Testing the integrity of an electrical connection to a device using an onboard controllable signal source

摘要

An apparatus and method for testing the integrity of an electrical connection (222) to a device (205) using an onboard controllable signal source (300). The onboard controllable signal source provides a test signal output (310) via an electrical signal path (305) without having to directly probe the signal path or the electrical connection. The test signal has a selectable frequency that can be selected to be harmonically unrelated to any other signal from the device. A capacitive sensor (215) positioned over the device (205) and the connector (225) detects the energy of the test signal coupled through the electrical connection. The sensor compares the detected amplitude of the test signal to a threshold value and the outcome of the comparison is indicative of the integrity of the electrical connection.