1-2 General Information
The
recording
head
in the drive
module
is positioned by a mechanism
that
includes a
stepper
motor,
capstan
and
taut
metal
band.
The
mechanism
operates
in
an
open
loop
configuration,
that
is,
there
is
no
positive feedback to determine the actual position of
the
head.
The
head
assembly has two
read/write
heads,
one
for
each
side of the flexible disc.
When
the
heads
are
loaded,
both
contact
the medium. The
heads
are
automatically un-
loaded
one
and
a half
seconds
after the last
command
is received.
The
controller module contains a Micro CPU Chip (Z80), a processor-to-HP-IB Interface
(PHI) Chip, Read-Only Memory (ROM),
Random
Access Memory
(RAM)
and
the associated
logic circuits necessary to provide
an
interface
between
up to four disc drive assemblies
and
the HP-IB interface channel. The Z80 handles
data
and
commands
directly
at
the byte level.
The
controller
module
also contains
an
extensive self-test capability. Self-test functions
include various combinations of
read/write
operations on
numerous
tracks.
All
self-test
functions
may
be
initialized by
manual
switching
or
HP-IB
command
except
a pre-formatted
read-only test, which is switch-initiated only.
The
controller module performs a
subset
of
the
self-test
each
time
power
is applied. This
subset
does
not
include reading from
or
writing to a
disc. Self-test results
are
available as a four-bit binary word displayed
on
an
LED array
mounted
on
the controller module
or
as two bytes of status information which can
be
read
by the
host
system.
The
9895A
will
read
and
write
the
HP
standard
flexible disc format as
used
on
the HP
9885
Flexible Disc Drive,
on
either Single-sided or double-sided discs.
The
9895A
will
also
read
and
write the
IBM
128
bytes per sector
standard
data
interchange format
(IBM
3740)
on
a
single-sided disc. When a formatted disc
is
loaded
into the disc drive,
the
controller module
will
determine which format
is
being
used
and
whether
the disc is single- or double-sided.
Format
and
disc type
are
both
reported
as status information.
When
a disc
is
re-formatted,
the controller module performs defective track labeling
and
sparing as well as track re-
formatting.
Data transfers
are
buffered
on
a sector-to-sector basis. This allows devices
connected
to
the
flexible disc
memory
to access
data
at
any
rate
up
to the maximum burst rate.
A modular
replacement
philosophy has
been
implemented in
the
flexible disc memory to
minimize on-site repair time. Troubleshooting the flexible disc
memory
is
simplified by its
self-test diagnostics.