Cellular Field Testing Automation With Precondition Checks
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cellular field testing tools lack automation and user-friendly features, requiring extensive training and expertise for operators to ensure valid test results, and often fail to check critical preconditions before initiating tests.
Innovation Solution
A cellular field testing tool that initiates tests only after verifying a set of preconditions, including location and network attributes, and performs remedial actions if necessary, such as cycling airplane mode or power cycling, to ensure valid test conditions are met.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual operation of cellular field testing tool, then operator can control test process, but extensive training and expertise required
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by automatically checking all necessary preconditions (signal strength, location, network registration) before allowing a test to start. This automated preliminary verification eliminates the need for operators to manually verify each condition, reducing the training required while maintaining test validity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system provides continuous feedback to operators about the status of preconditions and automatically performs remedial actions (such as cycling airplane mode or power cycling the device) when conditions are not met. This feedback loop simplifies operation by handling complex troubleshooting automatically, reducing the expertise needed while preserving operational control.
2Reliability
If manual precondition checking, then test validity can be ensured, but time-consuming and error-prone
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically performs all necessary precondition checks (signal strength, location accuracy, network registration, device state) before test execution. This automated preliminary action ensures test validity without manual intervention, eliminating time-consuming manual checks while preventing errors through systematic verification of all critical conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs self-service by automatically detecting and remedying precondition failures without operator intervention. When preconditions are not met, the system autonomously executes remedial actions (airplane mode cycling, power cycling) and re-evaluates conditions, ensuring reliable test setup while significantly reducing the time operators need to spend on manual verification and troubleshooting.
3Ease of operation
If automated precondition checking and remedial actions, then less experienced operators can perform accurate tests, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the complex testing process into distinct, manageable components: precondition checking modules (signal strength, location, network registration), remedial action modules (airplane mode cycling, power cycling), and test execution modules. This segmentation allows the system to handle complexity internally through organized, modular operations while presenting a simple interface to operators, enabling less experienced users to perform accurate tests without exposing them to the underlying complexity.
4Reliability
If multiple preconditions checked before test, then test reliability improves, but test initiation time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs all necessary precondition checks as preliminary actions before test initiation, verifying signal strength, location accuracy, network registration, and device state. By automating these preliminary checks and executing them systematically in the background, the system ensures high test reliability while minimizing the perceived time delay for operators through efficient parallel processing and automated workflow management.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs self-service by automatically monitoring and remedying precondition failures in real-time without requiring operator waiting or intervention. When conditions become unsuitable, the system autonomously executes remedial actions and re-evaluates, ensuring test reliability is maintained while reducing overall time loss by preventing test failures rather than requiring manual re-setup after failures.
Data Source
AI summary
A disclosed method may include (i) initiating a cellular field testing tool that tests a condition of cellular network connectivity of a device under test, (ii) checking, prior to starting a specific test of the cellular field testing tool, whether each precondition in a set of preconditions is satisfied, and (iii) preventing the cellular field testing tool from starting the specific test until each precondition in the set of preconditions is satisfied. Related systems and computer-readable mediums are further disclosed.