ARINC 629 Interface for IBM-PC/AT (ISA) Computers

Description

The PC629-1 is a low cost interface between an ARINC 629 (DATAC) avionics databus and an IBM-PC AT or compatible computer (ISA). Under control of the PC, the PC629-1 is used to transmit, receive and monitor 629 databus messages. It is ideally suited for development, test and maintenance of products using the 629 databus. The PC629-1 may be dynamically and interactively controlled by the PC to provide high speed, real time simulation of bus activity.

A high level of functionality is provided through custom gate arrays. The PC629-1 contains all the circuitry necessary to autonomously handle ARINC 629 bus traffic. Protocol functions such as timing, encoding and decoding, as well as word and word string validation are handled by the on-board protocol processor. The 128K x 16 Data Memory is accessed by both the PC and the protocol processor. Use of multiple buffers permits dynamic simulation without data corruption.

The personality PROMs implemented in RAM may be loaded by the PC to simulate any configuration. This flexibility not only enhances the PC629-1's capability as a tester/simulator but also provides a platform for the development and modeling of personality PROMs and data structures.

The configuration (Channel ID, Terminal Gap, Transmit Interval, and Synchronization Gap) and Personality PROMs are software programmable. Transmitted label extensions may be altered on a word string basis, thereby permitting multiple terminal simulation. Software tools provided with the PC629-1 enable complex applications to be developed with minimal effort.

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databus interface

Provision is made for all bus media: Current mode, voltage mode, and fiber optic. The normal PC629-1 configuration includes a Serial Interface Module (SIM) for the industry standard current mode. Voltage mode can be accomplished through an optional MIL-STD-1553 transceiver and transformer, or the built-in pseudo-bus transceiver may be used to implement a low cost laboratory databus. A fiber optic SIM is available, and other transceivers may be connected by the user.

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PC interface

Although the PC629-1 provides full 16-bit PC capability, it also may be operated in an 8-bit slot. The PC629-1 occupies a modest 4K bytes of PC memory address space, thus permitting use of several boards in the same computer. Through paging, this 4K byte window provides access to the complete Data Memory.

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Software

The PC629-1 comes with software which provides the user with several options for operating the card:

Script- A script-like language and compiler are used to define the configuration and set up the Personality PROMs in an intuitive and easy-to-read form. The Script compiler processes the Script source (an ASCII file created using a text editor) and the result is either loaded into the PC629-1 or saved to a file for later use.

Debugger- Through the Debugger the user has complete control over the PC629-1. It can be used to load a Script file; to enable and disable the board; to write to and read from Data Memory, Personality PROM, and registers; and to perform other functions normally found in a debugger.

Driver- The Driver library greatly simplifies software development in several programming languages (C, Pascal, and BASIC). The driver routines are similar to the functions provided in the Debugger: loading Script files, reading/writing to registers and memory, etc. A DLL for Windows applications is available.

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