Erni 990E systems with TMS9900 or TMS9995

[+FarmerPotato]

Because of an article in Electronics, I tried to find out more about Erni.

 

Quote

[Electronics, Jun 5, 1980, p. 200]

 

TI 990 gets software-compatible board

 

The model CPU-200 microcomputer board from Erni & Co. is based on Texas Instruments' 16-bit TMS9900 microprocessor. It provides the central processing functions for Erni's recently announced 990E industrial microcomputer system software while offering software compatibility with TI's 990 minicomputers and microcomputers. The CPU-200 features a 56-line proprietary bus that allows memory addressing of up to 64 kilobytes and input/output capabilities by using the TMS 9900 bit-serial communications register unit. Up to 4,096 inputs and outputs may be addressed individually. An RS-232 or current-loop serial port is provided.

 

The unit also features 16 vectored interrupts, an eight-line bit programmable port, and an internal timer. It operates at 3MHz. The external control functions of the TMS 9900 are available to the user.

 

The board sells for $560.

 

Erni & Co., 3316 Commercial Ave., Northbrook, IL. 60062. Phone (312) 480-9240 [341]
 

 

The Erni 990E.CPU.201 and CPU.206 cards are easy to find on eBay.  In one listing, the CPU.201 has a TMS9900, date code 8231. One CPU.206 has a TMS9995, date code 8808, another date code 8745 Phillipines, another 8436 England.

 

From their website, I learned that Erni was a leader in high-density and solderless connectors in the 60s and 70s. In 1968, their 64 and 96 pin backplane connectors became the DIN-41612 standard (1971). These were very common industrial backplane connectors (e.g. VMEbus) until even higher density was required (e.g. Compact PCI).

The cards look like double-high Euro (but not quite?) and have two 2x32 DIN-41612 connectors. Usually this means a main CPU bus and a second I/O bus, with some peripheral cards using one or the other, and the CPU using both.

 

On the CPU.201, there are two 2x32 DIN-41612 connectors. The 9900 CPU is near the top connector and has 2xLS244 and 2xLS245 buffer/drivers, and 2x240 open-collector drivers. This means that the top connector is the address/data bus. The 9901 is near the bottom 64-pin connector.  There are no memory sockets. 

On the CPU.206, the top connector is just 2x16 -- the same footprint, but double the pin spacing. The CPU is at the top end, but there are only two LS244 buffer/drivers and a dual Flip-Flop LS74.  The 9901 is near the bottom 64-pin connector.  

 

The CPU.206 has 8x8K RAM/EPROM sockets at the top end.  I tried to follow the traces on the CPU.206. Most of the TMS9995 pins connect directly to the 8K memory chips, which are ganged together and enabled by a '138.   The two LS244 chips buffer the 2x16 connector. Because of vias, I can't follow much besides the input CRUIN is buffered. A14 is driven onto the bus, maybe MEMEN.  I compared a peripheral card and found a similar layout. 

 

I can definitely see 5 or 6 traces from the 9995 to the 9901 (should be S0-S4).  From the 9901, P0, P1, and P11 go directly to the 2x32 port. Most other P0-P15 go through vias, but I'm guessing that they all go to the 2x32 port, with pull-up or pull-down resistors (there are 23). IC0-IC3 look unconnected (as expected since those don't connect to a 9995.)

The CPU.201, with the 9900, would have had external memory. I found two 64K/256K Paged Memory cards: the 245 and 246. On the other hand, the CPU.206 looks to me like a streamlined 9995 CPU with onboard memory, no external memory, and external I/O expansion. 

I had gone looking in 1980 journals for E-Bus because of that catalog which mentioned two Analog Devices cards for E-Bus.  TI's E-Bus System Design Handbook is dated September 1981.  The E-Bus defines 57 of the 64 bus lines on a DIN-41612 type AC connector (having rows A and C but not middle row B.) Electronics mentions a "56-line proprietary bus", which made me think of TI's E-Bus. This board just doesn't have enough parts to be E-Bus. For one thing, the 9900 would require multiplexers for the AD bus.  E-Bus is a better fit for the 99000 or 8086, which unlike the 9900 or 9995, have multiplexed AD buses (and the 8086 has multiplexed interrupt codes).

I will agree with Electronics that it uses a "proprietary bus", and will continue to hunt for documentation.

 

From Erni website:  

 

 

Quote

 

1977. The 990E from ERNI is a completely industrial 16-bit microcomputer system, ready for operation including installed hardware and software. The 12 MHz central computer is connected to periphery cards by way of in-house developed address buses. The cards continue to be expanded, encompassing 48 card types for memory, input, output, relays, sensors, displays, amplifiers, controls and other functions configured for the customer.

 

1968. The world's first high density backplane connector. At the first electronica exhibition, ERNI in Adelberg astounds experts with the world's first backplane connector: 2- and 3-row, 64- and 96-pin, with gold plating and tested in accordance with the specifications for defense equipment (VG). These connectors receive DIN-41612 standardization in 1971 and are one of the main components of the 19" housing system. Contacts, multipoint connectors and housings are manufactured with in-houe-developed tools for punching and injection machines. The level of precision achieved is unprecedented considering the technology available at the time. A 96-pin connector pair costs DM45 with a maximum delivery time of up to 6 months.
 

So their own website dates the 990E to 1977, but Electronics Jun 5, 1980 calls it "recently announced".

 

The 990E addresses the same market at the TM990 boards, with claimed even bigger selection of peripherals, and claims some software compatibility. It's an interesting implementation of the 9900 Family, and I will learn what I can from studying it. 

 

Some boards are branded "Pretec" and auctions list "Pretec/Schaudt" so I take it that the line was sold off.

