Not Recommended for New Installations.
Please contact Technical Support for more information.
Stable Real Time Clock for PCs
Model PCRTC
Documentation Number PCRTC2095
This product
Designed and Manufactured
In Ottawa, Illinois
USA
of domestic and imported parts by
B&B Electronics Mfg. Co. Inc.
707 Dayton Road -- P.O. Box 1040 -- Ottawa, IL 61350
PH (815) 433-5100 -- FAX (815) 433-5105
Internet:
http://www.bb-elec.com
orders@bb-elec.com
support@bb.elec.com
B&B Electronics March 1995
Documentation Number PCRTC2095 Manual Cover Page
B&B Electronics -- PO Box 1040 -- Ottawa, IL 61350
PH (815) 433-5100 -- FAX (815) 433-5105
Table of Contents
CHAPTER 1. GENERAL INFORMATION ....................................1
NTRODUCTION ........................................................................................1
I
P
ACKING LIST..........................................................................................1
S
PECIFICATIONS.......................................................................................1
CHAPTER 2. SETUP..........................................................................2
H
ARDWARE SETUP...................................................................................2
T
ABLE 1. ADDRESS SWITCH SETTINGS...................................................2
H
ARDWARE INSTALLATION .....................................................................3
S
OFTWARE SETUP....................................................................................3
CHAPTER 3. OPERATION...............................................................4
O
VERVIEW...............................................................................................4
U
SING THE DEVICE DRIVER.....................................................................4
C
OMMAND LINE OPTIONS........................................................................5
S
ETTING THE PCRTC TIME AND DATE ...................................................5
R
EPLACING THE BATTERY.......................................................................6
P
ROGRAMMING WITH THE PCRTC..........................................................6
Q
UICKBASIC PROGRAMMING EXAMPLE..............................................10
P
ASCAL PROGRAMMING EXAMPLE........................................................10
C P
ROGRAMMING EXAMPLE..................................................................11
CHAPTER 4. CALCULATING ERROR........................................12
PPM T
ERMINOLOGY..............................................................................12
O
SCILLATOR ERROR ..............................................................................12
APPENDIX A. HARDWARE I/O MAP..........................................14
Documentation Number PCRTC2095 Manual Table of Contents i
B&B Electronics -- PO Box 1040 -- Ottawa, IL 61350
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Chapter 1. General Information
Introduction
The PCRTC is real time clock for PCs based on a highly
stable oscillator circuit. Using the software driver provided, the
PCRTC will update the DOS clock every minute, ensuring that all
applications have access to accurate time information.
With a simple function call, the PCRTC also reports battery
status and the time of the last power loss or computer reset.
Packing List
Examine the shipping carton and contents for physical
damage. The following items should be in the shipping carton:
1. PCRTC unit
2. One PCRTC 3.5” disk
3. This instruction manual
If any of these items are damaged or missing contact B&B
Electronics immediately.
Specifications
Setup
Address: Programmable with four position DIP switch
Interrupt: None required
Oscillator
Temperature Stability: < 5 ppm 0 - 50 °C
Calibration: < 1 ppm @ 23 °C (room temperature)
Aging: < 1 ppm
Power Requirements
35 mA @ 5VDC
Battery
Requires lithium AA battery 3-4V
Battery Life: approximately 10K hr. without host computer
powered.
Replacement batteries are available from B&B
Electronics, order as part number 3345.
Dimensions: 4.8” l x 3.0” h
Documentation Number PCRTC2095 Manual 1
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Chapter 2. Setup
Hardware Setup
The address switch on the PCRTC must be set to an
address which doesn’t conflict with other devices in the host
computer. The address settings are listed in Table 1, and are also
printed on the PCRTC card. The PCRTC is shipped from the factory
set for 200h. If you need to change this address, select one from the
table which will not conflict with another device in the host computer.
If the PCRTC does not operate properly, select a new address.
Remember to edit the file CONFIG.SYS to match the device driver
address to that used by the hardware. Appendix A contains a
hardware I/O address map for AT class PCs.
