Programmable data-acquisition and stepping motor control system

The implementation of a compact, inexpensive, programmable stepping motor controller and data-acquisition system based on the Zilog Z-80 microprocessor is described, including its basic hardware and software configurations. While originally designed to facilitate data acquisition from scanning x-ray diffractometers, the units have proven to be quite versatile and have been applied to a variety of instrumentation requiring automatic data acquisition and mechanical control.