A REVIEW OF PCB DESIGN FOR IN-CIRCUIT TESTABILITY GUIDELINES AND SYSTEMS

In-circuit test is the most widely used loaded board test technique em ployed by the electronics manufacturing industry. In-circuit testing h as increased in complexity due to greater demands on board real estate and the miniaturization of technology. Problems with in-circuit tests have grown with the advent and implementation of Surface Mount Techno logy (SMT). The need for designers of Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) to take test into consideration as early as possible in the design proce ss has been widely recognized. This paper reviews research on design f or in-circuit testability and identifies a set of guidelines for PCB l ayout. Various systems which have been developed to assess the in-circ uit testability of new designs are then described and reviewed. These systems have not applied the complete set of PCB guidelines and have d eficiencies in terms of their usefulness to PCB designers. Finally, th e paper draws together the conclusions from the review and describes t he requirements for a comprehensive Design for In-Circuit Testability Advisory (DICTA) system.