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A Guide to online information about:

The 80186

by Benjamin Day

The '186 got its start in the early 80s as a successor to Intel's 8086, but somehow missed out on the fame and fortune afforded other family members. The '186 never spent any time in the limelight of the personal computer marketplace, however, it has found an excellent niche in the embedded-system market with a little help from AMD.

Today, the '186 lives on in the form of Intel's 80C186Ex family and AMD's Am186 family. And, although not the focus of this article, the '186 has become a popular microprocessor core for highly integrated custom ASIC products.

As a 16-bit processor, the '186 lacks the resources necessary for a Windows CE operating system, however, the 186 readily takes on the task of running embedded versions of DOS making it possible to use a wide variety of familiar DOS-based applications and tools. But DOS is not a requirement by any means. Many of the development tools mentioned here will work well for you even if you choose to build all your software from scratch.

Manufacturers of '186 microcontrollers

The only two manufacturers mentioned here are Intel and AMD since they specifically sell '186 devices. However, many of the software development tools mentioned later will also work with ASICs using a '186 core or with NEC's V-series processors which are generally compatible with the 8086 architecture.

The Intel '186 Processor web page includes information on Intel's 80C186EA, 80C186EB, 80C186EC microcontrollers, including datasheets, application notes, and manuals.

Intel also offers ApBUILDER, a useful tool for configuring the various peripherals found on Intel's '186 microcontrollers.

AMD offers a great selection of 186 microcontrollers via its E86 family of 16-bit microcontrollers. Products include the Am186 EM, Am186 ES, Am186 ER, and the Am186 ED. Each features glueless logic for connecting RAM and ROM or flash memory. AMD also offers the Am186 Cx derivatives which have peripherals such as HDLC channels intended for use in communications products such as DSL or ISDN modems.

AMD offers a variety of eval boards including the Net186 board which includes an onboard Ethernet controller.

Hardware & Software Development Tools

You'll find a wide selection of tools to choose from here, including in-circuit emulators, C compilers, debuggers, embedded DOS and more.

Applied Microsystems offers in-circuit emulators for both the Intel and AMD families. Applied Microsystems offers a version of SuperTap for the AM186 processors and a version of SuperTap for the Intel 186 processors.

Beacon Development Tools offers a variety of In-Circuit Emulators, including CheckMate-II for the Am186 family, CheckMate-II for the Intel 186 family, Q.E.D for the Am168 family, and Q.E.D for the Intel 186 family.

Beacon also offers Link&Locate 86, a linker/locator, which you will need if you are not incorporating embedded DOS into your system. And Beacon offers Visual Probe Remote DEBUGGER, a remote debugger which will let you run a source-level debugger on your PC to debug your embedded applications in your target system.

With Microsoft and Watcom dropping out of the 16-bit 'x86 compiler market, Borland is one of the few players left to offer a C/C++ compiler that can target embedded DOS systems. If you are developing a '186-based system with embedded DOS, then Turbo C++ will satisfy your software tool needs providing a complete IDE including a debugger.

CAD-UL offers tools for the x86 supporting both the AMD and Intel 186 families. Tools offered include a C/C++ compiler suite, which contains a compiler, assembler, and linker/locator. The CAD-UL C/C++ compiler suite is capable of generating both 16-bit EXE files or HEX files so it is suitable for use in either an embedded DOS or standalone environment. CAD-UL also offers a source-level debugger for remote debugging of your target system applications.

Datalight offers both a ROM BIOS and ROM DOS for 80x86 embedded system development.

Datalight's ROM BIOS is highly configurable for your hardware and software requirements and includes the Borland Turbo Assembler and Debugger.

Datalight's ROM DOS is equivalent to MS DOS version 6.22. Free demo software and evaluation kits are available from the company's website.

General Software's products include an Embedded BIOS and an Embedded DOS. The Embedded BIOS includes a BIOS-aware debugger with disassembly capability. The General Software web site includes a white paper on developing DOS-based applications for the Am186ES and Am186EM using their Embedded DOS. General Software also offers Embedded DOS 6-XL, an embedded DOS with real-time operating system capabilities.

Lineo offers DR-DOS 7.03, which is tailored for embedded systems and thin clients. DR-DOS includes many advanced features including TCP/IP support.

Paradigm's products include:

• Paradigm C++ is a complete compiler suite (datasheet)
• Paradigm LOCATE is a linker/locator which you'll need if you don't intend to use an embedded DOS
• Paradigm DEBUG/RT is a remote target debugger which is suitable for use with or without an embedded DOS

US Software offers a variety of excellent software for your development needs whether you use an embedded DOS or not. Available products include:

• Soft-Scope is a remote target debugger providing sophisticated debugging capabilities with over 15 years of experience helping developers with the '186.
• USLink is a linker/locator capable of producing absolute located files such as HEX files, perfect for systems where no DOS is present.
• SuperTask! is a real-time operating system providing many features including events, group events, mailboxes, resources, and memory management.
• USNET is an RFC-compliant TCP/IP protocol stack with a small footprint—easy to use with AMD's Net186 demo board.

Development Boards and Modules

Several companies offer economical development boards based on '186 processors, including Bagotronix, Midwest Micro-Tek, and Tern.

Reference Resources

I have briefly cited a few past issues of Circuit Cellar which have some helpful articles on ethernet and the Am186. You will find the last article mentioned to be very useful if you are migrating from the 8051.

"Debugging & the Net186", Fred Eady, Circuit Cellar, August 1998.

"A Stand-Alone Embedded Ethernet Platform", Chip Freitag, Circuit Cellar, July 1997.

"Converting 8051 Code for an 'x86 Embedded Processor", Chip Freitag and Jeff Kirk, Circuit Cellar, March 1998.

If you would like to add any information on this topic or request a
specific topic to be covered, contact Benjamin Day. Ben Day works for Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories in Pullman, Washington making electric power safer, more reliable, and more economical.

Circuit Cellar provides up-to-date information for engineers. Visit www.circuitcellar.com for more information and additional articles.
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