Newsgroups: comp.sys.transputer
From: rreiss@hq.eso.org (Roland Reiss)
Subject: Re: T801 availability
Organization: European Southern Observatory
Date: Wed, 23 Nov 1994 11:06:39 GMT
Message-ID: <1994Nov23.110639.16748@eso.org>

In article 785576241snz@walker.demon.co.uk,  paul@walker.demon.co.uk (Paul Walker) writes:
>Many thanks to David Boreham who replied to the newsgroup, and to others
>who replied privately. I have been offered enough devices now to satisfy
>the need. 
>
>Athough enough devices have surfaced this time, I should probably
>emphasise INMOS' recommendation that the T801 is not used in any 
>new designs.
>
>A comment on the "B016 test" below
>
>Many thanks again
>
>Paul Walker
>
>In article <1994Nov19.115352.13580@eso.org>
>           rreiss@hq.eso.org "Roland Reiss" writes:
>
>>In article pni@info.eng.octel.com,  david.boreham@octel.com writes:
>>>
>>>Remember that there were many 801 lots with tremendous bad karma (25MHz 
>>>binnings) so whatch out what dross you're using. Udeally test using Neil
>> Campbell's B016 tester and at temperature before using.
>>
>>What is this B016 tester, anyway?
>>
>
>It is often rather difficult to design a device test program which is
>as rigorous as a few seconds of system test on a PCB with RAM and
>peripherals. On a number of occasions, board testing showed up faults
>in transputer silicon, and the results were fed back to improve the 
>silicon test. In the case of the T801, used on very few boards, the B016
>VME master board used the T801 very thoroughly, and was able to detect
>faults which had not previously been found. It is possible that 
>the T801 was taken out of production before all the results had been
>incorporated in the silicon test.
>
>So there may be some devices around which would fail the B016 test.
>Fortunately most of them will be 25MHz parts, and hopefully the bugs
>would not appear in all systems.
>
>Paul

As we are going to use about 60 B016 boards within our observatory I
would be interested in that test program to perform acceptance and
periodic checks.  We (or better one of our sub-contractors) already
have problems with two boards that do not work like the others and
we would like to know the reasons.

So, is this B016 test program available to the public, somehow? 

---
*  Roland Reiss				rreiss@eso.org		
*  Optical Detectors			+49-89-32006-390
*  European Southern Observatory	Karl-Schwarzschild-Str. 2
*					D-85748 Garching, Germany



