All good things come to those who wait. Or so it might be in the realm of rugged, deployable DSP boards. When Curtiss-Wright announced their conduction-cooled CHAMP-FX board, we were surprised that they didn’t have such a version all along. We were told that the company wanted to wait until they were actually shipping the product in volume to real customers. There you have it: This board is for real.

Based upon the popular CHAMP 6U VME64x and VXS sized boards, the dual Xilinx Virtex-II Pro-based engine and CHAMPtools-FX Design Kit is intended for applications running -40 °C to +85 °C in IEEE 1101.2 mechanical chassis. Contained in each FPGA are two IBM PowerPC 405 RISC CPUs supported by a total of 512 MB DDR266 SDRAM and 16 MB DDR II fast SRAM. The FPGAs also support four 4-bit, bidirectional RocketIP ports for interboard connectivity, plus two off-board StarFabric interfaces for serial interconnects. There are dual PMC/XMC sites, debug interfaces for ease-of-use, and VHDL IP libraries optimized for wide temperature range circuits (to mitigate race conditions and low-temp PLL problems).

There is no denying that many VME applications have a tremendous need for processing and I/0 performance. Packing in all the performance possible has been a design challenge since the dawn of VME. Adding interconnect capability such as Serial Rapaid0 and FPDP only adds to the challenge. The PowerNode5 from Thales is the first dual 64-bit PowerPC970 VME blade server with backplane Serial Rapid0 and Serial FPDP connectivity.

The PowerNode5 design includes a powerful, reliable Serial RapidI0 switch fabric solution that allows t end user the ability to interconnect computing nodes inside a signal processing system. This Serial Rapid0 technology reduces pin counts while providing a full-duplex capability as well as a low-latency pocket-based interconnect data push. Each PowerNode5 is equipped with a four-port switch allowing a flexible, full-mesh interconnect of up to four PowerNode5s and scalable up to a 16-PowerNode5 machine. The resulting aggregate throughout reaches up to 25.6 G8ps, ideal for demanding signal processing applications found in radar, sonar, and medical imaging applications.

It seems that COTS suppliers are pretty close on the heels of the latest desktop PC trend: dual-core processors with mammoth amounts of memory. The SVME/DMV-1901 from Curtiss-Wright Controls Embedded Computing (“CWCEC” is so much easier to type!) resembles the latest desktop PC available at your favorite big box store. But the key difference is that this one can fly around in a pointy-nosed aircraft or rumble around in the belly of an armored vehicle traversing the desert. Available in flavors from air- to conduction-cooled, and over a wide temperature range, this Intel Core Duo board can run at either 1.67 or 2.0 GHz.

Sporting two PMC/XMC (the PCI Express version of PMC) slots for mezzanine expansion, the single-slot 6U VME board can be equipped with up to 4 GB of ECC DDR2 SDRAM and 4 GB of USB user flash. Dual displays can be driven from the onboard ATI Radeon X300 graphics controller with four-lane PCI Express connectivity. There are two 10/100/1000 Ethernet ports, three USB 2.0 ports, two SATA ports, two SCSI ports (Ultra 320/160), AC ‘97 Audio, and six serial ports in myriad legacy flavors. BSPs abound too, ranging from VxWorks and LynxOS to XPe, Solaris 10, and Linux.

So what’s a rugged shoebox PC doing in a magazine dedicated to VME? Simple: the other half of our title is “Critical Systems.” The SwitchBack from Black Diamond Advanced Technology is the hot little number that runs Intel’s dual V-twin “quad core show bike” built by the bad boys at Orange County Choppers. It doesn’t get much more mission critical than this, as every ride can be a flirt with death. But the Celeron M-powered SwitchBack can take the punishment.

Running Windows XP, Vista, or Linux, the touchscreen-equipped device has a 5.6" sunlight-readable LCD at 1,024 x 600 (WSVCA), integrated Intel graphics, up to 2 GB of RAM, and a removable HDD up to 120 GB. A built-in QWERTY keyboard and pointing device supplement the touchscreen, and optional Bluetooth 2.0, Wi-Fi, and GPS round out the RF componentry. The standard lithium-polymer battery lasts up to four hours; of course, when installed on the Intel bike, it’ll last until your arm muscles give out.

Lots has been written about the OCC/Intel bike, but we think the SwitchBack deserves an Editor’s Choice award in VME and Critical Systems magazine … especially because it’s so darned cool.

VME systems are deployed in all kinds of military environments, and system supply voltages have to feed the VME chassis and all the other electronics and sensors. For military and avionics platforms with 375 Vdc supplies, Vicor’s Maxi module family offers maximum choices. Eight new models bring the total family size to 17 models, with output voltages ranging from 2 to 54 Vdc and power levels from 160 to 600 W.