Table 1. Address Switch Settings
Hex
Address
200 0000
220 1000
240 0100
260 1100
280 0010
2A0 1010
2C0 0110
2E0 1110
300 0001
320 1001
340 0101
360 1101
380 0011
3A0 1011
3C0 0111
3E0 1111
Switch Settings
1234
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Hardware Installation
1. Shut the host computer power off.
2. Remove the computer cover.
3. Remove the expansion slot cover of an unused slot.
4. Handle the PCRTC only by its edges. Avoid touching any
conductors on the PCRTC. Install the PCRTC into the slot. Be
certain that the card is inserted completely into the slot.
5. Secure the card with the mounting screw from the slot cover.
The PCRTC is shipped with the oscillator halted to extend
battery life. To start the PCRTC, the card must be initialized. This
can be done using the command line option PCRTC /I found in
Chapter 3 of this manual or by the device driver. If you are using the
device driver, it will automatically initialize the PCRTC when it loads.
Upon initialization, a warning will appear stating that the oscillator
was halted and date and time information may be corrupt.
Software Setup
Place the 3.5” floppy disk in your “A” drive. Run the
installation program by typing “INSTALL” <Enter>. The files installed
to your hard drive include the PCRTC device driver, the shareware
program Timeset and three example files written in C, Pascal, and
QuickBASIC. These files demonstrate how to make function calls to
the PCRTC from within a program and are listed in Chapter 3. The
device driver will also be automatically installed in your
CONFIG.SYS file and set for address 200. If you require a different
address, remember to edit the CONFIG.SYS file to set the address
to match PCRTC hardware.
Documentation Number PCRTC2095 Manual 3
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Chapter 3. Operation
Overview
The most common application of the PCRTC is to simply
maintain the correct time on the host computer. Loading the device
driver in the CONFIG.SYS file will accomplish this function by
setting the DOS clock to the PCRTC clock time once every minute.
This allows the user and all applications access to the correct time
without any special commands or function calls.
The PCRTC has two additional features which may either
be incorporated using the provided “include file” and making
function calls within your program, or from the command line using
the PCRTC.EXE file. The first of these functions is battery status. By
checking the battery status you can take action on a low battery
before the time is corrupted. The second function is the time of last
power loss or reset. By checking this function, the time of the last
host computer power loss or system reset can be determined.
Using the Device Driver
In order for the PCRTC to automatically update the DOS
clock, the device driver PCRTCDD.SYS must be loaded from
CONFIG.SYS. This is done automatically by the installation
program. The following line will be added to the CONFIG.SYS file:
DEVICE = {path}PCRTCDD.SYS /A:{hex PCRTC address}
For example, if the file PCRTCDD.SYS is in the directory
C:\PCRTC, and the card address is set to 200h, use the following
line.
DEVICE = C:\PCRTC\PCRTCDD.SYS /A:200
If the address 200 is not compatible with your hardware, the
address parameter must be changed to match the address that was
selected for the hardware. After modifying the CONFIG.SYS file,
reboot the host computer. If the hardware and driver are installed
correctly, you should see the following message during bootup.
4 Documentation Number PCRTC2095 Manual
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PCRTC v1.00, (c) Copyright 1995, B&B Electronics Mfg. Co.
PCRTC address: 200h
Battery Status: Good
If this message appears, the driver has been installed and is
running. The DOS clock will be updated every minute using the time
from the PCRTC. The driver will report any errors found upon
installation.
Command Line Options
All of the PCRTC features can be accessed and controlled
from the command line as well. The program PCRTC.EXE has the
following command line options.
PCRTC /t [address] Set PCRTC time
PCRTC /d [address] Set PCRTC date
PCRTC /i [address] Initialize PCRTC (after battery change)
PCRTC /s [address] Display date, time and battery status
PCRTC /p [address] Display time/date of last power down
PCRTC /c [address] Display PCRTC and DOS clock
PCRTC /u [address] Set PCRTC date/time to DOS date/time
PCRTC /n [address] Set DOS date/time to PCRTC date/time
PCRTC /h+ [address] Increment hours +1 for Daylight Savings
PCRTC /h- [address] Decrement hours -1 for Daylight Savings
PCRTC /- Disable PCRTCDD.SYS
PCRTC /+ Enable PCRTCDD.SYS
It is necessary to insert the PCRTC address [address] only if the
device driver is not loaded. Note that the last two options are only
available if the driver is loaded. These options may be displayed at
the DOS prompt by typing PCRTC {enter}.
