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Old January 26th 04, 02:26 AM
Terry King
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Default Details of the Spirit Software environment

(I assume that if you're not a Geek, you wouldn't be here) ;-)
Otherwise, just flip back to CNN...

Take a look at:
http://www.gcn.com/22_24/news/23246-1.html
for details of the systems and software environment aboard Spirit and
Opportunity.

IBM Power PC Radiation-hardened processor, WindRiver VxWorks Real-Time
Operating system, etc etc.

-----------
Here's the product brochure for the RAD6000 processor:
http://www.iews.na.baesystems.com/bu...02_d22_001.pdf

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Also,
http://www.unix-systems.org/news/rs6000.html
is a UNIX oriented brag about the systems.

-----------------
People on this group, in other posts, have asked an interesting
question: "How can you flash update a Real Time Operating System
while it's operating??" I found the following answer:
**
To protect this basic upload and transfer capability, the flight
software necessary to perform the boot state software functions resides
in a write protected area of radiation hardened EEPROM. To reduce the
complexity and increase the reliability of the boot state flight
software, it has been written without incorporating the real-time
operating system that is being utilized by the operate state flight
software.

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AND: Software Development -- (Total Microsoft Avoidance Maneuver):

"The Control Section Flight Software is written in the 'C' programming
language and the operate state flight software utilizes the VxWorks
Real-Time Operating System. The flight software was originally developed
on a Motorola 603e PowerPC target processor, and will be ported to the
Lockheed-Martin RAD-6000 flight processor for final integration and
test. The PowerPC development environment is architecturally identical
to the RAD-6000 environment with a much lower cost."
-------

Here's some dated, but nicely detailed information on the basic computer
system, from Pathfinder:
http://www.gcn.com/archives/gcn/1997/june2/enter.htm
-------

I find this stuff fascinating, ever since I got to talk to some of the
guys who wrote the Apollo LEM software. Jeez, that WAS a while ago...
and they did it in 16K!



--
Regards, Terry King ...In The Woods In Vermont

"The one who dies with the most parts LOSES! What do you need??"