Mr. Nagano, from Tokyo, Japan send me photos and circuit diagram of an AIM 65 reproduction he designed an build: the AIM65-CPLD-3v3.
It is a beautiful, functional, and aesthetically faithful clone. In fact, he built two, one with a CPLD 3V3 version and a 5V version with a 6532 RIOT.
The AIM65-CPLD-3v3 will become available as a complete system (sold on ebay) in the near future.
Features of the AIM-65 reproduction AIM65-CPLD-3v3 Hardware
TTY Interface (usb-serial)
Thermal Printer
QWERTY keyboard
20 x 16-Segment Display
(No Cassette Tape Interface)
Power Supply
Main Logic: 3.3V
16-Segment Display : 5V
Thermal printer: 9V
Clock
CPU/ROM/RAM:
16, 12, 8MHz etc. can be selected by replacing the OSC module.
In addition, 1, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8 can be selected by the DIP switch on the CPLD board
Peripherals ( VIA/PIA/RIOT ) :
If the CPU clock is set to 1 or 1/2, peripherals will run at 1/4 of that frequency.
When the CPU clock is set to 1/4 or 1/8, peripherals run at the same frequency as the CPU.
Software
The following can be selected by setting the DIP SWITCH of the FLASH memory board.
000: 8K BASIC/ASSEMBLER
001: FORTH + MATHPACK
010: PL65/ASSEMBLER
011: GWK-BASIC V2.1 for Siemens PC100
100: Instant PASCAL
101..111: Reserved
Manual of the AIM65-CPLD-3v3 (Version 0.3 May 2 2023)
In 1983 the company ABM sold a floppy disk system, Commodore IEC 1541 based, for the AIM 65. It also offered a serial interface for the AIM 65 TTY connection and a parallel port.
The system consists of a PCB with the interfaces, a manual and the AH5050 ROM. The user has to add the Commodore diskdrive and IEC cable.
The 1541 Commodore drive was quite popular in the 80ties for SBCs, since it was affordable, the serial IEC connection simple (one 7406 TTL IC and a couple of I/O lines) and the drive itself intelligent, the host did not have to implement a DOS with low level drivers and file system. It is slow, and has a low capacity, small SBCs like the AIM 65 are more than happy with that Nowadays floppy drives like the 1541 are like dinosaurs. But the SD2IEC 1541 replacement devices are cheap!
In 1983 the company ABM sold a floppy disk system, Commodore IEC 1541 based, for the AIM 65. It also offered a serial interface for the AIM 65 TTY connection and a parallel port.
The system consists of a PCB with the interfaces, a manual and the AH5050 ROM. The user has to add the Commodore diskdrive and IEC cable.
The 1541 Commodore drive was quite popular in the 80ties for SBCs, since it was affordable, the serial IEC connection simple (one 7406 TTL IC and a couple of I/O lines) and the drive itself intelligent, the host did not have to implement a DOS with low level drivers and file system. It is slow, and has a low capacity, small SBCs like the AIM 65 are more than happy with that
Nowadays floppy drives like the 1541 are like dinosaurs. But the SD2IEC 1541 replacement devices are cheap!
See the links below for current implemntatiosn pf the AH5050 disk interface. Simple to make yourself, just a 7406 and an IEC DIN connector!
Ralf (ralf02, forum64.de) obtained a working AIM 65, alas without the keyboard.
So he designed and build one. In his own words:
Wenn ich an den Rechner 24 Volt (für den Drucker) und 5 Volt anlege, startet er schon einmal. Allerdings war leider keine Tastatur dabei. Es gibt zwar Tastatur-Nachbauten, die bei Ebay & Co für sehr viel Geld verkauft werden, aber ich dachte mir, das kann man doch auch selbst machen. Also habe ich mit KiCad eine Platine entworfen, mit Cherry MX Tastern bestückt, “blanke” Tastenkappen von Amazon draufgesetzt und mit dem Brother Etikettendrucker beklebt.
Translated:
When Ralf connected the 24 V (printer) and 5 V, the system started. But the keyboard was missing. Though there are keyboard replicas on ebay , costing quite a lot of money, I decided to build one myself. Kicad for the PCB, Cherry MX keys, blank keycaps and a Brother labelprinter for the lettering.
Ralf (ralf02, forum64.de) obtained a working AIM 65, alas without the keyboard.
So he designed and build one. In his own words:
Wenn ich an den Rechner 24 Volt (für den Drucker) und 5 Volt anlege, startet er schon einmal. Allerdings war leider keine Tastatur dabei. Es gibt zwar Tastatur-Nachbauten, die bei Ebay & Co für sehr viel Geld verkauft werden, aber ich dachte mir, das kann man doch auch selbst machen. Also habe ich mit KiCad eine Platine entworfen, mit Cherry MX Tastern bestückt, “blanke” Tastenkappen von Amazon draufgesetzt und mit dem Brother Etikettendrucker beklebt.
Translated:
When Ralf connected the 24 V (printer) and 5 V, the system started. But the keyboard was missing. Though there are keyboard replicas on ebay , costing quite a lot of money, I decided to build one myself. Kicad for the PCB, Cherry MX keys, blank keycaps and a Brother labelprinter for the lettering.
The result is a quality keyboard that fits the AIM 65 very well.
Ralf gave me permission (thanks!) to publish the photos and gerbers of the PCB.
Mr. Nagano, from Tokyo, Japan send me photos and circuit diagram of an AIM 65 clone he built. It is a beautiful and functionally and esthetic faithful clone. In fact, he built two, one with a CPLD 3V3 version and a 5 V version with a 6532 RIOT.
