FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS

The input and output states of a chip can be monitored using an oscilloscope, or special purpose probes such as logic state analysers or protocol analysers, to acquire a picture of the behaviour of the chip over time or in response to input signals.

Many patented goods are not sold with restrictive licences, and hence a bona fide purchaser cannot usually be prevented by the patent from doing what they like with the patented product. Indeed, the patent itself may give the reverse engineer valuable information on how the patented product operates.

However, a competitive product produced by reverse engineering may still infringe the patent itself - patent infringement does not require copying, and so "clean-room" techniques do not assist.