System and method for loading compressed embedded diagnostics
Patent 5530847 Issued on June 25, 1996. Estimated Expiration Date: 
July 14, 2013. Estimated Expiration Date is calculated based on simple USPTO term provisions. It does not account for terminal disclaimers, term adjustments, failure to pay maintenance fees, or other factors which might affect the term of a patent.
July 14, 2013. Estimated Expiration Date is calculated based on simple USPTO term provisions. It does not account for terminal disclaimers, term adjustments, failure to pay maintenance fees, or other factors which might affect the term of a patent.Patent ReferencesDiagnostic system and interface for a personal computer Disk operating system loadable from read only memory using installable file system interface Patent #: 5307497 InventorsAssigneeApplicationNo. 091548 filed on 07/14/1993US Classes:714/38Of computer softwareExaminersPrimary: Canney, Vincent P.Attorney, Agent or FirmInternational ClassG06F 009/45AbstractDisclosed are a system and method for loading diagnostic routines for execution in a computer system. The method comprises the steps of (1) executing a boot loading routine stored in non-volatile memory within the computer system, the boot loading routine providing an environment in lieu of an operating system of the computer system within which to execute diagnostic routines, the boot loading routine including a decompression routine, (2) decompressing a compressed diagnostic routine stored in the non-volatile memory into video random access memory (RAM) and (3) executing the decompressed diagnostic routine under control of the boot loading routine. The present invention, in its preferred embodiment, allows relatively large diagnostic routines to be stored in electrically erasable programmable read only memory ("EEPROM") and decompressed, as required, into video RAM for execution, without requiring the computer's operating system to function. | |
