Interloop catalogue - does it exist?

[Martin Hepperle]

While I was looking for more information about HP-IL peripherals I stumbled several times over the name "Interloop". This company offered some HP-IL devices/adapters and obviously announced many accessories - but I feel that some of these were vaporware.

For example I read in the Palmtop Paper about a "HP 95LX - HP-IL adapter"
This adapter adds an HP-IL interface to your 95LX, without giving up your RAM card slot or your serial port. The HP-IL interface occupies the memory card slot, adding the HP-IL interface and another RAM card slot (i.e. you don't loose your card slot). It allows you to use HP-IL printers, disk drives, plotters, modems, and video displays.
Availability........ Dec 15, 92
Pricing........ $275

Or, in the Atari Portfolie Forum (of February 08, 1991):
I received detailed information about the Portfolio HPIL adapter from Interloop that I mentioned last week. HPIL, or Hewlett-Packard Interface Loop, is a computer communication system that includes the protocol for transferring information between devices. Most of the other HPIL devices seem to be motor controllers, analog-to-digital converters, and other lab equipment, but printers, modems, and other general-use hardware can use HPIL. The Interloop Model #170 Portfolio to HPIL Interface Adapter lists for $275 (one or two units) and includes a device driver for interfacing with user software such as Quick BASIC and Turbo Pascal. If you need some sort of small, relatively inexpensive, programmable computer controller for lab equipment, the Model #170 with a Portfolio and other HPIL gear may be the way to go. For more info, contact Interloop at (408) 922-0520.

It is not clear whether this interface existed and if so whether this was just a serial<->HP-IL converter or a plug-in module. Some Atari web site mention this interface but do not show a picture or give more details.

As I learned from Jake Schwartz's video collection list Lew Thomas was obviously speaking on a 1993 meeting of the Philadelphia Area HP Handheld Club about an "IL95" interface (providing HPIL interface capability for the HP95LX) which supposedly equals the former interloop product.

Their address was: Interloop, Inc., 706 Charcot Avenue, San Jose, CA 95131.

So I would like to know whether there is a catalogue with pictures of the available hardware or is there a web site which shows their products?
Is someone operating Interloop devices today in his HP-IL setup?

Martin

[Lotus14]

I will dig through my storage boxes to see if I can find my Interloop device, and post some information on it.
I got the device when I worked for a company that used it to set up test fixtures for parts used in their product.
The information and instructions, as well as printed material on the company for the Interloop device were printed by dot matrix printer, so it was not a big company with a lot of fancy literature.
At the time, as far as I could tell, Interloop, was concentrating on one device, which was a printed circuit board with HPIL connectors on it. It was programmable using a form of BASIC. I think I still have the printouts, and if I find them, I'll be better able to describe the system. The test fixture I cannibalized was one for testing a stepper driven stage. The Interloop device plugged into the HP71B using the standard HPIL cables.

[Dave Frederickson]

Found this in an EduCALC catalog.

[Martin Hepperle]

thank you ... for an application see also ...



(snippets from a report, found via Google book search)
So this interface actually existed. About the others (HP 95LX) I am not sure...


I finally also found a lot of descriptions and photographs in the W&W Cursor Journal (in German).
W&W Cursor 2-3/1988
The only thing I did not find there was the HP-IL card for the Atari Portfolio and one for the HP 95LX.

Martin

[rprosperi]

After much searching (for something else!) I came across some Interloop documents I'd totally forgotten about:

"HPIL Step Motor Driver, Model #200 Reference Manual", including some 71B example programs and a detailed circuit diagram. About 20 pages.

"HPIL Quick Basic Starter Kit", Intended for the Interloop Model 150 HPIL/IBM PC Interface, Model 210 HPIL I/O Interface, and Model 201 HPIL Stepmotor Driver. Includes Checklists and Notes, plus about 20 pages of QB 4.5 program code.

These look quite real and complete, and are convincing evidence that at least the Model 200 Stepmotor existed and was sold and supported.

With these was a "Pre-Production Release" Spec Sheet from M-Squared Engineering, Inc. (also in San Jose, CA) for the "VL-2000 vocILizer" speech synthesizer for HP-IL, w/attached notes. The notes include specific references to the HP-41 series, HP-75 and Series-80. Although not dated, no mention of the HP-71B implies it is probably from early 1983, prior to the 71B announcement in mid-late '83. The application notes emphasize HP-41 use, and seem to have been written by Applied Computing Technology, perhaps a software vendor that used the VL-2000 hardware in some integrated solutions.

[Dave Frederickson]

(06-21-2017 09:51 PM)rprosperi Wrote:  "HPIL Step Motor Driver, Model #200 Reference Manual", including some 71B example programs and a detailed circuit diagram. About 20 pages.

"HPIL Quick Basic Starter Kit", Intended for the Interloop Model 150 HPIL/IBM PC Interface, Model 210 HPIL I/O Interface, and Model 201 HPIL Stepmotor Driver. Includes Checklists and Notes, plus about 20 pages of QB 4.5 program code.

Those should be scanned for the HP-IL Compendium.

[rprosperi]

(06-22-2017 03:27 PM)Dave Frederickson Wrote:  Those should be scanned for the HP-IL Compendium.

2nd item is sitting in scanner waiting for me to scan it, later today likely.

The 1st one is harder, the document is permanently bound together, so the only way to scan it is destroying the binding. I may have a go at when I reconnect a flatbed scanner, but none set up at the moment.

[Dave Frederickson]

(06-22-2017 06:39 PM)rprosperi Wrote:  ... so the only way to scan it is destroying the binding.

The Portable PLUS Service Manual was "scanned" with a phone camera and some fancy software that corrected trapezoidal images. They even make stands for attaching the phone for such purposes. Not suggesting you invest time and money in such a system, but it may not be necessary to destroy the binding.

Dave

[J-F Garnier]

Here are two pages (low copy quality, sorry) about the Interloop HP-IL products, from my archives.

J-F