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Digitizing by ultrasonics
New equipment Digitizing by ultrasonics Details of a device for digitizing at the same time as drawing are released by Sintrom Electronics. The Graf/Pen device comprises a tablet, stylus and a control unit, together with a storage c.r.t, or xy recorder as optional extras. Any material drawn, written or marked on the tablet with the stylus provides both a hard copy and simultaneous digitizing. The digitizing is accomplished by supersonic ranging at rates up to 200 co-ordinate pairs per second with a resolution of 2000 x 2000 line pairs. The tablet has a working area of 14 x 14 in but any size or shape can be supplied. A variable sensing rate matches the user's speed and allows the communications circuits and capacity of the computer to be used efficiently. Output data at TTL levels are available in binary and b.c.d, and a number of interfaces can be supplied for various peripherals and computers. The device operates in the following manner. The stylus is a combination of ballpoint pen and tiny spark generator. The low-energy spark generates a sonic pulse with an extremely fast rise-time and it is this characteristic that is used in the hypersonic ranging. A small fraction of the energy provides the operator with a useful audible feedback. Strip sensors on two sides of the tablet receive the signals from the stylus. The control unit interprets the information from the stylus in terms of x and y co-ordinates and in addition acts as an ambient noise discriminator. A variety of operating modes can be selected by panel switches. Sensitivity of the sonic system is reduced to the wavefront generated by the spark. Applications quoted are in computer aided drafting, n.c. programs, light pen replacement, system analysis and certain commercial operations.
j j.
The Graf/Pen ultrasonic system providing simultaneous drawing and digitizing
been announced by CalComp. The systems announced have substantially reduced prices when compared to earlier systems. They consist of a flatbed plotter, controller, high speed magnetic tape drive and software. A variety of drawing tools and existing software applications packages enable these systems to be used in many scientific fields. Features of the Model 7800 include a 31 X 34 in drawing area with a single pen drawing speed of up to 506 in/min.
The Model 7900 has a drawing area of 48 X 72 in with four program selected pens and a speed of up to 314 in/min. The four pen block allows large-scale multiple colour or multiple linewidth drafting. Additional savings are made because of the controller's ability to accept and expand compacted input data formats. This results in less demand being made on the host computer processing time and also helps reduce tape writing time. The systems are compatible with existing software packages and are supported by CalComp's programming and service personnel. (CalComp Ltd,
AMP House, Dingwall Road, Croydon, CR9 2NX, England. Tel: 01-681 0261. )
Computerized tape preparation A computer aided system for paper tape preparation is available from Houdaille Electronics. The system consists of a 4 k digital computer, a teletype and master computer program. Different numerical control formats can be accommodated by thirty computer programs. Features offered by the system include macro-language programming, editing of input statements before production of piece-part tapes, incremental and absolute data entry and part program verification. The user can interpolate both linearly and circularly, store repeated patterns for
(Sintrom Electronics Ltd, 2 Arkwrigbt Road, Reading, Berksbire RG2 0LS, England. Tel: (0734) 85464.)
Flatbed drafting systems Two flatbed drafting systems named the Model 7800 and Model 7900 have
Volume 4 Number 5 October 1972
The CalComp 7900flatbed drafting system uses four program selected pens at a speed up to 314 in~rain
~7
re-use and work in metric or imperial units. (Houdaille Industries Incor-
porated, Electronics Division, 9020 Webrle Dr., Clarence, New York 14031. Tel: 716 632 8412.)
planar memory stacks and the power supply are mounted in a box completely separate from the PDP-11 minicomputer thus freeing processor space and power. Cycle time for the system is 900 ns and is available in 8 k, 16 k or 24 k increments of store. The system connects directly to the PDP-1 l ' s UNIBUS which contains all the required signals for direct communication between any elements of the system. Direct memory access between input-output devices and the memory system is thus allowed. (Digital Equipment Co.,
Arkwrigbt Road, Reading, Berkshire, England. Tel: (0734) 85131.)
