Quantum Data is well known in the industry for its EDID expertise. The 882 Video Test Generator/Analyzer’s EDID sink compliance test tool is approved for use in the HDMI, LLC ATCs and is listed in the HDMI Compliance Test Specification. The 980 Protocol Analyzer offers an EDID compliance test utility for sink devices as well. The 780 Handheld Test Instrument supports basic EDID verification of sink devices.

For testing HDMI source devices, the 780, 980 and 882 instruments can emulate a variety of EDIDs. They are also equipped with the necessary utilities to create new EDIDs or capture EDIDs from HDTVs and then store them for testing source devices through emulation on the instrument’s Rx ports.

Several customers and industry professional organisations have asked Quantum Data to provide an EDID library to facilitate testing and reduce interoperability problems in the field. One industry expert at the recent CEDIA Expo stated:

“EDIDs account for most of the HDMI interoperability problems in the field.”

The EDID library envisioned would offer a set of known-good EDIDs with a variety of common capabilities as well as specific models from HDTV manufacturers. But the library could also support irregular testing by offering EDIDs with realistic anomalies such as a bad checksum, bad header, missing blocks, etc.

Quantum Data customers, through a secure login, could download particular EDIDs for a specific tests or they could download the entire EDID library for full validation or regression testing of their source devices. In order to support a comprehensive list of EDIDs, manufacturers of HDTVs could support the EDID library initiative either by sending a variety of their EDIDs to Quantum Data or simply by approving the inclusion of their EDIDs in the library. This would enable HDTV manufacturers to gain a greater degree of assurance that their EDIDs interoperate with the multitude of source devices that are commercially available.

At this point, this is a proposal and Quantum Data would like to get real feed back before pursuing technical and legal infrastructure that might be required to proceed. If there is little interest or major objections, they won’t proceed.