management unit 7a, a clock unit 7b, and a determination unit 7c.

  The resource management unit 7a manages the usage status of the resources of the network test apparatus 1 (information about the measurement hardware 5A, the measurement port 5a, the user, etc.) as information indicating what measurement can be performed on the object to be measured. ing.

  When the measurement start is instructed by the operation of the operation unit 2, the resource management unit 7a installs the measurement hardware 5A for each slot S (S1, S2, S3), and for each slot S (S1, S2, S3). Empty state of the measurement port 5a, user information (IP address) for each measurement port 5a, capability (ability) information of each measurement port 5a for the measurement application 11 in the setting file 12, and for each slot S (S1, S2, S3) The type of measurement hardware 5A is acquired and managed as the resource usage status immediately before the start of measurement in the network test apparatus 1.

  The clock unit 7b is an internal clock for measuring the time for the purpose of recognizing the operation time (energization time) of the network test apparatus 1 and the operation time (energization time) of each measurement hardware 5A, and discriminates the measured time information. To the unit 7c.

  The determination unit 7c determines whether or not the self-diagnosis execution condition 14 stored in the storage unit 4 is satisfied when the network test apparatus 1 is powered on and activated. Whether or not the self-diagnosis execution condition 14 is satisfied is determined based on the usage status of resources managed by the resource management unit 7a (the mounting state of the measurement hardware 5A for each slot S) and the time information measured by the clock unit 7b ( The operation time of the network test apparatus 1 and each measurement hardware 5A) and the date information of the internal calendar are performed.

  The process control unit 7 executes the self-diagnosis only when it is determined by the determination unit 7c that the self-diagnosis execution condition 14 is satisfied. Specific contents of the self-diagnosis include checking the status and operation of the device body (real-time clock, control EEPROM, touch screen control, audio codec, battery charge control, battery status (charge amount, voltage), firmware version, etc. Check) and status and operation check for each measurement hardware 5A (EEPROM, FPGA, voltage, FPGA interface, measurement data capture buffer ROM, clock generator, Ethernet (registered trademark) physical layer operation check), measurement There are interface operation check between hardware 5A, port expansion, device internal temperature check, and the like.

  In FIG. 1, the operation unit 2 and the processing control unit 7 and the display unit 6 and the processing control unit 7 are connected by a LAN. This LAN connection can be connected from outside the network test apparatus 1 by the HUB mechanism. Moreover, the network test apparatus 1 can be remotely operated by connecting via LAN using PC. The IP address as user information means the IP address of this external PC.

  In the example of FIG. 1, the operation unit 2 and the display unit 6 are illustrated and described as functionally separate configurations. However, a position input device such as a touch pad (corresponding to the operation unit 2) and a display such as a liquid crystal panel are illustrated. If the device (corresponding to the display unit 6) is configured by a touch panel made of an electronic component integrated, the operation unit 2 and the display unit 6 can be combined into one.

  In the example of FIG. 1, the configuration including two measurement applications 11a and 11b and three measurement hardware 5A1, 5A2, and 5A3 is illustrated, but the number is not limited.

  Next, the self-diagnosis operation in the network test apparatus 1 configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG.

(Self-diagnosis operation)
First, in order to perform various desired tests on the device under test, the network test apparatus 1 is activated by turning on the power (ST1). When the network test apparatus 1 is activated by turning on the power, the process control unit 7 determines whether or not the self-diagnosis execution condition 14 is satisfied (ST2). If the process control unit 7 determines that the self-diagnosis execution condition 14 is satisfied, the process control unit 7 executes self-diagnosis (ST3).

  The self-diagnosis execution condition 14 is indispensable information for carrying out the self-diagnosis. As described above, when (1) the date is changed, (2) the operation time (energization time) of the apparatus is When the specified time has elapsed, (3) When the measurement hardware operating time (energization time) has passed the specified time, (4) When the measurement hardware has been replaced, (5) When the previous self-diagnosis was performed When the specified time has passed, (6) When a measurement hardware abnormality is detected, (7) Any condition when a self-diagnosis abnormality is detected, or (1) to (7) And is stored in the storage unit 4.

  When the self-diagnosis is finished, the network test apparatus 1 finishes starting the network test apparatus 1 (ST4), and the FPGA 5b controls the measurement hardware 5A by starting the measurement application 11 based on the setting of the setting file 12. The process proceeds to a measurement processing operation for measuring the object to be measured.

