TABLE OF CONTENTS The application software for an FDM monitoring system can be divided into four basic categories:
Database management
Measurement routines
Maintenance and management report routines
Functional testing and diagnostic routines
This is not to say that every monitoring system will, or must, necessarily have software from all four categories. Certainly, measurement routines and database management are fundamental to any system; functional and diagnostic routines are very desirable, especially in the case of systems having truly remote stations. Whereas maintenance and management reports will be a function of the requirements of the system, in some cases the printout of raw measurement results obtained from the measurement routines may be adequate.
Information about the FDM network to be monitored, the monitoring system equipment, and the system configuration is stored in the computer system in what is known as a database. Typically, the monitoring system information would include details of the following:
Equipment located at each site
Controller I/O port assignment for each subsystem
Type of subsystem communication link (e.g., leased line point-to-point, dial-up, multipoint)
The network information relates to the FDM test points and would typically comprise
Transmission level (TLP)
FDM plan type and any modifications
FDM start and stop values plus skip values relating to unloaded sections of the multiplex
Test-point flatness characteristic (equalization curve)
Measurement alarm status
Measurement result and status information can also be held either in the relevant station database...