Setting the PCRTC Time and Date
There are several methods of setting the time and date of
the PCRTC. To manually set the time and date, use the DOS TIME
and DATE commands to first set the DOS clock, then use the /u
command line option to set the PCRTC time and date to be equal to
the DOS time and date. The time and date can also be set manually
using the command PCRTC /t and PCRTC /d. This sets the PCRTC
time and date without affecting the DOS time and date.
Documentation Number PCRTC2095 Manual 5
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The best method of updating the PCRTC time is to use the
shareware program Timeset. Note that although this program is
included on the PCRTC diskette, it is shareware and should be
registered with its author. Timeset uses your modem to obtain the
precise time from one of five atomic clocks in two continents, then
sets your DOS time. The batch file RTCSET.BAT included in the
Timeset directory should be used in conjunction with Timeset.
Running the batch file will execute the following operations. Note
that the device driver PCRTCDD.SYS must be installed to run the
batch file. Before running Timeset or the batch file, you will need to
configure Timeset for your modem and preferences. Documentation
files are included in the Timeset directory.
1. Update the DOS time to the PCRTC time
2. Disable the device driver
3. Run Timeset
4. Update the PCRTC to the corrected DOS time
5. Enable the device driver
Using Timeset allows the PCRTC time to be updated to within ≤ 0.1
seconds of the atomic clock selected. The small discrepancy in time
is dependent on the speed of the host computer and background
activities on the host computer.
Replacing the battery
The PCRTC uses a lithium AA 3.6V battery to maintain its
clock while the host computer is off. Replacement batteries must be
rated between 3 and 4 volts. Batteries can be ordered through B&B
as part number 3345. After replacing the battery, the PCRTC needs
to be reinitialized. If the device driver loads in your config.sys file,
the card will automatically be initialized, otherwise, the command
line option PCRTC {address} /I can be used. After replacing the
battery, the time and date must be reset.
Programming with the PCRTC
If you are writing your own application, you may wish to
access the status features of the PCRTC in addition to accurate
timekeeping. An “include” file for C, Pascal, and QuickBASIC is
provided to allow simple function calls to check battery status
and the time of last power down or reset. Sample programs
demonstrating how to make these calls are provided in each of the
three languages. The device driver keeps the DOS clock updated to
the correct time, so accurate time can be obtained using the
standard DOS calls.
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Start_RTC_API
Purpose: Initializes API, must be the first PCRTC function called
in the program.
C: int Start_RTC_API(unsigned int address);
Pascal: FUNCTION Start_RTC_API(address: WORD): WORD;
BASIC: FUNCTION StartRTCAPI% (BYVAL address AS
INTEGER)
Remarks: Start_RTC_API takes the address at which the PCRTC
is installed at. The device driver must be installed.
Returns: 0 = device driver is not installed.
non zero = address of PCRTC.
Example: See below.
Battery_RTC
Purpose: Check battery status of PCRTC
C: int Battery_RTC(void);
Pascal: FUNCTION Battery_RTC: WORD;
BASIC: FUNCTION BatteryRTC%
Returns: 1 if battery is good
0 if battery is low
Example: See below.
Documentation Number PCRTC2095 Manual 7
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Get_RTC_Time
Purpose : Returns the RTC time within a structure.
C: struct GetTime_T {
unsigned int hours;
unsigned int min;
unsigned int seconds;
unsigned int h_seconds;
};
int Get_RTC_Time(GetTime_T far *gt);
Pascal : TYPE GetTime_T = RECORD
hours: WORD;
min: WORD;
seconds: WORD;
h_seconds: WORD;
END;
TYPE GetTime_Ptr = ^GetTime_T;
FUNCTION Get_RTC_Time(time: GetTime_Ptr):
WORD;
BASIC: TYPE GetTimeT
hours AS INTEGER
min AS INTEGER
seconds AS INTEGER
hseconds AS INTEGER
END TYPE
FUNCTION GetRTCTime%(BYVAL Offs AS INTEGER,
BYVAL Segm AS INTEGER)
Remarks: Get_RTC_Time requires a far pointer to the GetTime_T
structure to be past as the argument.
Returns: The GetTime_T structure with the appropriate values.
Example: See below.
8 Documentation Number PCRTC2095 Manual
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Last_Power_Down_RTC
Purpose: Returns date and time of last power down within a
structure.
