Helionetics Inc’ Sentinel Systems Inc has chosen IBM Microelectronics’ Blue Lightning 80486 family as the standard processor subsystem in its Sentry-E mid-range computer, which will be built for the company by IBM: key features of Blue Lightning are a 16Kb on-chip cache; 32-bit address and data bus; eight 32-bit general purpose registers; virtual memory support; power management; and optional on-chip paging; based on a 0.7 micron CMOS process with a power requirement of 3.3V to 3.8V, each Blue Lightning subsystem contains 1.2m transistors: by using the Blue Lightning in the Sentry-E, which already boosts EISA bus throughput by over 25%, customers get a fast computer for demanding and sensitive real time data processing, transfer and switching tasks, while it remains as easy to configure and run as a conventional desktop system, Sentinel claims.
