EYE PATTERNS

EYE PATTERNS
 A common method of analyzing the quality of binary data
transmitted on a cable
 It is a display of the individual bits overlapped with one
another.
 The resulting output looks like an open eye. The shape of the
pattern and the degree that the eye is “open” can be used
to determine many things about the quality of transmission.
 To display the eye diagram, you need an oscilloscope with a
bandwidth at least five times the maximum bit rate
 The opening of the eye represents the voltage difference between
a 1 or 0
 A large variation indicates noise problems, nonsymmetrical shapes
indicate system distortion. The eye pattern can be viewed while
making adjustments to the system
 Either a conventional analog or a digital oscilloscope can be used.
• In Figure a) The eye is “wide open” and has a trapezoidal shape If the signal has not been
severely rounded, delayed, or distorted

• In Figure b), The pattern looks more like an open eye and the pulses are rounded

• In Figure c), The resulting pattern appears to be an eye that is closing. The more the eye
closes, the narrower the bandwidth, the greater the distortion and interference
 Noise margin- is the amount of voltage between the lowest of the
upper patterns and the highest of the lower patterns Noise margin is
sometimes expressed as a percentage based upon the ratio of the
noise margin level

 The eye diagram is not a precise measurement method. But it is an

excellent way to get a quick qualitative check of the signal.
 The eye pattern tells at a glance the degree of bandwidth
limitation, signal distortion, jitter, and noise margin.