System and method for specifying trigger conditions of a signal measurement system using graphical elements on a graphical user interface

• US 6,570,592 B1
• Filed: 10/29/1999
• Issued: 05/27/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Agilent Technologies Europe BV (Agilent Technologies, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Agilent Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Sajdak, Gregory J, Beck, Douglas James, Upham, Michael A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kincaid, Kristine
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Thomas T.
• Application Number:
  US09/430,203
• Time in Patent Office: 1,306 Days
• Field of Search: 345/440.1, 345/771, 345/773, 345/965, 345/835, 345/839, 345/769, 345/94, 702/57, 702/66, 702/67, 702/68, 702/117
• US Class Current: 715/769
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 13/02 for displaying measured electric variables in digital form
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/3177 Testing of logic operation, e.g. by logic analysers
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/31912 Tester/user interface

Abstract

A system is disclosed for enabling a user to specify one or more trigger conditions by graphically creating a pictorial representation of the trigger conditions. The pictorial representation is presented on a display window of a graphical user interface of a logic analyzer and is accomplished using trigger-condition icons. Each icon represents a trigger condition of a signal or bus. The user specifies the trigger conditions by positioning the trigger-condition icons on the display window. The user does this by selecting, dragging, and dropping the trigger-condition icons onto the display window. The display window may include one or more name elements, each associated with a signal or a bus. The user may specify the trigger condition of a first signal or bus by selecting a trigger-condition icon and positioning it at a first position on the display window in horizontal alignment with the name element of the first signal or bus. Responsive to this action, the system displays a first trigger-condition element at the first position. The user may select the trigger-condition icon from a group of icons consisting of rising-edge icon, falling-edge icon, either-edge icon, low-level icon, high-level icon, don'"'"'t care icon, bus icon, positive pulse icon, and negative pulse icon. The display window may include one or more vertically aligned constant time lines. The first position may be located on a first constant-time line, and the user may select other position on other constant-time lines. The user may specify a time-limit between the first and second constant-time lines, and or between the second and third constant-time lines. This specification may be that the time-limit is an indefinite time period, or that it is less than or greater than a user-specified time period. The system includes a trigger specifier that determines a combined trigger condition for a first state corresponding to the first constant-time line based on the first and second trigger-condition elements and one or more boolean expressions. These expressions may be predetermined, or they may be user-specified.

Claims

1. A signal measurement system comprising:

a display device;

a display processor configured to display a graphical user interface on the display device and to enable a user to draw on the graphical user interface a pictorial representation of a waveform specifying a trigger condition for a desired signal or bus; and

a signal processor that captures the signal or bus upon the occurrence of the user-specified trigger condition, wherein the waveform comprises one or more waveform portions drawn by the user in different positions on the graphical user interface defining a relative temporal sequence between the waveform portions, and wherein the waveform portions collectively define the trigger condition for the desired signal or bus.

2. The signal measurement system of claim 1, wherein the display processor renders each of the one or more waveform portions in response to the user graphically positioning trigger condition icons on the graphical user interface, wherein each trigger condition icons on the graphical user interface, wherein each trigger condition icon represents a trigger condition of a signal or bus for which a representative waveform portion is rendered.

3. The signal measurement system of claim 2, wherein each trigger condition icon has an image of the shape of the represented trigger condition, and wherein the waveform portion generated in response to the positioning thereof has a shape that corresponds to the displayed shape of the represented trigger condition.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein:

the display processor is further configured to enable the user to position the trigger condition icons using graphical drag and drop techniques.

5. The signal measurement system of claim 1, wherein the graphical user interface comprises:

a waveform workplace area in which the user draws the waveform to specify the trigger condition; and

a bus/signal name area in which is displayed name labels for one or more signals or buses including the desired signal or bus.

6. The signal measurement system of claim 5, wherein the waveform drawn by the user in the waveform workplace area is visually associated with the name label of the desired signal or bus.

7. The signal measurement system of claim 6, wherein the visual association is achieved by horizontal alignment of the name label of the desired signal or bus and the waveform.

8. The signal measurement system of claim 6, wherein the name labels are user-specified.

9. The signal measurement system of claim 8, wherein the bus/signal name area has rendered therein an arrangement of combo boxes each of which enables the user to graphically select a name label for a desired signal or bus.

10. The signal measurement system of claim 5, wherein the display processor renders the name labels so that they are visually associated with each other in a hierarchical structure.

11. The signal measurement system of claim 10, wherein the hierarchcal structure is a vertically-aligned hierarchical structure.

12. The signal measurement system of claim 5, wherein the graphical user interface comprises:

a palette area having displayed therein trigger condition icons from the group consisting of rising-edge icon, falling-edge icon, either-edge icon, high-level icon, don'"'"'t care icon, bus icon, positive pulse icon, and negative pulse icon.

