A Procedure for Selecting Diagnostic Tests

The problem considered is the selection of a subset of diagnostic test inputs for combinational circuits. The selected subset of tests will diagnose a single fault to the package level, i.e., until the package which contains the fault is determined. The procedure in obtaining this subset makes use of information provided by multiple outputs, and through a local optimization technique provides a near-optimal global procedure. The local optimization technique weights the tests according to the degree to which they partition the possible faulty packages. The test that provides the greatest partitioning in conjunction with previous selected tests is added to the subset of diagnostic tests.