Card reader breaks the jams Computer aided paper tape preparation from Houdaille Electronics
Memory systems An inexpensive cartridge disc drive and core memory system are currently being manufactured by Digital Equipment Ltd. The RK05 moving head disc system is a random access device with 2.45 Mbyte capacity on a single cartridge. A maximum of eight drive units, providing 19.6 Mbytes of storage, can be handled by each controller. The quoted transfer rate is 1.44 Mbaud with an average access time of 50 ms. The use of more than one drive decreases the access time because of an overlapping feature. Positioning of heads is controlled by a voice coil linear motor with a highly accurate optical position transducer. The ME11-L core memory system is completely self-contained. Both the
ii
&
The inexpensive RK05 moving head disc system, manufactured by Digital Equipment
288
Two high speed card readers capable of reading mutilated punched cards are now being marketed by Computer and Systems Engineering Ltd (CASE). The small size and quoted low price when compared to conventional readers are said to lead to extensive use with minicomputers and batch terminals. The True Data series of readers are available in versions giving a speed of 600 and 1000 cards/minute operating at a low noise level. Precise card alignment helps to avoid data input errors. A stacker lifts each card away from the next incoming card to prevent shuffling and consequent web damage. The True Data readers are currently being offered as stand-alone units. However, future plans are for interfaces with other CASE products and certain types of minicomputer. On a different theme, a high speed near.silent printer is also available from CASE. The LX180 serial printer, manufactured by Logabax of France and marketed by CASE, employs an array of needles driven by solenoids to print characters in a 7 x 7 dot matrix. Ordinary fanfold stationary is used and the LX180 can produce six carbon copies at speeds of up to 180 characters per second. The print line has a maximum length of 158 characters and several form control facilities are available. Advice on interfacing the LX180 to devices such as minicomputers, terminals and data loggers is available from CASE who say that it is relatively simple. Interfacing to most CASE visual displays is available. The printer-is available both buffered and unbuffered, a feature of the
buffered version being the automatic homing of the print head during any pause in the incoming data. This allows the user a clear view of all the printed output, of great use in conversational applications. A modem interface is available for operation over telephone lines at a data rate of up to 1.2 kbaud. The LX180 can be converted into a conversational terminal by fitting a keyboard. (Computer and Systems
Engineering Ltd, Woodcock Hill Estate, Harefield Road, Rickmansworth, Herts., WD3 IP4, England. Tel: Rickmanswortb 74251.)
Film analysers Several government departments have bought standard D-mac digitizers to aid film analysis. The digitizers form the basis of the installations which are linked to film projection units of various types according to the film media being used. The film image is either projected directly on to the viewing table or through a transparent digitizing surface. The co-ordinates of selected events are digitized by the operator to create records on paper tape, magnetic tape, punched cards or typescript. D-mac say that additional development work to simplify matching of the digitizer and projector has extended their range of film analysers to include any other equipment combination.
(D-mac Ltd, 7 Amersbam Hill, High Wycombe, Bucks, England. Tel: High Wycombe (0494) 34641,
Production of magnetic tape, paper tape and card punch records from 16 mnz and 35 mm film using the Vanguard projector and D-mac System 2
COMPUTER AIDED DESIGN
N.c. system for small mach i nes A range of n.c. systems designed specifically for the small machine market has been introduced by Mark Century. The emphasis in design has been to achieve simplicity and efficient operation at minimum cost. The first available machine is the Mark Century 550 milling control. This is a two-axis contouring control having linear and circular interpolation with an optional third-axis system. The 550 system can be obtained with either closed or open loop stepping motor drives. To aid simplicity the milling control recognises from tape: 1. E1A or ISO coding 2. Positioning or contouring mode 3. Arc and slope generation without G codes 4. Plane of operation from the two axes programmed in a single block. In addition, features such as a 150 character per second tape reader, a resolution figure of +9.999 in and four digit sequence number readout are part of the basic 550 control. The controls were recently demonstrated at the International Machine Tool Trades Exhibition held at Olympia. The total cost of a three-axis contouring system inclusive of open loop drives is said to be around £4000.
