HITAC S-810
Encyclopedia
The HITAC S-810 is a vector
supercomputer
developed, manufactured and marketed by Hitachi
. The first models, the S-810/10 and S-810/20, were announced in August 1982, making the S-810 was the second of the first three Japanese supercomputers, following the Fujitsu VP-200
, which was announced July 1982, but predating the NEC SX-2, which was announced in April 1983. The S-810 was Hitachi's first supercomputer, although the company had previously built a vector processor
, the IAP. The first system shipped was a top-end S-810/20 model, which was delivered to the University of Tokyo
's Large Computer Center in October 1983. The S-810 was succeeded as Hitachi's top-end supercomputer by the HITAC S-820
announced in July 1987.
There were three models, the low-end S-810/5, the mid-range S-810/10, and the top-end S-810/20. They differ in the number of vector pipelines installed, the number of scalar registers, the number vector registers, and the amount of memory supported. Hitachi claimed that the S-810/5's peak performance was 160 MFLOPS, the S-810/10's was 315 MFLOPS, and the S-810/20's was 630 MFLOPS.
The S-810 implements a Hitachi-designed extension of the IBM
System/370
instruction set architecture with 83 vector instructions (80 in the S-810/5 and S-810/10). The vector instructions are register-to-register, meaning that they do not directly reference memory. The scalar processor
is a Hitachi HITAC M-280H mainframe
with a 28 nanosecond
(ns) cycle time (clock rate
of approximately 35.71 MHz). In the S-810/20, there are 32 scalar registers, whereas the other models have 16. In all models, the scalar processor has a large 256 kilobyte
cache
.
The vector processor has a 14 ns cycle time (clock rate of approximately 71.43 MHz). The vector registers are 256 elements wide, and each element is 64 bits wide. The S-810/20 has 32 of these registers, whereas the other models have 16. These registers are implemented with 1 kilobit
(Kbit) bipolar
RAM integrated circuit
s (ICs) with a 4.5 ns access time
. All models have eight 256-bit vector mask registers and 48 vector address registers. All models have three load pipelines and one load/store pipeline for accessing the main memory. The S-810/20 has two lanes, each with two add, one multiply followed by add, and one multiply or divide followed by add floating point
pipelines, for a total of twelve. The S-810/10 has one lane with the same configuration as the S-810/20 and therefore a total of six pipelines. CPU logic is implemented with two emitter-coupled logic
gate array
IC types, a 550-gate
part with a 250 picosecond
(ps) gate delay and a 1,500-gate part with a 450 ps gate delay.
The main memory is implemented with 16 Kbit complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor static random access memory
ICs with an access time of 40 ns. The S-810/20 supports 64 to 256 megabyte
(MB) of main memory, whereas the other models support 32 to 128 MB.
Vector processor
A vector processor, or array processor, is a central processing unit that implements an instruction set containing instructions that operate on one-dimensional arrays of data called vectors. This is in contrast to a scalar processor, whose instructions operate on single data items...
supercomputer
Supercomputer
A supercomputer is a computer at the frontline of current processing capacity, particularly speed of calculation.Supercomputers are used for highly calculation-intensive tasks such as problems including quantum physics, weather forecasting, climate research, molecular modeling A supercomputer is a...
developed, manufactured and marketed by Hitachi
Hitachi
Hitachi is a multinational corporation specializing in high-technology.Hitachi may also refer to:*Hitachi, Ibaraki, Japan*Hitachi province, former province of Japan*Prince Hitachi and Princess Hitachi, members of the Japanese imperial family...
. The first models, the S-810/10 and S-810/20, were announced in August 1982, making the S-810 was the second of the first three Japanese supercomputers, following the Fujitsu VP-200
Fujitsu VP
The FACOM VP is a series of vector supercomputers designed, manufactured, and marketed by Fujitsu. Announced in July 1982, the FACOM VP were the first of the three initial Japanese commercial supercomputers, followed by the Hitachi HITAC S-810 in August 1982 and the NEC SX-2 in April 1983. The...
, which was announced July 1982, but predating the NEC SX-2, which was announced in April 1983. The S-810 was Hitachi's first supercomputer, although the company had previously built a vector processor
Vector processor
A vector processor, or array processor, is a central processing unit that implements an instruction set containing instructions that operate on one-dimensional arrays of data called vectors. This is in contrast to a scalar processor, whose instructions operate on single data items...
, the IAP. The first system shipped was a top-end S-810/20 model, which was delivered to the University of Tokyo
University of Tokyo
, abbreviated as , is a major research university located in Tokyo, Japan. The University has 10 faculties with a total of around 30,000 students, 2,100 of whom are foreign. Its five campuses are in Hongō, Komaba, Kashiwa, Shirokane and Nakano. It is considered to be the most prestigious university...
's Large Computer Center in October 1983. The S-810 was succeeded as Hitachi's top-end supercomputer by the HITAC S-820
HITAC S-820
The HITAC S-820 is a vector supercomputer developed, manufactured and marketed by Hitachi. Announced in July 1987, it was Hitachi's second supercomputer, succeeding the HITAC S-810. The S-820 is categorized as a second generation Japanese supercomputer....
announced in July 1987.
There were three models, the low-end S-810/5, the mid-range S-810/10, and the top-end S-810/20. They differ in the number of vector pipelines installed, the number of scalar registers, the number vector registers, and the amount of memory supported. Hitachi claimed that the S-810/5's peak performance was 160 MFLOPS, the S-810/10's was 315 MFLOPS, and the S-810/20's was 630 MFLOPS.
