New find, Edax PDP 11/23 system available.

I've just found an interesting vintage system. The machine is an Edax 9100 / 70. It contains a PDP 11/23 with MMU and FPP chips installed running RT 11 V4, circa 1980. The Edax 9100 is a rather odd beast. Its a system that attached to a scanning electron microscope and used a cryogenic silicon sensor to measure the spectra of emissions from the microscopes target and calculated the elemental composition of the sample. This system consists of three main sections. Each section connects with fairly long sets of cables, so each section is designed to be seperated, built onto or into an existing scanning electron microscope. Main chassis: There is the main chassis, a very mice short roll-around 19-inch rack with a formica top. This holds the 11/23 minicomputer in a custom backplane. There are a number of Q-bus slots, and a large section of custom backplane holding some fancy custom ADC modules and a video display and memory subsystem. The Q-bus section holds the following boards M8186 KDF11 (revision unknown, probably an early one) M8044 DE (memory) M8028 (no idea) A Sigma Floppy Disk Controller (RX02 emulation? boots as DY:) A Dialog ST-506 disk controller M8016 YB (don't know this one either, I used to drive UNIBUS 11's) A DEC 4 SLU board, no M# on the handles. There is a Shugart 8-inch FDD, complete with the original shipping cardboard to protect the heads. There is a ST-506 drive in the chassis somewhere, I don't know the capacity, or if this is a 8 or 5.25 inch drive. There are a number of power supplies for the electronics, as well as a high voltage supply for the special silicon sensor that was attached to the SEM. I don't have the sensor, its still being used on the SEM with a newer EDAX controller box. Keyboard / Console unit: A very retro-looking, nice keyboard with extra function keys, and a row of alphanumeric LED display modules for programmable legends over the function keys. All apparently controlled by standard RS-232 links to the 11/23. The displays look like old Litronix DL-1414 modules. According to the documentation, the standard keyboard section is used to boot the RT-11 O/S. The EDAX application was driven by using the special function keys and programmable key legends on the LED displays. One function key dumps you back to the RT-11SJ prompt. Video Display unit: Uses a portrait-format CRT in a (then) futuristic tilt-swivel metal chassis. This interfaces to the special video display system in the main chassis. This monitor would be placed next to the normal display graphics of the scanning electron microscope and would display the spectra of the sample being tested along with text displays of the settings, elemental compositions, etc. This same display is also used to talk to the PDP/11, I'm thinking that the UART in the display section (I have full schematics) is used to emulate a dumb terminal with the ASCII keyboard section on the Keyboard / Console unit. Software: This thing ran RT-11 SJ V4, and uses a modified version of DEC's basic. Users could write programs in BASIC and CALL functions that ran all the analog front end and display systems. Custom analysis programs could be written and saved to disk. A sort of batch mode would run factory and user written programs to study and test samples. There is whatever is on the disk, and the original factory 8-inch floppys. There is even the original Dialog DSD ST-506 disk controller utility and diagnostic disk with the Dialog D7026A formatting program. Condition: This thing has been removed from service, and has been sitting in the room next to a working electron microscope in a top notch analysis lab since its been delivered from the factory in 1980 or thereabouts. Its never been moved, or stored in a non climate controlled space. The condition is excellent. There are full service schematics and some documentation of the software (like all the calls to run the front end and display stuff). The I/O addresses for the custom hardware appear to be well documented. The roll-around rack is quite short, maybe just under 3 feet high. With the display and keyboard sections the whole thing is a bit smaller than an Apollo DN660, but very similar in general layout. I do not have the (Hubble twist lock) power cable, and I've not tried to powe the thing up. Availability: This thing is in Massachusettes. Right now this thing is sitting in my office at work with scrap paperwork. There is a paperwork process I need to go through to take it out of the building, but I suspect that the disposal fees the company would have to pay are such that they would be very happy for me to remove this thing for them (free to me). Moving the thing (during the winter) will be a small pain however. It will fit into the back of a Jeep Wrangler with the back seat removed, so I can get this thing home but I cannot place it into heated storage. I can store it in my garage, but I'll have to rodent proof the thing (but it will be stored next to my Lotus). The little roll-around rack is very nice, so I have to admit I might part this thing out. So if someone really wants the Q-bus boards and the floppy and hard disks out of it, lets talk. Better still, if someone wants a little RT-11 box, and does not care if the DEC logo is nowhere to be found, this might be a fun and funky little box to hack around on. Its really got killer retro looks, the styling of the thing is really something (photos are possible). The keyboard / console section appears to have a standard serial interface, and its a very cool keyboard, nice feel, very vintage. That could be easily hacked onto whatever vintage machine you wish. As for the CRT display, given that its got a portrait oriented tube, probably uses some totally strange video format that is nearly useless without the Edax display hardware. Oh yes, there is a high voltage inhibit switch, so you can switch off the 1,000 volt bias supply to the sensor head if your just using the computer. A nice service feature thats essential if someone wants to keep this thing intact and use it as a conventional 11/23 box (but full the fuse for the HV section, just in case someone turns that switch back on, you don't want 1 kV hanging off the end of a disconnected cable) Trade offers are welcome, I'd love to have either a working printing terminal (like a LA34) or just a printer that can take green bar paper. Serial or parallel interface will do. Oh yes, if chopped up, parts can be shipped. If you want the whole thing you need to come and pick it up in MA.