(Mark Century, Hagley House, Hagley Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B16 8QU, England. Tel: 021-454 5451. )
Automatic paper take-up A device for automatically winding paper tape in conjunction with digital print6rs and strip chart recorders is announced by Electrographic Peripherals Ltd. Paper tape lengths up to 80 ft and widths up to 3tA in can be wound. The hub is tapered so that the paper tape winds flat against the cheek surface at the end. The winding mechanism incorporated within the hub, consists of a stalling motor which applies continuous take-up tension. The motor can be driven directly from TTL/DTL power rails as it requires 5V at 150 mA. The mounting of the unit is said to be simple requiring only two quarter-inch wide
Volume 4 Number 5 October 1972
'drop-in' slots to hold the main drive spindle. (Electrograpbic Peripherals
Ltd, 50, Oldfield Circus, Nortbolt, MiddleseJ¢, England. Tel: 01-422 5687.)
Tape decks for minis A family of three low cost half-inch tape decks manufactured by Digi-data Corporation is currently available from Pragma. All models feature densities of 200, 5 5 6 , 8 0 0 or 1600 bits/in, for 7 or 9 track. Possible configurations
are read only, write only, read/write or read after write. High speed double buffering options allow incremental operation with no data loss when gaps are generated or read. The three basic versions handle different reel sizes and operating speeds. The Model 1700, Maxidata version, caters for a reel size of 10½ in and can operate at speeds up to 45 in/s. A range of standard interfaces are available for many minicomputers. (PragmaLtd., Middlesex
House, 29 High St., Edgware, Middlesex, HA8 7UU, England. Tel: 01-952 8471.)
Minicomputer the micro 16V The timely announcement of the Micro 16V computer by Digico Ltd recently, should go some way to establishing a strong UK minicomputer industry. An extension of the Micro 16 series, the 16V is said to offer improved performance at reduced cost. The Micro 16V is a 16-bit machine with a cycle time of less than 1/as. Unit memory size is 4 k words but additional capacity up to 64 k is available. Standard features of the 16V include automatic bootstrap, mains fail detect and restart, multi-level interrupt, memory partitioning, real time clock and floating point. Memory protection helps operation in a multi-programming environment. A theme running through the design was the need to modularise. A notable feature from the operator's viewpoint is the console which allows direct octal data entry and display. Software available includes a Fortran 11 single pass compiler, a scientific conversational language, MATHCHAT, an assembler language and a macro-generator. Several other systems packages exist, providing facilities such as, operating system utilities, job queueing and relocatable loading.. Several application programs are available for the scientist in such fields as pathology, surveying, and spectrometry. A range of 107 peripherals can be linked to the 16V, with equipment from graph plotters and displays to backing stores. An ICL 1900 coupler and British standard interface are available. The 16V is quoted as being designed specifically for three markets:
The Micro 16V minicomputer, modularised in design
1. To use as a component in other systems, in which case low cost and simplicity of use are of importance. 2. For the customer who is not interested in the working of the hardware but merely requires the computer as a tool. 3. Customers unsure of their problem.
(Digico Ltd., St Michael's House, Norton Way South, Letcbwortb, Hertfordshire, SG6 1PE, England. Tel: Letcbwortb 71231.)
289
j j.
The Graf/Pen ultrasonic system providing simultaneous drawing and digitizing
been announced by CalComp. The systems announced have substantially reduced prices when compared to earlier systems. They consist of a flatbed plotter, controller, high speed magnetic tape drive and software. A variety of drawing tools and existing software applications packages enable these systems to be used in many scientific fields. Features of the Model 7800 include a 31 X 34 in drawing area with a single pen drawing speed of up to 506 in/min.
The Model 7900 has a drawing area of 48 X 72 in with four program selected pens and a speed of up to 314 in/min. The four pen block allows large-scale multiple colour or multiple linewidth drafting. Additional savings are made because of the controller's ability to accept and expand compacted input data formats. This results in less demand being made on the host computer processing time and also helps reduce tape writing time. The systems are compatible with existing software packages and are supported by CalComp's programming and service personnel. (CalComp Ltd,
AMP House, Dingwall Road, Croydon, CR9 2NX, England. Tel: 01-681 0261. )
Computerized tape preparation A computer aided system for paper tape preparation is available from Houdaille Electronics. The system consists of a 4 k digital computer, a teletype and master computer program. Different numerical control formats can be accommodated by thirty computer programs. Features offered by the system include macro-language programming, editing of input statements before production of piece-part tapes, incremental and absolute data entry and part program verification. The user can interpolate both linearly and circularly, store repeated patterns for
(Sintrom Electronics Ltd, 2 Arkwrigbt Road, Reading, Berksbire RG2 0LS, England. Tel: (0734) 85464.)
