University of Toronto M6809 computer
Dublin Core
Title
University of Toronto M6809 computer
Subject
single board microcomputer
Description
Historical context
(by Z. Stachniak)
In April 1972, Intel Corp. of Santa Clara, CA, announced its first 8-bit microprocessor, the 8008. Shortly after, the company introduced the 8008-powered SIM8-01 single-board computer designed as a trainer and a software development system for the 8008-based applications. The introduction of this novel hardware marked more than just a leap in microprogrammable controller technology. Within months, prototypes of the first general-purpose computers powered by the 8008 chip were operational on-site at the French company Réalisations et Études Électroniques located in the suburbs of Paris and at Micro Computer Machines with headquarters situated on the outskirts of Toronto. The SIM8-01 board generated the first wave of computer hobby activities in North America. It also became an educational tool that enabled electrical engineering students to gain a deep understanding and appreciation of this new microprocessor technology.
In 1973, the SIM8-01 board became the primary hardware at the newly established digital design labs at the University of Maryland and the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. These labs broadened the digital system design curriculum, introducing students to microprocessor technology recognized as a crucial component in computer engineering education. Other universities opted for various microprocessor development and demonstration systems, such as the Motorola MEK6800 single-board computer introduced in 1975, or developed and constructed their own hardware to support their microprocessor laboratories.
The University of Toronto M6809 computer
In the late 1970s, the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Toronto developed and built the M6809 single-board microcomputer for its microprocessor lab.
"Peter Pereira [a Senior Technologist at the University of Toronto] and I developed the hardware and Robert MacKay [a Ph.D. student] developed a Monitor Program that made it easy to use the board,"
recollected Zvonko Vranesic, a University of Toronto professor.
"At that time I was teaching courses on Logic Design and Computer Organization in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Computer technology was developing rapidly, boosted by the emergence of powerful microprocessor chips. I was in charge of organizing a new Microprocessor Laboratory. Since commercially available equipment was expensive, we decided to develop our own board using the 6809 microprocessor. Our new laboratory was a huge success."
The computer was introduced alongside comprehensive lab materials that included the computer's technical specifications, software descriptions, and a series of laboratory exercises.
The M6809 board was manufactured by Exceltronix Components and Computers — one of the largest and popular electronics stores of the 1980s in Toronto. Until 1984, the computer, initially developed as a lab tool for instructing microprocessor technology to electrical engineering students, was also commercially sold by Exceltronix to commercial customers and computer hobbyists. "It turned out that the board was quite powerful and easy to use," Vranesic added.
"We gave the Exceltronix company a licence to sell the board to commercial customers, which included industrial companies and several other universities. The board found uses that would otherwise have required a PDP-11 minicomputer (at a much higher cost)."
Between 1984 and 1985, Peter Bubonia, a research associate in the University of Toronto's Department of Electrical Engineering, revamped the M6809 computer. His new computer, the SBC6809 Lab-mate, supported experimentation with microprocessor technology at, among other institutions, the University of Toronto and Ryerson Polytechnic Institute.
M6809 hardware specifications
M6809 software
The M6809 software package TEACH included:
Museum holdings
(by Z. Stachniak)
In April 1972, Intel Corp. of Santa Clara, CA, announced its first 8-bit microprocessor, the 8008. Shortly after, the company introduced the 8008-powered SIM8-01 single-board computer designed as a trainer and a software development system for the 8008-based applications. The introduction of this novel hardware marked more than just a leap in microprogrammable controller technology. Within months, prototypes of the first general-purpose computers powered by the 8008 chip were operational on-site at the French company Réalisations et Études Électroniques located in the suburbs of Paris and at Micro Computer Machines with headquarters situated on the outskirts of Toronto. The SIM8-01 board generated the first wave of computer hobby activities in North America. It also became an educational tool that enabled electrical engineering students to gain a deep understanding and appreciation of this new microprocessor technology.
