AN/AYK-14

Last updated

The AN/AYK-14(V) is a family of computers for use in military weapons systems. [1] It is a general-purpose 16-bit microprogrammed computer, designed in 1976 by Control Data Corporation Aerospace Division in Bloomington, Minnesota intended for airborne vehicles and missions. [2] Its modular design provides for common firmware and support software. It is still in use on Navy fleet aircraft including the F/A-18, and the AV-8B. The AN/AYK-14(V) family of systems is designed to meet MIL-E-5400 (airborne) requirements. [3]

Contents

General information

The AYK-14(V) computer was designed for military weapons systems, capable of operating at altitudes up to 70,000 feet and in temperatures ranging from from -54C to 71C. [2] A complete AN/AYK-14(V) computer system is composed of processor, memory and input/output (I/O) modules. [1] The 16-bit CPU is based on the AMD 2900 series chips, capable of running between 0.3 and 2.3 mega-instructions per second (MIPS). [2]

Applications

History

The AYK-14(V), designed in 1976, had an original unit price of $185,000. [2] By 1986, it was designated as the US Navy's Standard Airborne Computer. [2] In 1987, the computer was upgraded delivering twice the performance and eight times the memory. [2] Upgraded again in 1991, the operational speed was improved to 18 MIPS. [2] Over 10,000 units have been delivered. [2]

Technical description

The AN/AYK-14(V) series of systems are microprogrammed computers, intended for airborne vehicles and missions, but are also capable of shipboard and land use. [3]

General characteristics

The AN/AYK-14(V) is a general-purpose 16-bit computer capable of 675 thousand operations per second. Its modular design provides for common firmware and support software. [3]

System specifications and features

General Features

The AN/AYK-14(V) is designed to be physically and functionally modular. It can be expanded with plug-ins and additional enclosures. It's microprogrammed to emulate an extended AN/UYK-20. LSI components are used, and the system is packaged in ARINC Air Transport Rack (ATR) enclosures.

Central Processor
  • Microprogrammed
  • 2's complement arithmetic
  • Executive and user states
  • Two sets of 16-word by 16-bit general registers
  • Two status registers
  • Three-level interrupt system
  • Addressing to 524,288 words
  • Fixed and floating-point arithmetic
  • 4-, 8-, 16-, and 32-bit operands
  • 16-, and 32-bit instructions
  • Direct, indirect, and indexed addressing
  • Optional hardware floating-point module
  • Loadable/readable 32-bit RTC clock, 1-MHz rate; 16-bit monitor clock, 10-KHz rate
  • Built-in-test functions
  • Bootstrap PROM memory
  • Power failure shutdown/recovery
  • I/O controller capability
    • Chaining capability
    • Control memory for each channel
    • Up to 16 channels in various combinations
  • Interface to support equipment
  • Sample instruction times
Memory control and memory
  • Core memory module (CMM), 32K words of 18 bits
  • Semiconductor memory module (SMM), 32K words of 18 bits
  • Interchangeable core and semiconductor memory modules
  • CMM has 900-nanosecond cycle time and 350-nanosecond access time
  • SMM has 400-nanosecond cycle time and 200-nanosecond access time
  • Interleaved or non-interleaved addressing
  • Read/write expandable memory (RXM), 4K x 18-bit RAM with optional 4K PROM
  • Parity bit per byte
  • Protect features
    • Write protect
    • Read protect
    • Execute protect
    • Block protect in paging system
  • Memory controller with paging to 524,288 words
I/O Processor (optional)
  • I/O controller capability
  • Instruction subset compatible with central processor
  • Microprogrammed
  • Usable in conjunction with a central processor or as a stand-alone processor
  • Real-time and system clocks
  • 16-word by 16-bit general register set
  • Addressing to 65,536-words
  • Fixed point 16-bit arithmetic
  • Interface to support equipment

Subsystems

Processor

The general processing control module (GPM) and the processor support module (PSM) make up a 16-bit central processor. for a general purpose computer. The extended arithmetic unit (EAU) is 32-bit floating-point hardware, controlled by the GPM. An input/output processor (IOP) can be added to increase processing throughput. It can function as an input/output controller (IOC) or as a single-module, 16-bit general purpose CPU. [3]