The S-810 implements a Hitachi-designed extension of the IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
System/370
System/370
The IBM System/370 was a model range of IBM mainframes announced on June 30, 1970 as the successors to the System/360 family. The series maintained backward compatibility with the S/360, allowing an easy migration path for customers; this, plus improved performance, were the dominant themes of the...
instruction set architecture with 83 vector instructions (80 in the S-810/5 and S-810/10). The vector instructions are register-to-register, meaning that they do not directly reference memory. The scalar processor
Scalar processor
Scalar processors represent the simplest class of computer processors. A scalar processor processes one datum at a time . , a scalar processor is classified as a SISD processor .In a vector processor, by contrast, a single instruction operates simultaneously on multiple data items...
is a Hitachi HITAC M-280H mainframe
Mainframe computer
Mainframes are powerful computers used primarily by corporate and governmental organizations for critical applications, bulk data processing such as census, industry and consumer statistics, enterprise resource planning, and financial transaction processing.The term originally referred to the...
with a 28 nanosecond
Nanosecond
A nanosecond is one billionth of a second . One nanosecond is to one second as one second is to 31.7 years.The word nanosecond is formed by the prefix nano and the unit second. Its symbol is ns....
(ns) cycle time (clock rate
Clock rate
The clock rate typically refers to the frequency that a CPU is running at.For example, a crystal oscillator frequency reference typically is synonymous with a fixed sinusoidal waveform, a clock rate is that frequency reference translated by electronic circuitry into a corresponding square wave...
of approximately 35.71 MHz). In the S-810/20, there are 32 scalar registers, whereas the other models have 16. In all models, the scalar processor has a large 256 kilobyte
Kilobyte
The kilobyte is a multiple of the unit byte for digital information. Although the prefix kilo- means 1000, the term kilobyte and symbol KB have historically been used to refer to either 1024 bytes or 1000 bytes, dependent upon context, in the fields of computer science and information...
cache
CPU cache
A CPU cache is a cache used by the central processing unit of a computer to reduce the average time to access memory. The cache is a smaller, faster memory which stores copies of the data from the most frequently used main memory locations...
.
The vector processor has a 14 ns cycle time (clock rate of approximately 71.43 MHz). The vector registers are 256 elements wide, and each element is 64 bits wide. The S-810/20 has 32 of these registers, whereas the other models have 16. These registers are implemented with 1 kilobit
Kilobit
The kilobit is a multiple of the unit bit for digital information or computer storage. The prefix kilo is defined in the International System of Units as a multiplier of 103 , and therefore,...
(Kbit) bipolar
Bipolar junction transistor
|- align = "center"| || PNP|- align = "center"| || NPNA bipolar transistor is a three-terminal electronic device constructed of doped semiconductor material and may be used in amplifying or switching applications. Bipolar transistors are so named because their operation involves both electrons...
RAM integrated circuit
Integrated circuit
An integrated circuit or monolithic integrated circuit is an electronic circuit manufactured by the patterned diffusion of trace elements into the surface of a thin substrate of semiconductor material...
s (ICs) with a 4.5 ns access time
Access time
Access time is the time delay or latency between a request to an electronic system, and the access being completed or the requested data returned....
. All models have eight 256-bit vector mask registers and 48 vector address registers. All models have three load pipelines and one load/store pipeline for accessing the main memory. The S-810/20 has two lanes, each with two add, one multiply followed by add, and one multiply or divide followed by add floating point
Floating point
In computing, floating point describes a method of representing real numbers in a way that can support a wide range of values. Numbers are, in general, represented approximately to a fixed number of significant digits and scaled using an exponent. The base for the scaling is normally 2, 10 or 16...
pipelines, for a total of twelve. The S-810/10 has one lane with the same configuration as the S-810/20 and therefore a total of six pipelines. CPU logic is implemented with two emitter-coupled logic
Emitter-coupled logic
In electronics, emitter-coupled logic , is a logic family that achieves high speed by using an overdriven BJT differential amplifier with single-ended input, whose emitter current is limited to avoid the slow saturation region of transistor operation....
gate array
Gate array
A gate array or uncommitted logic array is an approach to the design and manufacture of application-specific integrated circuits...
IC types, a 550-gate
Logic gate
A logic gate is an idealized or physical device implementing a Boolean function, that is, it performs a logical operation on one or more logic inputs and produces a single logic output. Depending on the context, the term may refer to an ideal logic gate, one that has for instance zero rise time and...
part with a 250 picosecond
Picosecond
A picosecond is 10−12 of a second. That is one trillionth, or one millionth of one millionth of a second, or 0.000 000 000 001 seconds. A picosecond is to one second as one second is to 31,700 years....
(ps) gate delay and a 1,500-gate part with a 450 ps gate delay.
The main memory is implemented with 16 Kbit complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor static random access memory
Static random access memory
Static random-access memory is a type of semiconductor memory where the word static indicates that, unlike dynamic RAM , it does not need to be periodically refreshed, as SRAM uses bistable latching circuitry to store each bit...
ICs with an access time of 40 ns. The S-810/20 supports 64 to 256 megabyte
Megabyte
The megabyte is a multiple of the unit byte for digital information storage or transmission with two different values depending on context: bytes generally for computer memory; and one million bytes generally for computer storage. The IEEE Standards Board has decided that "Mega will mean 1 000...
(MB) of main memory, whereas the other models support 32 to 128 MB.