The FASTBUS Intersegment Processor (FIP)

The Fastbus Intersegment Processor (FIP) is a Fastbus [1] processor based on a MOTOROLA MC68020 [2] microprocessor system. It will be used in several detectors of the Delphi LEP experiment at CERN. Its architecture is oriented towards cellular multi-layered acquisition systems, where it provides data collection, processing and buffering at a particular level, as well as control and synchronisation from one level to the next. The Fastbus architecture, Fastbus interfaces, and the application foreseen for the Delphi TPC are covered in detail in the paper.