Intel 87C196 micro controller hex file format 1

[BrianG]

Hi folks,

Apologies for mutiple posting but it's difficult to know where best to post this query.

We have an old product which uses the 87C196 microcontroller and I need to program some more blank parts for spares. The problem is I can't be sure of the correct hex file format to setup on our Data I-O 2900 programmer for reading in the file from disk.

The file header looks like this:

:02203800F63F71
:01201800FFC8

which is very similar to Intel Hex-32, but not exactly as the second line seems to be missing two characters for the extended address.

Does anyone out there have any ideas?

 

[nbucska]

You can take out the old PROM, read it on the DATAI/O and
make a copy. <nbucska@pcperipherals.com>

 

[melone]

It's Intel MSC-Hex on your DataI/O. I have already answered your other post with how the format works.

 

[nbucska]

Hi Melone:
He can copy the PROM without knowing anything about the HEX file. <nbucska@pcperipherals.com>

 

[melone]

True, as long as he knows how to load it into memory. I have run into conditions where the DataIO will load the file into memory incorrectly, because the file format was very close to another format.

 

[BrianG]

Thanks for your suggestions guys. Melone you are right - it was an MSC Hex format file. The 87C196 microprocessor has an embedded EPROM, and unfortunately we did not have a working example, only the archive files, so it was not as simple as copying the PROM on the programmer.

Having got the file to download into the programmer without errors the main problem was working out the address offset required for the PROM area of the memory map. This has taken a while with a bit of trial and error, but we now have sorted that one out.

Thanks to all who replied.