Method and apparatus for testing a network using a spare receiver
First Claim
1. An apparatus for testing a network comprising:
- a plurality of receivers, each receiver being capable of receiving signals according to predetermined communication protocols from a plurality of modems;
a switching unit which selectively connects the spare receiver to a signal line associated with one of the plurality of receivers, enabling the spare receiver to receive signals sent to a selected one of the plurality of receivers from a modem registered with the selected one of the plurality of receivers; and
a controller configured to select a modem registered on a receiver of the plurality of receivers as a testing modem, to register the testing modem to the spare receiver, and perform testing of the network using the testing modem.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A spare receiver in a CMTS is used to non-invasively test the upstream signal quality of a network without disrupting a subscriber'"'"'s operations. A modem registered with a receiver on the network is selected as a testing modem. The spare receiver is RF connected to the receiver and the testing modem is tuned to the spare receiver. The testing modem is used to test the signal quality of the network, such as by using a SNR test. The testing modem remains registered with the network during the testing operation. Other modems are prevented from registering with the spare receiver. If other modems attempt to register on the spare receiver, the system overrides their attempts and moves them back to another receiver. The testing modem is returned to its original receiver when testing is completed.
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Citations
22 Claims
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1. An apparatus for testing a network comprising:
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a plurality of receivers, each receiver being capable of receiving signals according to predetermined communication protocols from a plurality of modems;
a switching unit which selectively connects the spare receiver to a signal line associated with one of the plurality of receivers, enabling the spare receiver to receive signals sent to a selected one of the plurality of receivers from a modem registered with the selected one of the plurality of receivers; and
a controller configured to select a modem registered on a receiver of the plurality of receivers as a testing modem, to register the testing modem to the spare receiver, and perform testing of the network using the testing modem. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A method of testing a network having a plurality of receivers and a spare receiver comprising the steps of:
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connecting the spare receiver to a signal line associated with another receiver of the plurality of receivers;
selecting a modem registered on the other receiver as a testing modem;
registering the testing modem to communicate with the spare receiver; and
performing testing operations on the network with the modem and the spare receiver. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A computer readable medium containing instructions for a processor to perform a method of testing a network having a plurality of receivers and a spare receiver comprising the steps of:
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connecting the spare receiver to a signal line associated with another receiver of the plurality of receivers;
selecting a modem registered on the other receiver as a testing modem;
registering the testing modem to communicate with the spare receiver; and
performing testing operations on the network with the modem and the spare receiver. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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Specification