Automated Repair Service Bureau: Mechanized Loop Testing Design

The Mechanized Loop Testing (MLT) system is a major functional unit of the Automated Repair Service Bureau (ARSB) which automatically tests and analyzes the condition of customer loops. The tests are run at the time the customer reports a trouble, or at any time it is necessary to check the condition of the loop. Results of the tests and 1235 a detailed loop analysis are generally available within 30 seconds from the time the request is initiated. The results are used to provide the customer with an accurate assessment of the trouble and to assist in establishing an appropriate repair commitment time. In addition, the results can be used to efficiently dispatch repair craft and reduce the manual testing requirements of the repair operation.1,2 The MLT system had its origins in a testing system developed in the early 1970s, known as the Line Status Verifier (LSV).3 This system was a threshold-based testing system used by repair-center personnel to test a customer line in a rapid, automatic fashion with a simple console input request. Tests initiated at the time of customer contact reduced substantially subsequent testing by skilled repair personnel. The LSV was later integrated with the Loop Maintenance Operations System (LMOS) so that a test could be initiated from an LMOS computer terminal and the result made part of the LMOS trouble report record. While this generation of the ARSB provided significant economies, it was clear that LMOS, by virtue of its comprehensive data base and computing power, provided the potential for much more sophisticated loop testing.