Flatbed drafting systems Two flatbed drafting systems named the Model 7800 and Model 7900 have
Volume 4 Number 5 October 1972
The CalComp 7900flatbed drafting system uses four program selected pens at a speed up to 314 in~rain
~7
re-use and work in metric or imperial units. (Houdaille Industries Incor-
porated, Electronics Division, 9020 Webrle Dr., Clarence, New York 14031. Tel: 716 632 8412.)
planar memory stacks and the power supply are mounted in a box completely separate from the PDP-11 minicomputer thus freeing processor space and power. Cycle time for the system is 900 ns and is available in 8 k, 16 k or 24 k increments of store. The system connects directly to the PDP-1 l ' s UNIBUS which contains all the required signals for direct communication between any elements of the system. Direct memory access between input-output devices and the memory system is thus allowed. (Digital Equipment Co.,
Arkwrigbt Road, Reading, Berkshire, England. Tel: (0734) 85131.)
Card reader breaks the jams Computer aided paper tape preparation from Houdaille Electronics
Memory systems An inexpensive cartridge disc drive and core memory system are currently being manufactured by Digital Equipment Ltd. The RK05 moving head disc system is a random access device with 2.45 Mbyte capacity on a single cartridge. A maximum of eight drive units, providing 19.6 Mbytes of storage, can be handled by each controller. The quoted transfer rate is 1.44 Mbaud with an average access time of 50 ms. The use of more than one drive decreases the access time because of an overlapping feature. Positioning of heads is controlled by a voice coil linear motor with a highly accurate optical position transducer. The ME11-L core memory system is completely self-contained. Both the
ii
&
The inexpensive RK05 moving head disc system, manufactured by Digital Equipment
288
Two high speed card readers capable of reading mutilated punched cards are now being marketed by Computer and Systems Engineering Ltd (CASE). The small size and quoted low price when compared to conventional readers are said to lead to extensive use with minicomputers and batch terminals. The True Data series of readers are available in versions giving a speed of 600 and 1000 cards/minute operating at a low noise level. Precise card alignment helps to avoid data input errors. A stacker lifts each card away from the next incoming card to prevent shuffling and consequent web damage. The True Data readers are currently being offered as stand-alone units. However, future plans are for interfaces with other CASE products and certain types of minicomputer. On a different theme, a high speed near.silent printer is also available from CASE. The LX180 serial printer, manufactured by Logabax of France and marketed by CASE, employs an array of needles driven by solenoids to print characters in a 7 x 7 dot matrix. Ordinary fanfold stationary is used and the LX180 can produce six carbon copies at speeds of up to 180 characters per second. The print line has a maximum length of 158 characters and several form control facilities are available. Advice on interfacing the LX180 to devices such as minicomputers, terminals and data loggers is available from CASE who say that it is relatively simple. Interfacing to most CASE visual displays is available. The printer-is available both buffered and unbuffered, a feature of the
buffered version being the automatic homing of the print head during any pause in the incoming data. This allows the user a clear view of all the printed output, of great use in conversational applications. A modem interface is available for operation over telephone lines at a data rate of up to 1.2 kbaud. The LX180 can be converted into a conversational terminal by fitting a keyboard. (Computer and Systems
Engineering Ltd, Woodcock Hill Estate, Harefield Road, Rickmansworth, Herts., WD3 IP4, England. Tel: Rickmanswortb 74251.)
Film analysers Several government departments have bought standard D-mac digitizers to aid film analysis. The digitizers form the basis of the installations which are linked to film projection units of various types according to the film media being used. The film image is either projected directly on to the viewing table or through a transparent digitizing surface. The co-ordinates of selected events are digitized by the operator to create records on paper tape, magnetic tape, punched cards or typescript. D-mac say that additional development work to simplify matching of the digitizer and projector has extended their range of film analysers to include any other equipment combination.
