Assertions: a matter of convenience

• Most signals (pins) communicate binary data.

• Some signals are designed to inform a component of some external condition or event. Such as “Pressure exceeds critical value” or “Processor needs to service interrupt”.

• Signaling such a condition is know as “Assertion”

• Some signals are considered “asserted” when they are held low (grounded) others are considered asserted when held high (Vcc).