Harris Computer Systems, Melbourne, Florida, which already has an OEM agreement with real time systems builder Massachusetts Computer Corp, Masscomp, for its low-end MCX Unix machines, claims that its new range of 68030-based multiprocessor real-time machines were designed in-house from the ground up – and is taking them into the market for high-performance simulators for defence and other applications. The Night Hawk range uses the CX/RT System V Interface Definition-compatible real-time kernel claimed to provide context switching better than 60 microseconds, coupled with up to eight MC68030-based processors; the object code-compatible CX/UX, based on System V.3.1 and BSD 4.3 is also provided for development, as is the Harris multi-processor Ada compiler. Each CPU also includes a custom floating point processor and is said to deliver 6 MIPS. Reason for the development, according to the company, is that although the Masscomp-based MCX systems are fast enough for data acquisition or command and control they don’t support the very fast context switching required for simulation. Night Hawk is not due to ship until the fourth quarter of 1988; pricing for a single-processor system will start at over $50,000.
Content from our partners
