We had the same problem. It’s a DE-19 connector, fits in the same envelope has a DB-9, but 3 rows instead of 2. You can see in this video right around here: https://youtu.be/GMp5EAq-Elo?t=541 . ITT-canon used to make these. You can look them up on eBay, which is where we found ours. Make sure you don’t get a two row DB-19, which is a completely different animal. Marc
> On Aug 18, 2020, at 8:15 PM, Steve Malikoff via cctalk > <cctalk@classiccmp.org> wrote: > > Would anyone be able to identify the 19 pin connector used on the Alto II > keyset? > Shown in the second photo on > https://www.computerhistory.org/collections/catalog/X124.82C > > The Xerox engineering doc (209962B_Alto_II_Assembly_Keyset.pdf) has it as P/N > DE51218-1 if I interpret it correctly. > > I've looked for a while and the closest I can find appears to be Mouser p/n > 2DEF19P > The cost of 136 USD (each!) is more than I (and perhaps everyone else) would > really like to pay, and that's only for > the male end. > > Ideally I would like a datasheet on this original connector if possible, to > know the pin-pin spacing and the pressed metal > surround dimensions. > > I've just ordered small trial quantities of screws, microswitches, e-clips, > nutserts, rods and so on for my keyset > lookalikes/workalikes. Also about to start the key mapping to F5-F9 using a > popular small SOC board, which is small enough > to be inside a custom printed shell that the keyset plugs into. > That is, the 3-row 19-pin female connector side which goes through to USB. > > I was thinking there's no reason it shouldn't be able to work using the > original connector with a real keyset-less Alto, > should any such animal be lurking out there. Hence looking at the feasibility > of placing in a 19 pin male-female > connector arrangement rather than the fallback of straight-through to USB. > > The whole thing is still at prototype stage so even if it doesn't work out, > well I will at least have a bunch of additions > to my nuts/bolts/fasteners/switches stash. > > Thanks for any help, > > Steve. >