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"…sequential computers are approaching a fundamental physical

limit on their potential power. Such a limit is the speed of light…"

CSA Transputer Education Kit

• PC-compatible add-in board
• Inmos T400-20MHz 32-bit Transputer
  • 10 MIPS 32-bit architecture
  • 2Kbytes of on-chip 50 nanosecond SRAM
  • two 20 megabit/sec bi-directional serial links with on-chip DMA
  • Hardware process scheduler
  • two on-chip timers
  • Sub microsecond interrupt latency
• Sockets for 1 or 4 Megabytes of DRAM
• Designed for operational incorporation within a multi-transputer network
  • 5 8-pin mini-DIN external connectors
  • Accepts industry standard cables
  • Reliable interconnection at up to 40 feet
• Optional interface for hardware experiments
• Upgradeable to T425 or Floating-point T805 Transputer

The Transputer Education Kit board consists of three sections: the transputer with its local memory, the PC/Link Interface and the External Interface.  The transputer is a RISC-like microprocessor which was designed with multiprocessing in mind.  The PC/Link Interface provides data and control communication between the transputer and the PC.  The External Interface allows the transputer to control external hardware.

Included on the Transputer Education Kit circuit board is circuitry that provides a byte-wide interface to external hardware and program control of eight LED's (light emitting diodes).  LED's can be installed on the board and then turned on or off under program control as a debugging aid.  The byte-wide I/O port gives the ability to control external hardware projects and, when used in conjunction with the signals that control the LED's, this I/O port can control virtually any eight bit microprocessor bus peripheral chip.

The PC/Link Interface portion of the circuit board is used to communicate between the transputer and the host PC.  The interface essentially adds a link to the PC so that it can fit into the transputer's scheme of communication.  The PC/Link Interface section of the board is completely independent of the transputer and its local memory.  The two are connected only when the PC/Link is connected to the transputer by external cables or on-board jumpers.  The PC/Link could even be connected to a transputer on a different board or ignored if desired.

The combination of a transputer processor, PC/Link Interface and the External Interface makes the circuit board provided with your Transputer Education Kit a powerful co-processor that can be used to explore the concepts of parallel processing and real-time control.  With additional Kit boards or Kit Add-On-Processor boards you can explore and take advantage of true parallel processing.

• CSA Transputer Education Kit Test Programs
• CSA Parascope Transputer Network Debugger
• CSA Transputer Education Kit White Papers

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