Memory

The memory subsystem includes two 32K-word with an 18-bit word length. The memory control module (MCM) provides the interface between the GPM and the memory modules. The read/write expandable memory module (RXM) is a 4K word module with an 18-bit word that serves as memory for the IOP. [3]

Input / Output

The AN/AYK-14(V) can support up to 16 I/O channels. A single chassis provides four to six I/O channels. XN-3 type enclosures can be added to expand the number of I/O channels. [3] I/O module types include:

Environmental requirements

The AN/AYK-14(V) family of systems is designed to meet MIL-E-5400 (airborne) requirements. [3]

See also

Related Research Articles

In processor design, microcode serves as an intermediary layer situated between the central processing unit (CPU) hardware and the programmer-visible instruction set architecture of a computer, also known as its machine code. It consists of a set of hardware-level instructions that implement the higher-level machine code instructions or control internal finite-state machine sequencing in many digital processing components. While microcode is utilized in Intel and AMD general-purpose CPUs in contemporary desktops and laptops, it functions only as a fallback path for scenarios that the faster hardwired control unit is unable to manage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Programmed Data Processor</span> Name used for several lines of minicomputers

Programmed Data Processor (PDP), referred to by some customers, media and authors as "Programmable Data Processor," is a term used by the Digital Equipment Corporation from 1957 to 1990 for several lines of minicomputers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PDP-8</span> Minicomputer product line

The PDP-8 is a family of 12-bit minicomputers that was produced by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC). It was the first commercially successful minicomputer, with over 50,000 units sold during the model's lifetime. Its basic design follows the pioneering LINC but has a smaller instruction set, which is an expanded version of the PDP-5 instruction set. Similar machines from DEC are the PDP-12 which is a modernized version of the PDP-8 and LINC concepts, and the PDP-14 industrial controller system.

The AN/USQ-17 or Naval Tactical Data System (NTDS) computer referred to in Sperry Rand documents as the Univac M-460, was Seymour Cray's last design for UNIVAC. UNIVAC later released a commercial version, the UNIVAC 490. That system was later upgraded to a multiprocessor configuration as the 494.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UNIVAC 1100/2200 series</span> Family of mainframe computers

The UNIVAC 1100/2200 series is a series of compatible 36-bit computer systems, beginning with the UNIVAC 1107 in 1962, initially made by Sperry Rand. The series continues to be supported today by Unisys Corporation as the ClearPath Dorado Series. The solid-state 1107 model number was in the same sequence as the earlier vacuum-tube computers, but the early computers were not compatible with their solid-state successors.

MIL-STD-1750A or 1750A is the formal definition of a 16-bit computer instruction set architecture (ISA), including both required and optional components, as described by the military standard document MIL-STD-1750A (1980). Since August 1996, it has been inactive for new designs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HP 2100</span> Mid-1960s 16-bit computer series by Hewlett Packard

The HP 2100 is a series of 16-bit minicomputers that were produced by Hewlett-Packard (HP) from the mid-1960s to early 1990s. Tens of thousands of machines in the series were sold over its 25-year lifetime, making HP the fourth-largest minicomputer vendor during the 1970s.

The UNIVAC 418 was a transistorized computer made by Sperry Univac. It had 18-bit words and used magnetic-core memory. The name came from its 4-microsecond memory cycle time and 18-bit word. The assembly language for this class of computers was TRIM III and ART418.

Varian Data Machines was a division of Varian Associates which sold minicomputers. It entered the market in 1967 through acquisition of Decision Control Inc. (DCI) in Newport Beach, California. It met stiff competition and was bought by Sperry Corporation in June 1977 who merged it into their Sperry UNIVAC division as the Sperry UNIVAC Minicomputer Operation.

