Minicomputer Developments

The first computer to be designed specifically for use in comparatively small-scale laboratory applications was the LINC (Laboratory Instrument Computer), produced in 1962 by a team at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the USA, 

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A further advantage of spectrophotometers is the ready availability of a number of low-cost instruments with sufficient accuracy and reproductivity for dyebath analysis. Much of the work in the current study was carried out on a single-beam grating spectrophotometer costing approximately 2,000. The computations necessary in the analysis can be conveniently carried out on low-cost desk calculators or microprocessors. The calculations necessary for a four-dye mixture (or three dyes plus background) can be handled on a system costing less than 1,000. The least-squares fit of 16 points of the absorption spectrum can be carried out on a 3,000 minicomputer. Development of these low-cost instrument-minicomputer systems is largely responsible for consideration of dyebath reuse as a practical reality for the textile industry. 

The Digital VAX rose to prominence as a departmental minicomputer and became a virtual standard in the world of chemistry. The VAX offered a user-friendly flexible environment, together with what was then considered good computational throughput. Much computational chemistry methodology was developed on the VAX. 

Sponsor/Developing Organization Pacific Northwest Laboratory, P.O. Box 999, Richland, WA 99352, Custodian Marcel Ballinger, Pacific Northwest Laboratory, P.O. Box 999, Richland, WA 99352. Phone (509) 373-6715 Computer The original code was written in FORTRAN, to run on a VAX minicomputer, but can be rewritten to run on most any platform. Cost None. 

The labor-intensive nature of polymer tensile and flexure tests makes them logical candidates for automation. We have developed a fully automated instrument for performing these tests on rigid materials. The instrument is comprised of an Instron universal tester, a Zymark laboratory robot, a Digital Equipment Corporation minicomputer, and custom-made accessories to manipulate the specimens and measure their dimensions automatically. Our system allows us to determine the tensile or flexural properties of over one hundred specimens without human intervention, and it has significantly improved the productivity of our laboratory. This paper describes the structure and performance of our system, and it compares the relative costs of manual versus automated testing. 

One Important aspect of the supercomputer revolution that must be emphasized Is the hope that not only will It allow bigger calculations by existing methods, but also that It will actually stimulate the development of new approaches. A recent example of work along these lines Involves the solution of the Hartree-Fock equations by numerical Integration In momentum space rather than by expansion In a basis set In coordinate space (2.). Such calculations require too many fioatlng point operations and too much memory to be performed In a reasonable way on minicomputers, but once they are begun on supercomputers they open up several new lines of thinking. 

NMR spectrometers have improved significantly, particularly in the present decade, with the development of very stable superconducting magnets and of minicomputers that allow measurements over long time periods under homogeneous field conditions. Repetitive scanning and signal accumulation allow H-NMR spectra to be obtained with very small sample quantities. 

It is interesting to trace the development of instrument automation over the relatively brief period of the past ten to fifteen years. Early in this period, a truly automated instrument was a rare and expensive item built around a costly dedicated minicomputer. Automated data collection and analysis from any instrument which was not automated at the factory was usually accomplished by digitizing the data and storing it on a transportable media such as paper tape. These data were then delivered and fed to a timeshare system of some sort on which the data reduction program ran and which printed a report and sometimes a plot of the data. Often a considerable time delay occured between the generation and the analysis of the data. The scientist was at the mercy of the computer elite who could implement his data logger and provide the necessary computer resources to analyze his data. The process was expensive, both in time and in money. 

Based on their corporate experience in supporting their own research and development projects as well as a number of government-sponsored activities, the development of scientific software at BBN grew out of a long history of support of a variety of scientific applications. For example, in the 1960 s, BBN developed a hospital information system for Massachusetts General Hospital which used an early minicomputer, the PDP-1, to support clinical research activities. Under the sponsorship of the National Institutes of Health, they developed a system called PROPHET (1) which provides a... 

An Instron Tensile Tester Model TM was Interfaced to a micro-computer for data collection and transmission to a minicomputer. A FORTRAN program was developed to allow data analysis by the minicomputer. The program generates stress-strain curves from the raw data, calculates physical parameters, and produces reports and plots. 

We have also set up a software library on the 32-bit minicomputer that allows us simulate the diffractometer operation as an aid to developing and debugging programs offline. 

These newly developed systems came to be known as Energy Management and Control Systems (EMCS). The computer in use at this time was the minicomputer. These systems utilized energy saving features for optimizing equipment operation, offsetting electrical demand and initiated the shut-down of equipment when not in use. 

Additionally, use of a commercial AI shell for expert system development has been demonstrated without the need to learn computer programming languages (C, Pascal, LISP or any of its variations), nor to have an intermediary knowledge engineer. Although this development effort of 4-5 man months was on a minicomputer, adaptation of EXMAT to the microcomputer version of TIMM is anticipated. The completed implementation of EXMAT will support the belief that AI combined with intelligent instrumentation can have a major impact on future analytical problem-solving. 

A Waters Model 150C ALC/GPC was interfaced to a minicomputer system by means of a microcomputer for automated data collection and analysis. Programs were developed for conventional molecular weight distribution analysis of the data and for liquid chromatographic quantitative composition analysis of oligomeric materials. Capability has been provided to utilize non-standard detectors such as a continuous viscometer detector and spectroscopic detectors for compositional analysis. The automation of the instrument has resulted in greater manpower efficiency and improved record keeping. 

We chose a general view because the impact of computers on flavor and fragrance research is not limited to a particular area. The advent of the microprocessor has made powerful, inexpensive microcomputers available to the analytical chemist and the sensory scientist alike. These people have connected them to their machines, used them to control robots, and placed them in their sensory evaluation booths. The successful development of inexpensive memory and very fast central processing units, on the other hand, has made very powerful minicomputers available to the computational chemist and the information scientist. These researchers now routinely use the computer to design new functional molecules, design new products, and keep track of huge collections of molecules and associated data. 

The Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) has achieved wide recognition as a powerful tool for increasing the productivity and quality of service of the analytical laboratory. Systems have been developed that range from inexpensive microcomputer based systems to half-million dollar or more large, minicomputer based systems. In addition, many firms have already developed or acquired custom systems tailored to their specific needs(1-8). 

If the system is developed in-house there is the obvious cost of the development labor, but even if the system is purchased, staff will have to be committed to requirements analysis, liaison with the system vendor, integration of the system into operations, and in-house system support and maintenance. If the system is modest (based on a small minicomputer or super microcomputer), only the acquisition cost may be significant. If the system is a large one (based on a mainframe or super minicomputer) then the cost of site preparation, air conditioning, cable installation and service contracts will have to be considered. 

By developing the figures one can determine what type of system is justified. Table 8.3 gives order of magnitude estimates of the systems costs associated with the various hardware alternatives. When the economics and situation indicate that a minicomputer is justified, generally it is less expensive in total... 

There may be a compelling reason for assembling or developing one s own minicomputer system ... 

Since the article by Spedding1 on infrared spectroscopy and carbohydrate chemistry was published in this Series in 1964, important advances in both infrared and Raman spectroscopy have been achieved. The discovery2 of the fast Fourier transform (f.F.t.) algorithm in 1965 revitalized the field of infrared spectroscopy. The use of the f.F.t., and the introduction of efficient minicomputers, permitted the development of a new generation of infrared instruments called Fourier-transform infrared (F.t.-i.r.) spectrophotometers. The development of F.t.-i.r. spectroscopy resulted in the setting up of the software necessary to undertake signal averaging, and perform the mathematical manipulation of the spectral data in order to extract the maximum of information from the spectra.3... 

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