 

990E.201 CPU card with TMS9900 and 9901

 

 

990E.206 CPU card with TMS9995 and 9901

 

 

 

Another 206:

 

 

990E.302 "2 Axis position control" board, with an onboard TMS9995

Date code 9152, and some date code 9814 28-in chips (ROMs?) maybe repairs or updates?

 

 

 

990E.442 16 Iso O.C. Out 12/48 VDC/2A

 

 

                  

 

990E.MEM246 64KW Paged RAM/EPROM Memory

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PRETEC 990E.CIF AAG-2 

Other manufacturers in the 990E line might be Pretec and Schaudt.

Date codes 8752 and 8807

 

 

Few of the finger-pull handles survive to this day:

 

 

 

 

 

ERNI

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 14, 2021 by FarmerPotato
Correct TI E-Bus to 1981

[jbdigriz]

10 hours ago, FarmerPotato said:

Because of an article in Electronics, I tried to find out more about Erni.

 

 

The Erni 990E.CPU.201 and CPU.206 cards are easy to find on eBay.  In one listing, the CPU.201 has a TMS9900, date code 8231. One CPU.206 has a TMS9995, date code 8808, another date code 8745 Phillipines, another 8436 England.

 

From their website, I learned that Erni was a leader in high-density and solderless connectors in the 60s and 70s. In 1968, their 64 and 96 pin backplane connectors became the DIN-41612 standard (1971). These were very common industrial backplane connectors (e.g. VMEbus) until even higher density was required (e.g. Compact PCI).

The cards look like double-high Euro (but not quite?) and have two 2x32 DIN-41612 connectors. Usually this means a main CPU bus and a second I/O bus, with some peripheral cards using one or the other, and the CPU using both.

 

On the CPU.201, there are two 2x32 DIN-41612 connectors. The 9900 CPU is near the top connector and has 2xLS244 and 2xLS245 buffer/drivers, and 2x240 open-collector drivers. This means that the top connector is the address/data bus. The 9901 is near the bottom 64-pin connector.  There are no memory sockets. 

On the CPU.206, the top connector is just 2x16 -- the same footprint, but double the pin spacing. The CPU is at the top end, but there are only two LS244 buffer/drivers and a dual Flip-Flop LS74.  The 9901 is near the bottom 64-pin connector.  

 

The CPU.206 has 8x8K RAM/EPROM sockets at the top end.  I tried to follow the traces on the CPU.206. Most of the TMS9995 pins connect directly to the 8K memory chips, which are ganged together and enabled by a '138.   The two LS244 chips buffer the 2x16 connector. Because of vias, I can't follow much besides the input CRUIN is buffered. A14 is driven onto the bus, maybe MEMEN.  I compared a peripheral card and found a similar layout. 

 

I can definitely see 5 or 6 traces from the 9995 to the 9901 (should be S0-S4).  From the 9901, P0, P1, and P11 go directly to the 2x32 port. Most other P0-P15 go through vias, but I'm guessing that they all go to the 2x32 port, with pull-up or pull-down resistors (there are 23). IC0-IC3 look unconnected (as expected since those don't connect to a 9995.)

The CPU.201, with the 9900, would have had external memory. I found two 64K/256K Paged Memory cards: the 245 and 246. On the other hand, the CPU.206 looks to me like a streamlined 9995 CPU with onboard memory, no external memory, and external I/O expansion. 

I had gone looking in 1980 journals for E-Bus because of that catalog which mentioned two Analog Devices cards for E-Bus.  TI's E-Systems Guide is dated September 1980.  The E-Bus defines 57 of the 64 bus lines on a DIN-41612 type AC connector (having rows A and C but not middle row B.) Electronics mentions a "56-line proprietary bus" which made me think of TI's E-Bus. This board just doesn't have enough parts to be E-Bus. For one thing, the 9900 would require multiplexers for the AD bus.  E-Bus is a better fit for the 99000 or 8086, which unlike the 9900 or 9995, have multiplexed AD buses (and the 8086 has multiplexed interrupt codes).

I will agree with Electronics that it uses a "proprietary bus", and will continue to hunt for documentation.

 

From Erni website:  

 

 

So their own website dates the 990E to 1977, but Electronics Jun 5, 1980 calls it "recently announced".

 

The 990E addresses the same market at the TM990 boards, with seemingly bigger selection of peripherals, and claims some software compatibility. It's an interesting implementation of the 9900 Family, and I will learn what I can from studying it. 

 

990E.201 CPU card with TMS9900 and 9901

 

 

990E.206 CPU card with TMS9995 and 9901

 

 

 

Another 206:

 

 

990E.302 "2 Axis position control" board, with an onboard TMS9995

Date code 9152, and some date code 9814 28-in chips (ROMs?) maybe repairs or updates?

 

 

 

990E.442 16 Iso O.C. Out 12/48 VDC/2A

 

 

                  

 

990E.MEM246 64KW Paged RAM/EPROM Memory

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PRETEC 990E.CIF AAG-2 

Other manufacturers in the 990E line might be Pretec and Schaudt.

Date codes 8752 and 8807

 

 

Few of the finger-pull handles survive to this day:

 

 

 

 

 

ERNI

 

 

 

 

 

 

Neat. (Why does neat = $$$. sigh.)  I also see a CPU.204 on Ebay that has an NS32081 FPU on it. Wonder if that board works with the 99xx ones?

[+Ksarul]

On 12/7/2021 at 12:08 PM, jbdigriz said:

Neat. (Why does neat = $$$. sigh.)  I also see a CPU.204 on Ebay that has an NS32081 FPU on it. Wonder if that board works with the 99xx ones?

Well, that board does say it is for a 990E.MEM.204. . .on the front silkscreen.

[jbdigriz]

3 hours ago, Ksarul said:

Well, that board does say it is for a 990E.MEM.204. . .on the front silkscreen.

Check. Doh.