The FPS AP-120B was a 38-bit, pipeline-oriented array processor manufactured by Floating Point Systems. It was designed to be attached to a host computer such as a DEC PDP-11 as a fast number-cruncher. Data transfer was accomplished using direct memory access.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AN/UYK-44</span>

The AN/UYK-44 is the standard 16-bit minicomputer of the United States Navy. The AN/UYK-44 was developed in the early 1980s by Sperry Corporation and was completed in early 1984. The AN/UYK-44 was used in surface ships, submarines, ground C4I platforms, radar and missile control systems. The system was designed to replace the older AN/UYK-20 model.

The AN/UYK-43 was the standard 32-bit computer of the United States Navy for surface ship and submarine platforms, with the first unit delivered in October, 1984. Some 1,250 units were delivered through to 2000. The size of a refrigerator, it replaced the older AN/UYK-7, both built by UNISYS and shared the same instruction set. An enhancement to the UYK-43, the Open Systems Module (OSM), allows up to six VMEbus Type 6U commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) cards to be installed in a UYK-43 enclosure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LINC-8</span>

LINC-8 is the name of a minicomputer manufactured by Digital Equipment Corporation between 1966 and 1969. It combines a LINC computer with a PDP-8 in one cabinet, thus being able to run programs written for either of the two architectures.

The Bendix G-20 computer was introduced in 1961 by the Bendix Corporation, Computer Division, Los Angeles, California. The G-20 followed the highly successful G-15 vacuum-tube computer. Bendix sold its computer division to Control Data Corporation in 1963, effectively terminating the G-20.

The DEC 7000 AXP and DEC 10000 AXP are a series of high-end multiprocessor server computers developed and manufactured by Digital Equipment Corporation, introduced on 10 November 1992. These systems formed part of the first generation of systems based on the 64-bit Alpha AXP architecture and at the time of introduction, ran Digital's OpenVMS AXP operating system, with DEC OSF/1 AXP available in March 1993. They were designed in parallel with the VAX 7000 and VAX 10000 minicomputers, and are identical except for the processor module(s) and supported bus interfaces. A field upgrade from a VAX 7000/10000 to a DEC 7000/10000 AXP was possible by means of swapping the processor boards.

The Capricorn family of microprocessors was developed by Hewlett-Packard in the late 1970s for the HP Series 80 scientific microcomputers. Capricorn was first used in the HP-85 desktop BASIC computer, introduced in January 1980. Steve Wozniak was inspired to build the Apple to be a computer like the HP 9830, and in 1976, he offered HP rights to the Apple computer. He was turned down and was given a release. When the calculator division started an 8-bit computer project called Capricorn, he left for Apple when he was not allowed to work on that project.

The IBM 2365 Processor Storage is a magnetic-core memory storage unit that is a component of the IBM System/360 models 65, 67, 75 and 85 computers, which were released between 1965 and 1968.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Computer Automation</span> Computer manufacturer

Computer Automation, Inc. was a minicomputer and industrial control computer manufacturer founded by David H. Methvin in 1968, based originally in Newport Beach, California, United States. It opened a sales, support and repair arm in the UK in 1972, based at Hertford House, Maple Cross, Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire. Later relocated to Suite 2 Milfield House, Croxley Centre, Croxley Green, Watford, Hertfordshire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">IBM System/360 Model 85</span> High-end IBM computer model from late 1960s

The IBM System/360 Model 85 is a high-end member of the System/360 family of computers, with many advanced features, and was announced in January 1968 and first shipped in December 1969. IBM built only about 30 360/85 systems because of "a recession in progress".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">IBM System/360 Model 75</span> High-end IBM computer model from 1960s

The IBM System/360 Model 75 is a discontinued high end/high performance system that was introduced on April 22, 1965. Although it played many roles in IBM's System/360 lineup, it accounted for a small fraction of a percent of the 360 systems sold. Five Model 75 computers housed at NASA's Real Time Computer Complex were used during the Apollo program.

References

  1. 1 2 "AN/AYK-14 (V) Navy Standard Airborne Computer Overview Including P3I" (PDF). Control Data Corporation.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Hajdu, Frank, "Control Data AN/AYK-14(V)", Rhode Island Computer Museum, retrieved January 11, 2025
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "AN/AYK-14 (V) Navy Standard Airborne Computer Technical Description" (PDF). Control Data Corporation.