Diagnostic system having multi-level port and flexible interface with a main port control unit and plurality of order port and primary port control units

Claim 1

In a diagnostic system for diagnosing a plurality of N (N is an integer of at least 2) diagnosed units which implement an information processing system, said plurality of diagnosed units being assigned with different processing unit numbers, respectively, said diagnostic system comprising: a diagnostic processor for delivering a specific one of said processing unit numbers and a diagnosis indicating data signal to receive a specific diagnostic data set from a specific one of said diagnosed unit corresponding to said specific processing unit number and for processing said specific diagnostic data set to diagnose said specific diagnosed unit; and interface means for delivering said diagnosis indicating data signal to said plurality of diagnosed units and for selecting, as said specific diagnostic data set, one of said diagnostic data sets from said specific diagnosed unit to deliver said specific diagnostic data set to said diagnostic processor by use of said specific processing unit number, wherein said N diagnosed units are classified into N 1 (N/m ≦N 1 <N/m+1, N 1 being an integer and m being an integer of at least 2 but not larger than N) primary port control groups which have different primary port control group numbers, each of said primary port control groups having at least one but not larger than m diagnosed units which are assigned different group elementary numbers, N i-1 (i-1)-th (i being an integer) order port control groups being classified into N i (N i-1 /m≦N i <(N i-1 /m+1), N i being an integer) i-th order port control groups which have different i-th order group numbers, N k (N k =N i , 2≦N.sub. k ≦m) k-th order port control groups having different k-th order group numbers when i=k, each of said processing unit numbers including said group, elementary number, said primary number, said (i-1)-th order group number, said i-th order group number and said k-th order group number; said interface means further including N 1 primary port control units corresponding to said N 1 primary port control groups and each of said N 1 primary port control units coupled to elementary diagnosed units in each of said primary port control groups; N i-1 (i-1)-th order port control units corresponding to said N i-1 (i-1)-th port control groups and being classified into N i i-th order controller groups corresponding to said N i i-th order port control groups; N i i-th order port control units each coupled to said (i-1)-th order port control units in each of said N i i-th order controller groups; N k k-th order port control units corresponding to said N k k-th order port control groups; and a main port control unit coupled to said N k k-th order port control units, said main port control unit being coupled to said diagnostic processor for receiving a pair signal of said specific processing unit number and said diagnosis indicating data signal, said pair signal being delivered from said main port control unit to said diagnosed units through said k-th order port control units, said i-th port control units and said primary port control units, said specific diagnostic data set being delivered from said specific diagnosed unit to said diagnostic processor through one of said primary port control units, one of said (i-1)-th order port control units, one of said i-th order port control units, one of said k-th order port control units, and said main port control unit.