Test Generation Reformulated

Abstract

We formulate the test generation problem as an optimization problem such that the desired optima are the test vectors for some target fault. This formulation captures three necessary and sufficient conditions that any set of signal values must satisfy to be a test. First, the set of values must be consistent with each gate’s function in the circuit. Second, the signal in the fault-free and faulty circuits at the fault site must assume opposite values (e.g., 0 and 1 respectively, for a s-a-1 fault). Third, for the same primary input vector, the fault-free and faulty circuits should produce different output values.

“The power of the brain stems not from any single,fixed, universal principle. Instead it comes from the evolution (in both the individual sense andthe Darwinian sense) of a variety of ways todevelop new mechanisms and to adapt older ones toperform new junctions.” — M.L. Minsky and S.A.Papertin Perceptrons, MIT Press (1988).