C: struct TimeSave_T {
unsigned int month;
unsigned int day;
unsigned int hour;
unsigned int minute;
unsigned int second;
};
int Last_Power_Down_RTC(TimeSave_T far *ts);
Pascal: TYPE TimeSave_T = RECORD
month: WORD;
day: WORD;
hour: WORD;
minute: WORD;
second: WORD;
END;
TYPE TimeSave_Ptr = ^TimeSave_T;
FUNCTION Last_Power_Down_RTC(timeSave:
TimeSave_Ptr): WORD;
BASIC: TYPE TimeSaveT
month AS INTEGER
day AS INTEGER
hour AS INTEGER
minute AS INTEGER
second AS INTEGER
END TYPE
FUNCTION LastPowerDownRTC% (BYVAL Offs AS
INTEGER, BYVAL Segm AS INTEGER)
Remarks: Last_Power_Down requires a far pointer to the
TimeSave_T structure to be past as the argument.
Returns: The TimeSave_T structure with the appropriate values.
Example: See below.
Documentation Number PCRTC2095 Manual 9
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QuickBASIC Example:
'$INCLUDE: 'RTC_API.BI' ‘Must be first executed statement in your program
DIM timeS AS TimeSaveT ‘Define Variable Structure
DIM time AS GetTimeT
address% = StartRTCAPI(0) ‘Initialize API
IF (address% <> 0) THEN ‘Check that it initialized OK
IF (GetRTCTime(VARSEG(time), VARPTR(time)) <> 0) THEN
PRINT “RTC time: “; time.hours; “:”; time.min; “:”; time.seconds; “.”;
PRINT time.hseconds
END IF
IF (LastPowerDownRTC(VARSEG(timeS), VARPTR(timeS)) <> 0) THEN
PRINT "Last Power Down (Reset): "; timeS.month; "/"; timeS.day;
PRINT "at"; timeS.hour; ":"; timeS.minute; ":"; timeS.second
END IF
IF (BatteryRTC) THEN ‘Check Battery Status
PRINT "Battery Status: GOOD"
ELSE
PRINT "Battery Status: LOW"
END IF
ELSE
PRINT "Device Driver (PCRTCDD.SYS) must be loaded."
END IF
END
Pascal Programming Example
USES RTC_API;
VAR ts: TimeSave_Ptr;
time: GetTime_Ptr;
address: WORD;
battery: WORD;
BEGIN
New(ts);
New(time);
address := Start_RTC_API(0);
IF (address <> 0) THEN
BEGIN
IF (Get_RTC_Time(time) <> 0) THEN
writeln(‘RTC time: ‘, time^.hours, ‘:’, time^.min, ‘:’, time^.second, ‘.’,
time^.hseconds);
IF (Last_Power_Down_RTC(ts) <> 0) THEN
writeln('Last Power Down (Reset): ', ts^.month, '/', ts^.day, ' at ', ts^.hour, ':',
IF (Battery_RTC <> 0) THEN writeln('Battery Status: Good')
ELSE writeln('Battery Status: Low');
END
ELSE writeln('Device Driver (PCRTCDD.SYS) must be installed.');
Dispose(ts);
Dispose(time);
END.
ts^.minute, ':', ts^.second);
10 Documentation Number PCRTC2095 Manual
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C Programming Example
#include <conio.h>
#include "rtc_api.h"
void main() {
TimeSave_T *ts = (TimeSave_T *) malloc(sizeof(TimeSave_T));
GetTime_T *time = (GetTime_T *) malloc(sizeof(GetTime_T));
unsigned int battery;
unsigned int address;
cprintf("Demo (PCRTC-c) v1.00, (c) Copyright 1994, B&B Electronics Mfg.
Co.\r\n\r\n");
address = Start_RTC_API(0);
if (address) {
if (Get_RTC_Time(time))
cprintf(“RTC time: %u:%u:%u.%u\r\n”, time->hours, time->min,
time>seconds, time->h_seconds);
if (Last_Power_Down_RTC(ts))
cprintf("Last Power Down (Reset): %.2u/%.2u at %u:%.2u:%.2u\r\n", ts->month,
ts->day, ts->hour, ts->minute, ts->second);
if (Battery_RTC()) cprintf("Battery Status: Good\r\n");
else cprintf("Battery Status: Low\r\n");
} else cprintf("Device Driver (PCRTCDD.SYS) must be installed.\r\n");
free(ts);
free(time);
}
Documentation Number PCRTC2095 Manual 11
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Chapter 4. Calculating Error
PPM Terminology
The unit ppm (parts per million) provides a number similar
to error expressed with percentages, but reduces the number of
decimal places required. For example, 0.001% converts to 0.00001
which is equivalent to 10 ppm. Using the ppm notation makes it
easier to deal with very small deviations.
