The members of the Special Interest Group for Computer Architecture (SigArch) have been focusing attention on our two Engineering Open House (EOH) projects.
The first is the telescope control project. Our home-built telescope, a joint project with the Special Interest Group for Microcomputers and the U of I Astronomy Club, will explore the skies guided by an automated star-locating and tracking system. The tracking system will interface with the Yale Brightstar library of astronomical phenomena.
The second of our projects is the Apropos Computing Engine, also known as the ACE project. Based upon Xiloge Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), the ACE project will be a massively parallel computing engine that will actually be able to be adapted to each individual application with which it is used. By using FPGA's, the engine will create hardware configurations which can be customized through software control. The result will be an incredibly dynamic and versatile harware unit.
With the deadline for EOH approaching quickly, SigArch needs help more than ever. SigArch is open to anyone interested in hardware design and construction, and there is still time to get involved in the EOH projects. Send mail to sigarch@uiuc.edu and get involved!