AML Sustaining
 This project provides sustaining engineering for AML (Automated Mixed Media Library) hardware, firmware and associated software. Three types of library hardware are supported: AML/2, AML/E and AML/J media storage libraries.
Robot firmware
AML/2 and AML/E libraries use Bosch RHO-3 controller hardware to control 6-axes robot in AML/2 systems and 4-axes robot in AML/E systems. The firmware is written in a special language (BAPS), used in Bosch RHO robot steering.The robot BOSCH Turboscara is the main component of the AML/2 data storage library. The robot performs delivery of the required data medium from the storage devices (a tower, data shelves and an import/export unit) to data processing elements (tape drives) and vice versa.The robot in AML/2 and AML/E systems can be equipped with several types of a gripper: 3480 gripper, 3490 gripper, parallel gripper and others. The parallel gripper allows operating with many types of data media (LTO, DLT, AIT, VHS, BetaCAM, Optical media, CD-Caddy etc.). AML/J library uses PMAC control card to control the robot with 4 axes: 3 linear axes and one rotary axis. The robot uses direct current servomotors and is equipped with the position measuring system (an optical digital encoder) and home position sensors. PMAC card uses a special C-like programming language. The firmware for AML/J is written in this language.The tasks of AML robot firmware are:
- receiving commands from the connected PC (controlled by AMU software)
- calculating physical coordinates for the robot from logical coordinates, given in the original command from AMU
- handling robot movement
- handling gripper operations
- receiving notifications from connected Eject/Insert/Foreign Units and forwarding these notifications to the host (AMU)
- processing commands and sending responses to the connected host (AMU)
- handling error and emergency situations
AMU software
AMU (AML Management Unit) software acts as a host for the robot firmware.The tasks of the AMU:
- communication with the host (interprets commands received from the HACC, ROBAR or DAS host processors and checks these commands for possible errors)
- management of the archive catalogue (saves logical coordinates of compartments, assigns media to compartments and tracks down the status of compartments and drives)
- converting the logical coordinates into the physical coordinates
- communication with the control unit of the robot, the control unit of the storage towers (for AML/2 systems) and the I/O units
- maintains user interface with 3 security levels (Operator, Administrator and Supervisor)
- activity logging (Log and Trace windows)
- maintains the system configuration (describes an individual structure of the system)
AMU software is written in C/C++ language (IBM Visual Age compiler suit). IBM DB/2 is used as a database engine.
DAS software
DAS (Distributed AML Server) software provides a unified interface for ACI (AML Client Interface) Clients. These clients are implemented for many operating systems (Windows, HP-UX, IBM AIX, SGI IRIX, Sun Solaris, HP (former DEC) Tru64 and several Linux distributives). DAS software acts as a server for ACI clients. DAS runs under OS/2 on the same computer where AMU software runs. DAS accepts requests from ACI clients, parses them and sends for execution to AMU via a queue mechanism of OS/2 operating system. The AML/2 and AML/E projects were started about 15 years ago, AML/J project is about 10 years old. Now all AML projects are in the end-of-life state and are supported in “sustaining” mode. Only critical bugs will be fixed and only situations, related to EOL for AML components will be taken up.The tasks of sustaining engineering are:
- providing support for RHO firmware code for AML/2 and AML/E systems
- providing support for PMAC firmware code for AML/J system
- providing support for AMU and DAS software
- providing support for engineering changes, required owing to EOL situation with one or more AML component(s)
Technical Information
| Platform: |
IBM OS/2 (AMU/DAS Software) |
| Embeded platform: |
DeltaTau PMAC Card (AML/J System); Bosch RHO (AML/2, AML/E) |
| Languages: |
C/C++, x86 assembler, PMAC programming language, BAPS (RHO) |
| RAD Tools: |
IBM VisualAge |
| Databases: |
IBM DB/2 |
| Technologies: |
IPC |
| Protocols: |
ONC/DCE RPC, TCP/IP |
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