Abaco Systems / VMIC VMIVME-7589-941 Single-Slot Pentium Processor-Based VMEbus CPU

The Abaco Systems / VMIC VMIVME-7589-941 is a single-slot VMEbus CPU board built around the Intel Pentium MMX processor for industrial and embedded applications requiring high reliability and processing capability in constrained form factors. This 6U board delivers real-time performance with integrated memory, video, networking, and storage interfaces in a compact VMEbus footprint.

– Technical Specifications

Processor & Memory
• Intel Pentium MMX processor: 166 MHz, 200 MHz, or 233 MHz selectable speeds
• 32-bit addressing with 64-bit data bus
• Superscalar architecture: two pipelined integer units and pipelined floating-point unit with dynamic branch prediction
• 512 Kbyte L2 cache (synchronous burst static RAM, near-zero wait state)
• Dual-ported SDRAM: one 168-pin DIMM slot, maximum 128 Mbyte
• 32 Kbyte battery-backed SRAM in ISA memory space (power-preserved)
• 8 Mbyte flash memory (secondary IDE port, bootable)

Video & Display
• 64-bit PCI SVGA controller with 2 Mbyte SGRAM

Interfaces
• VMEbus: Single-slot VME64 with multiplexed MBLT 64-bit block transfers; Universe II PCI-to-VMEbus bridge (Tundra Semiconductor)
• Primary and secondary PCI IDE interfaces supporting PIO, 8237 DMA, Ultra ATA/33, Ultra ATA/66, and Ultra ATA/100
• Fast Ethernet controller: 10BaseT and 100BaseTX with activity/mode LEDs
• Two 16550-compatible serial ports, independent 16-byte FIFO, up to 56 kHz baud rate
• PS/2 keyboard and mouse ports (ordering option) or two USB connectors
• VMEbus P2 connector for storage modules

BIOS & Firmware
• System and video BIOS in reprogrammable flash memory

Physical
• Form factor: Single-slot 6U VMEbus
• Front panel LEDs: +5 V power, VMEbus SYSFAIL, IDE status

– Key Features

• Parallel instruction execution via dual integer pipelines and dedicated FPU
• Separate instruction and data caches minimize pipeline stalls
• Dual-ported DRAM accessible directly from VMEbus without CPU mediation
• Battery-backed SRAM preserves critical data during power loss
• Multiple IDE transfer modes support legacy and high-speed storage devices
• Integrated Fast Ethernet with link-speed indication for network diagnostics

– Typical Applications

Real-time control systems, VMEbus-based data acquisition, embedded imaging and vision processing, industrial instrumentation, telecommunication platforms, and military/aerospace avionics where single-slot CPU density and VMEbus integration are mandatory.

– Compatibility & Integration

VME64 compliant with 64-bit MBLT capability. Tundra Universe II bridge ensures robust PCI-to-VMEbus protocol translation. Supports standard IDE and SDRAM components; flash BIOS enables field updates without specialized programmers.