Input voltage can range from 250 to 425 V, with 375 Vdc nominal and efficiencies up to 89 percent. The new models include: 200 W at 3.3 Vout, 300 W at 5 Vout, and 400 W models at 12, 15, 24, 28, 36, and 48 Vout. All models can withstand a 500 V surge for 100 ms, operate up to 100 °C at full load, and utilize Vicor’s ZCS/ZVS high-frequency switching for low noise and high efficiency. Size is 4.6" x 2.2" x 0.5" (117 x 56 x 12.7 mm). The Maxi family includes inputs of 24, 48, 110, 300, and 375 Vdc.

By now it’s clear to everyone who’s been awake since Y2K that Ethernet is nearly as ubiquitous as extension cords during the holidays. Besides faster Ethernet speeds and TCP/IP offload engines, the IEEE 802.3af Power over Ethernet (PoE) feature is a nifty way to use all that cable to electrify the attached doodads (kind of like an extension cord). The LTC4263 from Linear Technology is an autonomous single-channel Power Sourcing Equipment (PSE) controller with an onboard MOSFET designed to provide isolated 48 V power to connected devices. Key here is the fact that the device provides autonomous operation through all PoE tasks without processor intervention.

An internal sense resistor allows the device to provide precision inrush, current limit, and short circuit control. Advanced detection and power monitoring prevent damage to legacy data-only devices, and power management is possible across multiple ports. Operation only requires 48 V and a handful of passive devices as shown in the figure. The 14-pin device is available in commercial and industrial temperature ranges and is so inexpensive it’s not even worth mentioning here. If you need Power over Ethernet, you need the LTC4263.

VME has long found its way into the harshest applications on the planet (and on Mars, too). These mission-critical systems often include field test equipment that gets bounced, tossed, sloshed, and vibrated around. So it follows that sensor systems that can perform real-world analyses are a natural complement to rugged VME systems. The DT9837 from Data Translation is such a multifunction device designed to attach via USB and perform sound and vibration analysis. With four independent 24-bit Integrated Electronics Piezo Electric sensors synched to a tachometer, data streams can be matched in time for automotive, acoustics, and even – wait for it – critical sonar applications.

The four 24-bit delta-sigma A/Ds support AC or DC sampling, while the tach in the data stream aids in time synchronization. Each channel supports 52 KHz operation and operates independently of the others. The unit is powered over USB, which implies a simple connection to VME field chassis. Data Translation’s Measure Foundry application development software package allows users to create noise and vibration applications quickly and easily. Additionally, third-party packages like Vibrant Technology’s ME’scope can be used for postprocessing and analysis.

At this month’s Bus&Boards insiders’ conference in Long Beach, California, the fabric interconnect RapidIO was everywhere you looked. It seems that Serial RapidIO is becoming the interconnect of choice for high-performance VME systems, supplemented by PCI Express and GbE. With all three interconnects so prevalent, the need for bridging between them is becoming acute. While PCIe-to-Ethernet bridges are common consumer items straight from desktop PC and server products, Mercury Computer is making it easy to bridge between PCIe and Serial RapidIO with their Serial RapidIO-to-PCIe Intelligent Bridge Core. Available as Verilog HDL in either Synopsis or Synplicity synthesis environments, the core can be implemented in FPGAs, ASICs, ASSPs, or SoC devices. We suspect that for VME systems, the FPGA will prevail.

The core connects a Serial RapidIO port (RapidIO 1.2) operating at up to 3.125 GHz to an x8 PCI Express port (PCI Express 1.1) operating at 2.5 GHz through a nontransparent bridge. The core includes myriad high-level functions pertinent to RapidIO’s value proposition of solving high-speed problems in hardware (while reducing software and processor overhead). Multiple DMA engines, Serial RapidIO mailboxes and interrupts, address mapping, and sophisticated queuing within the intelligent bridge assure high utilization while maintaining maximum port bandwidth. The Verilog HDL targets FPGAs from Altera, Lattice, and Xilinx, and 0.09 micron (or smaller) line width geometries for custom silicon implementations.

Man (and woman) does not live by VME alone. In fact, most developers’ labs have T-frame VME chassis sitting right next to an eviscerated PC with its innards disgorged on a workbench. That’s because programming and interfacing to VME boxes is usually through a PC – and in-development I/O cards are frequently prototyped using PCI cards (because they’re cheap, people). But what to do with PCI cards in a new PCI Express-based PC? Why convert them, of course. Mobility Electronics offers their really hot Magma PCI Expansion Chassis series as one way to add legacy PCI cards to PCIe computers.

Fundamentally a bridge product, just about any type of PCI card can be used – ranging from audio, video, graphics, test and measurement, data acquisition, SCSI, Fibre Channel, SATA, and those unique military interfaces like ARINC 429 and MIL-STD-1553. The chassis’ x1 PCIe connection is compatible with any single PCI Express slot, and the chassis is easily recognized by the host computer via plug-and-play installation. The chassis’ PCI backplane supports 5 V, universal, and 3.3 V PCI and PCI-X cards and is available in 4U and 2U rack-mount configurations. Backplanes come in configurations of 4, 6, 7, and 13 slots.

