80186 base communication computer

Includes bibliographical references (page 55)Microprocessor (micro) and Very Large Scale Integrated circuit (VLSI)\ud has become today's basic building block for digital system design. These\ud components, which rival and exceed the performance of complete electronic\ud system of the previous generation, are used in the design of computer and\ud controller to perform highly complex functions, yet are compact in\ud packaging. VLSI also has greatly increased system reliability at a\ud reasonably low cost. New systems such as digital data communication can be\ud designed to take advantages of these attributes.\ud With the presence of the computer in every type of business\ud environment, data must move effectively and efficiently. This\ud requirement deems the need for data communication. Communicating between\ud the transmitter and receiver requires the data to have a common structure.\ud Protocol between the two data exchange points must be established.\ud Data communication system can be programmed to handle various data\ud processing tasks without the supervision of the host computer. Programs\ud are written to give the system flexibility for managing higher-layer\ud protocol without system performance degradation. A data communication\ud system with protocol adaptability can extend its appplication into many\ud regions of communication.\ud A data communication computer board which can be served as the major\ud controlling unit in a data communication system was designed and developed.\ud The board was designed to perform the following functions:\ud 1. On-board microprocessor for processing of input and output\ud communication data without the supervision of the host CPU\ud 2. Interface with the IEEE 796 bus and perform as a communication bus\ud master.\ud 3. Provide on-board memory for communication program storage and data\ud buffer.\ud 4. Two channels of serial interface with individually selectable\ud transmit{receive baud rates.\ud 5. Interrupt handling capability for handling dynamic communication task\ud on a demand basis.\ud Results of the system testing indicated that the data communication\ud computer performed properly as designed