In 1973, the SIM8-01 board became the primary hardware at the newly established digital design labs at the University of Maryland and the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. These labs broadened the digital system design curriculum, introducing students to microprocessor technology recognized as a crucial component in computer engineering education. Other universities opted for various microprocessor development and demonstration systems, such as the Motorola MEK6800 single-board computer introduced in 1975, or developed and constructed their own hardware to support their microprocessor laboratories.
The University of Toronto M6809 computer
In the late 1970s, the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Toronto developed and built the M6809 single-board microcomputer for its microprocessor lab.
"Peter Pereira [a Senior Technologist at the University of Toronto] and I developed the hardware and Robert MacKay [a Ph.D. student] developed a Monitor Program that made it easy to use the board,"
recollected Zvonko Vranesic, a University of Toronto professor.
"At that time I was teaching courses on Logic Design and Computer Organization in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Computer technology was developing rapidly, boosted by the emergence of powerful microprocessor chips. I was in charge of organizing a new Microprocessor Laboratory. Since commercially available equipment was expensive, we decided to develop our own board using the 6809 microprocessor. Our new laboratory was a huge success."
The computer was introduced alongside comprehensive lab materials that included the computer's technical specifications, software descriptions, and a series of laboratory exercises.
The M6809 board was manufactured by Exceltronix Components and Computers — one of the largest and popular electronics stores of the 1980s in Toronto. Until 1984, the computer, initially developed as a lab tool for instructing microprocessor technology to electrical engineering students, was also commercially sold by Exceltronix to commercial customers and computer hobbyists. "It turned out that the board was quite powerful and easy to use," Vranesic added.
"We gave the Exceltronix company a licence to sell the board to commercial customers, which included industrial companies and several other universities. The board found uses that would otherwise have required a PDP-11 minicomputer (at a much higher cost)."
Between 1984 and 1985, Peter Bubonia, a research associate in the University of Toronto's Department of Electrical Engineering, revamped the M6809 computer. His new computer, the SBC6809 Lab-mate, supported experimentation with microprocessor technology at, among other institutions, the University of Toronto and Ryerson Polytechnic Institute.
M6809 hardware specifications
- CPU: Motorola MC6809, 8-bit,
- RAM: 16, 32, or 48Kbytes,
- ROM: slots for three TMS-2532 EPROMs,
- display chip: Intel DL1416, 64 characetr display,
- ports: two RS-232 compatible serial ports (used to communicate with a terminal and auxiliary devices such as printers, modems, and computers); two VIA 6522 chips providing two parallel ports each (for audio cassette recorder, keyboard, parallel printer, etc.); 16-bit I/O connector providing access to data, address, control lines and signals;
- switches: RESET switch, to reset hardware and enter the monitor software, and NMI switch to interrupt a program and enter the monitor software,
- power supply: +5V, +12V and -12V.
M6809 software
The M6809 software package TEACH included:
- monitor — allowed the user to test the memory, dump blocks of memory, examine and modify single memory locations, read and write from the cassette port, set and examine the breakpoints, single sterp or/and execute machine language programs, and set the examine the processor registers,
- editor/assembler — allowed the user to develop programs in the M6809 assembler (full screen),
- wire mode — allowed the user to up and download text files to or from remote computer as well as to download machine code in Motorola's S-record format.
Museum holdings
- M6809 computer with hand written code "UT0180" and a sticker "2/13/87 BN",
- Robert MacKay, Peter Pereira, and Zvonko Vranesic, University of Toronto M6809 MIcroprocessor Laboratory Notes and Experiments, v. 1.1, University of Toronto, 1982,
- SBC6809 Lab-mate computer.
Creator
University of Toronto
Source
donated by Arlen Michaels
Coverage
Canada, 1979 to mid 1980s
Files
Citation
University of Toronto, “University of Toronto M6809 computer,” York University Computer Museum Canada, accessed September 8, 2024, https://museum.eecs.yorku.ca/items/show/349.