  If the process control unit 7 determines in ST2 that the self-diagnosis execution condition 14 is not satisfied, the self-diagnosis of ST3 is not executed, the start of the network test apparatus 1 is terminated (ST4), and based on the setting of the setting file 12 When the measurement application 11 is activated, the FPGA 5b immediately controls the measurement hardware 5A to shift to a measurement processing operation in which the measurement object is measured.

  As described above, in the conventional apparatus, when the self-diagnosis function is executed every time the apparatus is started up, the time until the apparatus becomes usable is increased by the time required for the self-diagnosis. For example, since the self-diagnosis is executed only when the self-diagnosis execution condition 14 is satisfied, the start-up time can be shortened and the apparatus can be used quickly without impairing the purpose of the self-diagnosis function.

  Further, as the self-diagnosis execution condition 14, if the operating time (energization time) of the measurement hardware 5A has passed a specified time or the measurement hardware 5A has been replaced, a network test apparatus for each user Self-diagnosis can be executed according to the difference in the usage pattern of 1 and the usage frequency of each measurement hardware 5A.

  The best mode of the network test apparatus and the network test method according to the present invention has been described above, but the present invention is not limited by the description and drawings according to this mode. That is, it is a matter of course that all other forms, examples, operation techniques, and the like made by those skilled in the art based on this form are included in the scope of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Network test apparatus 2 Operation part 3 Input / output part 4 Storage part 5 Measurement hardware part 5A Measurement hardware 5a Measurement port 6 Display part 7 Processing control part 7a Resource management part 7b Clock part 7c Discrimination part 11 Measurement application 12 Setting file 13 Measurement result file 14 Self-diagnosis execution conditions

Claims (6)

A plurality of measurement hardware (5A), which is detachably attached to the slot (S) of the apparatus main body according to the measurement content of the measurement object, and performs measurement of the measurement object based on a wired communication standard; A network test apparatus (1) comprising a plurality of measurement applications (11) for controlling a combination of the plurality of measurement hardware according to setting contents,
A resource management unit (7a) for managing the resources of the network test device, when the date changes, when the operating time of the device has passed the specified time, when the operating time of the measurement hardware has passed the specified time, Either when the measurement hardware is replaced, when a specified time has elapsed since the last self-diagnosis was performed, when an abnormality in the measurement hardware was detected, or when an abnormality in self-diagnosis was detected Whether the condition or a condition that selectively combines the conditions is a self-diagnosis execution condition, and whether the self-diagnosis execution condition is satisfied at the time of device startup based on the usage status, time information, and date information of resources managed by the resource management unit includes discriminating unit for discriminating whether a (7c), when the該判another unit determines that satisfy the self-diagnosis execution conditions when the apparatus is started only processing control unit to perform the self-diagnosis Network testing apparatus characterized by having a seven). When the start of measurement is instructed, the resource management unit (7a) attaches at least the measurement hardware (5A) for each slot (S), the vacant state of the measurement port (5a) for each slot, The network test apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein user information for each measurement port and measurement hardware type for each slot are managed as resources of the network test apparatus (1) . The said designated time is preset according to the difference in the usage pattern of the said network test apparatus (1) for every user, and the usage frequency for each measurement hardware (5A), The said specification time is characterized by the above-mentioned. Network testing equipment. A plurality of measurement hardware (5A) for measuring an object to be measured based on a wired communication standard is detachably attached to a slot (S) of the apparatus body according to the measurement contents of the object to be measured. A network test method for controlling the plurality of measurement hardware by arbitrarily combining the measurement hardware according to the setting contents by the measurement application (11),
Managing the resources of the network test equipment (1);
When the date has changed, when the operating time of the device has passed the specified time, when the operating time of the measuring hardware has passed the specified time, when the measuring hardware has been replaced, or when the previous self-diagnosis was performed When the specified time has passed, when the measurement hardware abnormality is detected, or when any self-diagnosis abnormality is detected, or a condition that selectively combines the conditions, the self-diagnosis execution condition And determining whether or not the self-diagnosis execution condition is satisfied at the time of starting the apparatus based on the usage status of the resource to be managed, time information, and date information;
Network testing method characterized by comprising the step of performing a self-diagnosis is satisfied the self-diagnosis execution condition during device activation. When the start of measurement is instructed, at least the measurement hardware (5A) for each slot (S) is mounted, the measurement port (5a) for each slot is empty, the user information for each measurement port, 5. The network test method according to claim 4, further comprising the step of managing the type of measurement hardware for each slot as a resource of the network test apparatus (1). 6. The network test according to claim 4, further comprising a step of setting the designated time according to a difference in usage pattern of the network test apparatus (1) for each user and a usage frequency for each measurement hardware. Method.

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