Chapter Overview

Electronic components sometimes fail, and part of the troubleshooting process involves identifying the failed components. This is accomplished by using logic based on an understanding of circuits and by using test equipment. Today, this part of the troubleshooting process must be based on a system viewpoint and should be the next step after some very important preliminary checks have been made.

This chapter will help you to:

1. Identify symptoms in malfunctioning equipment and systems.

2. Perform preliminary checks and eliminate obvious problems.

3. Localize circuit defects by using signal injection and signal tracing.

4. Find component-level defects by using voltage analysis.

5. Troubleshoot intermittent systems.

6. Troubleshoot operational-amplifier (op-amp) circuits.

7. Explain how automated testing works.

Study Outline

10-1 Preliminary Checks

10-2 No Output

10-3 Reduced Output

10-4 Distortion and Noise

10-5 Intermittents

10-6 Operational Amplifiers

10-7 Automated Testing