Error Rate Measuring Apparatus for FEC Symbol Error Counting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing error rate measuring apparatuses lack the capability to count FEC Symbol Errors according to communication standards, making it difficult to confirm FEC error correction capabilities and prolonging debugging processes.
Innovation Solution
An error rate measuring apparatus that inputs NRZ or PAM4 signals as test signals to a device under test, sets Codeword and FEC Symbol lengths based on communication standards, and includes error counting mechanisms to detect and display FEC Symbol Errors, enabling efficient debugging.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional error rate measurement methods are used, then basic bit error rate can be measured, but FEC Symbol Errors cannot be counted and debugging efficiency is low
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the error measurement process into distinct functional modules: a data comparison unit that compares received data with reference data to identify error positions, and an error counting unit that specifically counts FEC Symbol Errors based on the comparison results. This segmentation enables precise FEC Symbol Error measurement while maintaining manageable system complexity through modular design.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary error counting unit that acts as a mediator between the data comparison unit and the measurement output. This intermediary unit processes the comparison results to specifically count FEC Symbol Errors, bridging the gap between basic error detection and specialized FEC error measurement without requiring complete system redesign.
2Productivity
If FEC Symbol Error counting is added to measure FEC operation, then debugging efficiency improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-configuring the error counting unit with FEC coding parameters (such as codeword length and symbol length) before measurement begins. This allows the system to quickly count FEC Symbol Errors without requiring complex real-time calculations during measurement, thereby improving debugging efficiency while keeping the device complexity manageable through pre-computation.
3Quantity of substance
If PAM4 signal is used for high transmission capacity, then transmission amount increases, but signal to noise ratio deteriorates and error detection becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces physical signal quality assessment with a data-level comparison mechanism. Instead of relying on analog signal-to-noise ratio measurements that are difficult with PAM4 signals, the system uses digital data comparison between received and reference signals to precisely identify and count errors. This substitution enables accurate error measurement in PAM4 high-speed transmission where traditional signal quality metrics become unreliable.
Data Source
AI summary
An error rate measuring apparatus includes an operation unit that sets one Codeword length and one FEC Symbol length of FEC according to a communication standard of a device under test, data division means for dividing symbol string data obtained by converting a signal received from the device under test into MSB data and LSB data, a data comparison unit that compares each of the divided MSB data and LSB data with error data to detect MSB errors and LSB errors of each one Codeword length, and detects FEC Symbol Errors of each of the MSB data and the LSB data at one FEC Symbol interval, and error counting means for counting the detected MSB errors and LSB errors, and counting the FEC Symbol Errors.