Robotron K 1820

K 1820 was a workstation ( workstation). Its more accurate designation was RVS ( computer system with virtual memory ) K 1820 and its cipher in the system of small computer ( SKR ) of the former countries of the CMEA ( Comecon ) was CM 1720. He was in the GDR by VEB Robotron Elektronik Dresden, as from October 1988 Dresden developed and should go in January 1991 in the series production.

History of development

The K 1820 was a replica of the MicroVAX II of the Digital Equipment Corporation ( DEC). The import of Western 32 -bit computer in the area of the CMEA has been hampered by the CoCom embargo technology. In addition, the CPU of the MicroVAX II, the first microprocessor was protected by the Semiconductor Chip Protection Act of 1984 was. Therefore, had at that time a self-development to meet the demand for modern, done on a 32- bit architecture-based CAD computing technology. Replicas of the MicroVAX II are also from Hungary (Microstar 32 or TPA-11/510 ) and the Soviet Union ( СМ 1702) known.

The K 1820 expanded the number of DEC VAX - compatible computer line in SKR, the models of the K 1820 reached about 90 % of the performance of the K 1840 ( RVS K 1840, compatible with the DEC VAX 11/780 ) of Robotron. The K 1820 was intended as a powerful CAD workstation in the circuit and PCB design as well as for the design of mechanical components. Furthermore, it should be used as CAM computer in production planning and control and office automation. The K 1820 was fully software compatible with the 1840 K, so that already developed system and user software could be used.

The K 1820 should be produced from 1991 with an annual quantities of up to 10,000 devices in version K 1821/1822 (Workstation ) and with up to 1,500 units / year in version K 1823 ( process computer, departmental servers ) until 1995. The industrial selling price for a K 1822 was calculated at about 125,000 marks. For the development of the K 1820, an expense of 36.4 million M and for their transfer into production was estimated at 16.5 million M.

The K 1820 is based on the VLSI U80700 - microprocessor system, its 32 -bit CPU U80701 was modeled after the MicroVAX CPU MicroVAX 78032. In addition to the CPU a number of circuits in accordance with the models of DEC had to be designed. The circuit design was to function pattern partially at Robotron Elektronik Dresden, even under the auspices of the VEB Microelectronics " Karl Marx " Erfurt and in collaboration with the partners Carl Zeiss Jena ( Center for Microelectronics Dresden) and the Central Institute of Cybernetics and Information Processes Berlin Academy of Sciences of the GDR. The circuit board design and construction followed their own designs. It was functional and Steckkompatiblität the Q22 bus from DEC.

For operation of the K 1820 VT220 - compatible terminal K was developed 8941. For the use of the K 1822 as a CAD workstation an interactive graphics terminal K 8919.11 with a maximum screen resolution of 1280x1080 pixels was provided on the basis of the EC 1834.01.

From 1995, a successor model K 1830 ( according MicroVAX III ) based on the microprocessor system U80900 ( model CVAX 78034 ) should replace the K 1820.

From the K 1820 to March 1990 about 10 functional models were built. Mid-1990, the development was canceled because an economic production under market conditions after the Monetary, Economic and Social Union and the associated run-down of traditional markets in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe was no longer given.

At least a working model of K 1822 is located in the depot of the Technical Collections Dresden.

Hardware

The K 1820 was carried out in three basic versions:

  • K 1821 - OEM version as a 19 "rack with front panel for installation in 19 " rack
  • K 1822 - Single device as a provision to the work carried out with a fixed base or chassis with dimensions (height x width x depth) 650 x 490 x 367 mm and a mass of about 65 kg
  • K 1823 - Cabinet version with extended Speicherperherie or I / O hardware, eg Server for a planned data acquisition system BDS or as a process computer

All variants had as a basis the 19 "rack KBE1, the max. 12 logic modules could accommodate (as plug-in units with direct connectors), the front module, the back plane assembly, the power supply module and up to eight 5.25 "drives.

The KBE1 could be equipped with the following logic modules:

  • Central Processing Unit CPU KAC20 with the following main components: a processing unit; consisting essentially of the 32- bit microprocessor (CPU) U80701, and the 32- bit floating point processor (FPU) U80703
  • A CPU interface controller on the basis of CPU interface gate array ( CIGA ) U80709
  • A KBUS (corresponding to Q- bus DEC ) interface control on the basis of the bus - interface gate array ( OFIAMT ) U80711
  • A local storage subsystem with a maximum of 16 MB storage capacity, including 1 MByte realized directly on CPU module,
  • A KBUS Mapeinrichtung, as part of the storage subsystem, for the allocation of addresses of the internal data bus address space to local memory addresses
  • A local I / O subsystem including RTC ( MC146816 ) with battery
  • A panel subsystem including V.24 interface ( Digital Link Asynchronous Receiver / Transmitter DLART U80707 ), which takes over the control of the computer system at each halt state, the operation makes a self-diagnosis and realizes
  • A clock supply on the basis of three oscillator circuits for providing the system clock pulses determined: 40 MHz system clock for the CPU and FPU, the processor internally to real 5 MHz ( CPU micro- cycle: 200 ns) was reduced
  • 32.768 kHz clock for clock and interface
  • Interval timer clock of 614.4 kHz
  • Memory module MSC20
  • External memory controller PKDX2
  • Local network controller RONAK
  • Multiplexer AHV16
  • DMA controller ARV16W
  • Diagnostic module DARXAT
  • Power supply module STM 1820

Operating Systems / Software

As operating systems VMS -compatible SVP1820, the UNIX clone MUTOS1820 as well as the real time operating system RVSDES1800 were provided. For the K 1820 compilers for programming languages ​​C, Modula -2, and Fortran77/88 for COBOL, Common Lisp, Prolog, and Ada were available.

Numerous applications for the K 1840 should be available for the K 1820, such as the CAD softwares PROCAD ( example: MEDUSA ) and GBS1800 ( 3D CAD based GKS1800 ) and database softwares DABA32 ( Ingres - compatible) and ALLDBS ( example: Oracle).

Successor

For workstations / mini computer in the power range of 3 MIPS should be based on the performance of the circuit system MP 900 ( U80900, CMOS feature size of 1.5 microns, model CVAX 78034 ) for the system K 1830 ( MicroVAX III) in the VEB Robotron Elektronik Dresden, the MicroVAX Architecture line are continued by a 32-bit microprocessor systems. The goal was even in the first implementations of the performance parameters of the scaled version of the processor ( linewidth 1.0 micron, model CVAX , 3-4 MIPS) to achieve and developed minicomputer variants ( K 1833) the symmetric multiprocessing with 4 processors introduce (corresponding VAX 6340 ), so that a capacity range could be achieved up to 15 MIPS. The production launch of the K 1830 systems was planned for 1994/95.

SM EVM Volkseigener Betrieb 32-bit architecture Computer-aided manufacturing ZMDI German Academy of Sciences at Berlin Gate-Array U61000 Seagate Technology Rolanet Clone (computing) Graphical Kernel System Ingres (database) Oracle Corporation
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