The ppm terminology is also useful for calculating PCRTC
error in terms of seconds per month. Since an average month has
approximately 2.63 million seconds, if the PCRTC error was 2 ppm total error for the month would be 2 x 2.63 = 5.26 seconds.
Oscillator Error
The precision of the PCRTC is entirely dependent on the
quality of the oscillator circuit. There are three sources of error in the
oscillator, and understanding them will allow you to estimate the
precision of the PCRTC in your application.
Calibration error
The PCRTC oscillator is calibrated at the factory to within 1
ppm (part per million) of its specified frequency at room temperature
(23 °C).
Temperature Stability
The frequency of oscillation of crystal oscillators is highly
dependent on temperature. The oscillator used in the PCRTC has
an extremely low temperature dependency of 5 ppm from 0 °Cto50
°C. Since the oscillator is calibrated to 1 ppm at room temperature
(23 °C), it will only exhibit 1 ppm error if its environment is held to
this temperature. The worst case condition is if the temperature of
the PCRTC is held at one of the extremes, 0 or 50 °C. At these
points, there will be an error of 5 ppm. If the temperature variation
covers a smaller span, less error will be exhibited.
12 Documentation Number PCRTC2095 Manual
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Aging
All crystal oscillators have an aging characteristic. The
crystal used in the PCRTC uses the coldweld manufacturing
technique, which exhibits the lowest aging characteristic of 1
ppm/year. In practice, this aging rate improves significantly with
time, but for practical purposes the value of 1 ppm is adequate.
To estimate the error in your application, sum the error from
the three sources above. This estimate can be used to determine
how frequently the time should be updated using Timeset or another
method.
Documentation Number PCRTC2095 Manual 13
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Appendix A. Hardware I/O Map
I/O Map of XT Class Machines
Hex Address Address Function in XT Class Machines
000-00F
020-021
040-043
060-063
080-083
0A0-0AF
200-20F
210-217
2E8-2EF
2F8-2FF
300-31F
320-32F
378-37F
380-38F
3B0-3BF
3D0-3D7
3E8-3EF
3F0-3F7
3F8-3FF
DMA controller (8237A)
interrupt controller (8259A)
timer (8253)
PPI(8255A)
DMA page register (74LS612)
NMI - non maskable interrupt
game port joystick controller
expansion unit
COM4 serial port
COM2 serial port
prototype card
hard disk
parallel print
SDLC
MDA - monochrome adapter and printer
CGA - color graphics adapter
COM3 serial port
floppy diskette controller
COM1 serial port
14 Documentation Number PCRTC2095 Manual
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Hardware I/O Map of AT Class Machines
Hex Address Address Function in AT Class Machines
000-01F
020-03F
040-05F
060-06F
070-07F
080-09F
0A0-0BF
0C0-0DF
0F0-0FF
1F0-1F8
200-20F
258-25F
278-27F
2E8-2EF
2F8-2FF
300-31F
378-37F
380-38F
3A0-3AF
3B0-3BF
3BC-3BE
3C0-3CF
3D0-3D7
3E8-3EF
3F0-3F7
3F8-3FF
DMA controller #1 (8237A-5)
interrupt controller #1 (8259A)
timer (8254)
keyboard (8042)
NMI - non maskable interrupt & CMOS RAM
DMA page register (74LS612)
interrupt controller #2 (8259A)
DMA controller #2 (8237A)
80287 math coprocessor
hard disk
game port joystick controller
Intel Above Board
parallel printer port 2
COM4 serial port
COM2 serial port
prototype card
parallel printer 1
SDLC or bisynch com 2
bisynch com 1
MDA - monochrome adapter
parallel printer on monochrome adapter
EGA - reserved
CGA - color graphics adapter
COM 3 serial port
floppy diskette controller
COM1 serial port
Any eight byte space not listed above and not used by any
other equipment in your system may be used for the serial port.
Documentation Number PCRTC2095 Manual 15
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