13. the signal measurement system of claim 12, wherein time line buttons are displayed on the graphical user interface so as to be associated with the constant time lines and which enable the user to specify time or time limits between successive constant time lines.

14. The signal measurement system of claim 5, wherein the waveform workspace area is divided into regions each corresponding to and visually associated with a name label of a signal or bus and adapted to have displayed therein the wafeform drawn by the user for the corresponding name label.

15. The signal measurement system of claim 14, wherein the regions of the waveform workspace area are delineated by constant time lines extending through the regions of the waveform workplace area orthogonal to a direction indicative of time.

16. The signal mesurement system of claim 1, wherein the signal measurement system is a logic analyzer.

17. A method for enabling a user to graphically specify, in a signal measurement system gaving a display device, a trigger condition for a desired signal or bus, the method comprising the steps of:

(1) displaying on the display device a graphical user interface having a bus/signal name area in which name labels of signals and buses can be displayed, and a waveform workspace area in which is displayed a waveform defining a trigger condition for a signal or bus represented by a name label visually associated with the waveform;

(2) receiving user inputs through the graphical user interface indicating the user has graphically specified a desired signal or bus in the bus/signal name area; and

(3) receiving user inputs through the graphical user interface indicating the user has drawn a waveform in the waveform workspace area to define a trigger condition for the desired bus or signal.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the graphical user interface displayed in step (1) also comprises a waveform palette area in which a plurality of trigger condition icons are displayed, each trigger condition icon representing a trigger condition, and wherein step (3) comprises the steps of:

(a) receiving user inputs indicating that the user has graphically repositoned one or more trigger condition icons from the waveform palette area to a position in a region of the waveform workspace area associated with the desired signal or bus; and

(b) rendering at each location at which a trigger condition icon is positioned, a waveform portion, wherein the rendered waveform portions have a relative temporal sequence determined by the relative position of the trigger condition icons in the associated region of the waveform workplace area.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein each trigger condition icon has an image of the shape of the represented trigger condition, and wherein the waveform portion generated in response thereto has a shape that corresponds to the displayed shape of the represented trigger conditions.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the graphical repositioning of one or more trigger conditions icons is achieved by dragging and dropping the trigger condition icons.

21. The method of claim 17, wherein the visual association is achieved by horizontal alignment of the name label and the waveform.

22. The method of claim 17, wherein step (2) of receiving user inputs through the graphical user interface indicating the user has graphically specified a desired signal or bus in the bus/signal name area comprises the step of:

(a) displaying combo boxes adapted to display a user-specified signal or bus name label, wherein the combo boxes are arranged such that they are visually associated with each other in a hierarchical structure; and

(b) receiving an indication that the user has specified in one or more combo boxes a name label for the desired signal or bus.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the hierarchical structure is vertically-aligned hierarchical structure.

24. The method of claim 17, wherein the step (1) of displaying on the display device a graphical user interface having a waveform workspace area comprising displaying a waveform workspace area divided into regions each such region corresponding to and visually associated with a name label of a signal or bus and adapted to have displayed therein the waveform drawn by the user for the corresponding name label.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the step (1) further comprising displaying constant time lines that extend through the regions of the waveform workspace area in a direction that is orthogonal to a direction of the regions that is indicative of time, wherein the constant time lines delineate the regions of the waveform workspace area.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the step (1) of displaying on the display device a graphical user interface having a waveform workspace area comprising displaying time line buttons on the graphical user interface so as to be associated with the constant time lines and which enable the user to specify time or time limits between successive constant time lines.

27. A logic analyzer comprising;

a display device;

a display processor configured to display on the display device a graphical user interface comprising,

a bus/signal name area in which is displayed user-specified name labels for one or more signals or buses including the desired signal or bus, and

a waveform workplace area in which a user can draw on the graphical user interface a pictorial representation of a waveform specifying a trigger condition for a visually-associated signal or bus, the waveform comprising one or more waveform portions rendered in response to the to the user graphically positioning trigger condition icons on the graphical user interface, wherein each trigger condition icon represents a trigger condition of a signal or bus, and for which a representative waveform portion

is rendered, the relative position of the user-positioned icons defining a relative temporal sequence between the waveform portions; and

a signal processor that captures the signal or bus upon the occurrence of the user-specified trigger condition.

28. The logic analyzer of claim 27, wherein each trigger condition icon has an image of the shape of the represented trigger condition, and wherein the waveform portion generated in response to the positing thereof has a shape that corresponds to the displayed shape of the represented trigger condition.

29. The logic analyzer of claim 27,

wherein the visual association is achieved by horizontal alignment of the name label of the desired signal or bus and the waveform,

wherein the display processor renders the name labels so that they are visually associated with each other in a vertically-oriented hierarchical structure.