Intellivoice Expansion Connector Information?

[First Spear]

I can't seem to find any definitive information on what the expansion connector in the top of the Intellivoice "can do". I recall that some units have expansion under the little door in the top, and some don't. I'm trying to get all of the tech info I can. All pointers appreciated.

 

Thanks!

[mr_me]

From intellivisionlives.com:

 

https://web.archive.org/web/20180710010337/http://www.intellivisionlives.com/bluesky/hardware/voice_tech.html#systag

The Intellivoice contains a buffer chip [sbp640] needed to interface the Master Component and the Orator chip. Since this buffer could conceivably be useful in interfacing other devices with the Master Component, the Intellivoice was designed with a peripheral connector, hidden under the Mattel Electronics plate on its top. Only one peripheral was ever on the drawing board that would have used this connector: wireless hand-controllers. When marketing decided to build the Intellivoice into the Intellivision III, the promise of wireless hand-controllers came with it.

Edited May 23, 2019 by mr_me

[+Lathe26]

Here are some of the signals available on the connector:

• D0-D7 from the MC's data/address bus (bottom 8 bits)
• A0-A2 from the SPB640, these are 3 address-only lines that should be treated as address bits 8, 9, and 10 (address bits 0-7 are from D0-D7). The SPB640 handles mapping small regions of the MC's 16-bit address range into the connector's 11-bit address range.
• BDIR/BC1/BC2 from MC to indicate the bus phase.
• RESET is a request from the peripheral to initiate a reset the MC
• MSYNC is the reset signal from MC to peripherals for the peripherals to reset themselves
• EXT AUDIO is analog audio sent to the MC
• MCLK IN/OUT is the MCLK from the MC, but there are 2 pins on the connector that need to be jumpered together for the system to function correctly.
• CBLNK is the Character Blank / Horizontal Retrace signal from the MC.
• GND and VCCs. Note that 2 VCC pins need to be jumpered together on the connector for the system to function correctly.
• V UNREG is VCC after passing through a 8.2 Ohm, 2W resistor (name is short for "Vcc Unregulated")
• RMHC is an input pin to the Keyboard Component to enable reading certain address ranges within $0000-$3FFF from the Intellivoice. Normally, the Keyboard Component blocks read requests to cartridges and/or the Intellivoice in this address range. RMHC mean ReMote Hand Controller (the wireless hand-controllers mr_me mentioned above). Note that in an unrelated project, this disabling of reads made dumping my Black Whale cartridge from the Keyboard Component over the Cuttle Cart 3's serial port a little tricky (its serial port registers are in that low address range that the KC disables reads from).

[tschak909]

On 5/24/2019 at 12:09 AM, Lathe26 said:

Here are some of the signals available on the connector:

• D0-D7 from the MC's data/address bus (bottom 8 bits)
• A0-A2 from the SPB640, these are 3 address-only lines that should be treated as address bits 8, 9, and 10 (address bits 0-7 are from D0-D7). The SPB640 handles mapping small regions of the MC's 16-bit address range into the connector's 11-bit address range.
• BDIR/BC1/BC2 from MC to indicate the bus phase.
• RESET is a request from the peripheral to initiate a reset the MC
• MSYNC is the reset signal from MC to peripherals for the peripherals to reset themselves
• EXT AUDIO is analog audio sent to the MC
• MCLK IN/OUT is the MCLK from the MC, but there are 2 pins on the connector that need to be jumpered together for the system to function correctly.
• CBLNK is the Character Blank / Horizontal Retrace signal from the MC.
• GND and VCCs. Note that 2 VCC pins need to be jumpered together on the connector for the system to function correctly.
• V UNREG is VCC after passing through a 8.2 Ohm, 2W resistor (name is short for "Vcc Unregulated")
• RMHC is an input pin to the Keyboard Component to enable reading certain address ranges within $0000-$3FFF from the Intellivoice. Normally, the Keyboard Component blocks read requests to cartridges and/or the Intellivoice in this address range. RMHC mean ReMote Hand Controller (the wireless hand-controllers mr_me mentioned above). Note that in an unrelated project, this disabling of reads made dumping my Black Whale cartridge from the Keyboard Component over the Cuttle Cart 3's serial port a little tricky (its serial port registers are in that low address range that the KC disables reads from).

Is there a complete pin mapping of the edge connector somewhere?

-Thom

 

[JohnPCAE]

17 minutes ago, tschak909 said:

Is there a complete pin mapping of the edge connector somewhere?

-Thom

 

We can do you one better. Here's the Intellivoice service manual, which includes a complete schematic:

 

The Intellivoice connector would be a great solution for FujiNet, but it can also be problematic. Data pins D0-D7 are open-collector, but not all Intellivoice units have the required pull-up resistors R28-R35. So anything you plug into it should provide its own pull-ups. A simple SIP resistor pack can do the trick. Also, many Intellivoice units don't have the IDC connector at all. Those would have to be retrofitted. In my Intellivoice II project, I provide the expansion connector but not the pull-up resistors.

 

Intellivoice_Service_Manual.pdf

Edited December 17, 2022 by JohnPCAE

[+Lathe26]

Keep in mind that only 40% of Intellivoices have that connector populated.  The rest are missing the connector and the panel is glued shut.

[tschak909]

noted, we'll stick to using the cartridge slot.

-Thom

 

[First Spear]

On 5/24/2019 at 1:09 AM, Lathe26 said:

Here are some of the signals available on the connector:

• D0-D7 from th[snip]

Is that available anywhere else besides this forum? I will get to queue it for a FAQ update with the right link.

Thanks.

 

[+Lathe26]

95% of the above information is from the Intellivoice schematic that is available in PDF format.  It's in various places on the internet but I don't have a link handy at the moment.

[+Gunoz]

Pgs 10-11 here? https://annarchive.com/files2/Intellivoice Service Manual.pdf

[+Lathe26]

Yes