(D-mac Ltd, 7 Amersbam Hill, High Wycombe, Bucks, England. Tel: High Wycombe (0494) 34641,
Production of magnetic tape, paper tape and card punch records from 16 mnz and 35 mm film using the Vanguard projector and D-mac System 2
COMPUTER AIDED DESIGN
N.c. system for small mach i nes A range of n.c. systems designed specifically for the small machine market has been introduced by Mark Century. The emphasis in design has been to achieve simplicity and efficient operation at minimum cost. The first available machine is the Mark Century 550 milling control. This is a two-axis contouring control having linear and circular interpolation with an optional third-axis system. The 550 system can be obtained with either closed or open loop stepping motor drives. To aid simplicity the milling control recognises from tape: 1. E1A or ISO coding 2. Positioning or contouring mode 3. Arc and slope generation without G codes 4. Plane of operation from the two axes programmed in a single block. In addition, features such as a 150 character per second tape reader, a resolution figure of +9.999 in and four digit sequence number readout are part of the basic 550 control. The controls were recently demonstrated at the International Machine Tool Trades Exhibition held at Olympia. The total cost of a three-axis contouring system inclusive of open loop drives is said to be around £4000.
(Mark Century, Hagley House, Hagley Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B16 8QU, England. Tel: 021-454 5451. )
Automatic paper take-up A device for automatically winding paper tape in conjunction with digital print6rs and strip chart recorders is announced by Electrographic Peripherals Ltd. Paper tape lengths up to 80 ft and widths up to 3tA in can be wound. The hub is tapered so that the paper tape winds flat against the cheek surface at the end. The winding mechanism incorporated within the hub, consists of a stalling motor which applies continuous take-up tension. The motor can be driven directly from TTL/DTL power rails as it requires 5V at 150 mA. The mounting of the unit is said to be simple requiring only two quarter-inch wide
Volume 4 Number 5 October 1972
'drop-in' slots to hold the main drive spindle. (Electrograpbic Peripherals
Ltd, 50, Oldfield Circus, Nortbolt, MiddleseJ¢, England. Tel: 01-422 5687.)
Tape decks for minis A family of three low cost half-inch tape decks manufactured by Digi-data Corporation is currently available from Pragma. All models feature densities of 200, 5 5 6 , 8 0 0 or 1600 bits/in, for 7 or 9 track. Possible configurations
are read only, write only, read/write or read after write. High speed double buffering options allow incremental operation with no data loss when gaps are generated or read. The three basic versions handle different reel sizes and operating speeds. The Model 1700, Maxidata version, caters for a reel size of 10½ in and can operate at speeds up to 45 in/s. A range of standard interfaces are available for many minicomputers. (PragmaLtd., Middlesex
House, 29 High St., Edgware, Middlesex, HA8 7UU, England. Tel: 01-952 8471.)
Minicomputer the micro 16V The timely announcement of the Micro 16V computer by Digico Ltd recently, should go some way to establishing a strong UK minicomputer industry. An extension of the Micro 16 series, the 16V is said to offer improved performance at reduced cost. The Micro 16V is a 16-bit machine with a cycle time of less than 1/as. Unit memory size is 4 k words but additional capacity up to 64 k is available. Standard features of the 16V include automatic bootstrap, mains fail detect and restart, multi-level interrupt, memory partitioning, real time clock and floating point. Memory protection helps operation in a multi-programming environment. A theme running through the design was the need to modularise. A notable feature from the operator's viewpoint is the console which allows direct octal data entry and display. Software available includes a Fortran 11 single pass compiler, a scientific conversational language, MATHCHAT, an assembler language and a macro-generator. Several other systems packages exist, providing facilities such as, operating system utilities, job queueing and relocatable loading.. Several application programs are available for the scientist in such fields as pathology, surveying, and spectrometry. A range of 107 peripherals can be linked to the 16V, with equipment from graph plotters and displays to backing stores. An ICL 1900 coupler and British standard interface are available. The 16V is quoted as being designed specifically for three markets:
The Micro 16V minicomputer, modularised in design
1. To use as a component in other systems, in which case low cost and simplicity of use are of importance. 2. For the customer who is not interested in the working of the hardware but merely requires the computer as a tool. 3. Customers unsure of their problem.
(Digico Ltd., St Michael's House, Norton Way South, Letcbwortb, Hertfordshire, SG6 1PE, England. Tel: Letcbwortb 71231.)
289