Got a challenging PCB-to-PCB, flex cable-to-PCB, or IC-to-PCB connector problem? Sure, regular VME uses DIN connectors and VPX relies on the MultiGig RT2. But what about for custom mezzanine boards? Inside the chassis? On sensor I/O modules? You might want to jot this one down just in case: Hypertronics’ HyperGrid. The 100,000 mating cycle, solderless, compression-style connector is ideal for space-constrained applications where density and reliability are paramount.

The rugged RC Spring Probe contact technology requires only 10 grams of force per node to maintain connectivity, and the pitch can be as small as 0.25 mm. The design and small mass enable the connector to withstand extreme shock and vibration, while supporting multi-GHz RF signal rates. Contact self-inductance is a mere 0.5 mH, and each contact can tolerate 2.5 A with a DC resistance of 50 milliohms. OD dimensions can range from 0.91 and 2.50 mm in length, and between 0.91 and 2.00 in height.

It’s settled: Ethernet won the fabric wars. Back when RS-422/485 was the de facto military communications scheme, the thought of using an Ethernet LAN in mission-critical applications was heresy. But the fact is that with its ubiquity and low cost, Ethernet ports are available on most embedded boards and gadgets; trouble is, running any protocol on the wire slows performance down to a crawl. That’s why TCP/IP Offload Engines (TOEs) are required to maintain throughput – especially when implementing the DoD’s mandated IPv6. No one knows this better than Critical I/O, a specialty provider of high-performance interfaces.

The company’s Silicon Stack XGE4032 PMC interface seeks to provide true wire speeds for 1 or 10 GbE links used in radar, data acquisition, mission computers, sonar, FLIR, and video distribution applications. With native IPv6 support, the company reports only a 1 percent CPU overhead versus 99 percent without TOE support. Latency is reduced from 200 microseconds down to 6 microseconds while supporting the following protocols: Ethernet, TCP, UDP, IP, iSCSI, and RDMA. The PMC module is available in both air- and conduction-cooled versions.

VME designs based on the traditional parallel VMEbus need not feel left behind. New products continue to be introduced that bridge the generations of legacy features with the latest in technology. These new products can breathe new and longer lives into old systems.

The GE Fanuc Embedded Systems EP2A processor node features the latest Discovery V Integrated System Controller with a Power Architecture 7448 processor and DDR2 SDRAM, in combination with a unique and highly flexible set of I/0 features. In addition to standard SBC capabilities such as USB 2.0 and GvE, the EP2A features four fast HDLC-capable serial channels, making this board ideal for many communications-oriented embedded applications.

The EP2A’s I/0 flexiblity comes from its two PMC sites and its AFIX site, the latter supporting a range of useful plug-ons including dual MIL-STD-1553B interfaces, SCSI graphics, and flash memory modules. The AFIX site is also a useful option to add custom functionality at minimum cost and in minimum time.

Available in five air-and conduction-cooled buil levels, the EP2A is fully suppote by comprehensive deployed test software (BIT and BCS) and BSPs for VxWorks, Lynx0S, and INTEGRITY.

We have a never-ending need for more security and encryption as the use of computer technology grows. Finding all the right solutions is an ongoing task. Fortunately, things are getting better, IntellaSys has introduced its new OnSpec xSil26x controller chips with 128-bit, hardware-encrypted security for use with flash memory or IDE/ATAPI hard disk drives using a USB 2.0 interface. The xSil26x’s hardware-embedded encryption/decryption function, fully compliant with the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), combines with two-level software authentication of passwords to prevent unauthorized memory content access.

IntellaSys claims it would take 149 trillion years to determine all possibilities at an attempted recovery rate of one key per second, attributed to the 3.4 x 1,038 possible options the xSil26x’s offer to code keys.

IntellaSys supports its new chip with additional software that provides the end user with convenient features. 0EMs offering a portable USB-to-hard-drive solution, 0nSpec software also enables use of the drive independent of the PC system being used.

Moving up the product food chain from components and boards to integrated systems is a very common theme among embedded board suppliers. Getting there is another issue. What should a company do? Concurrent Computer Corporation has one solution, the iHawk VME, a commercial platform for mission-critical simulation, data acquisition, industrial, and aerospace applications. iHawk VME systems feature energy-efficient Intel Core multicore technology on a single-shot 6U VME/XS card.

At the heart of each iHawk solution is Concurrent’s RedHawk Linux real-time operating system. Compatible with the popular Red Hat Linux distribution, RedHawk features high I/0 throughput, fast response to external events, and optimized interprocess communications. RedHawk is the ideal Linux environment for complex real-time applications.

iHawk VME systems are ideal for real-time application environments that require ruggedized or special packaging. The systems also support Concurrent’s powerful NightStar development tool set. Users can debug, analyze, monitor, and tune their real-time applications on iHawk systems locally or remotely at application speed. Each tool runs nonintrusively, thus preserving the application’s deterministic behavior. NightStar tools allow developers to graphically view how their applications interact with the Linux kernel.

If you check out our section on mass storage, it’ll be clear that solid-state storage (usually flash) is coming to a VME chassis near you. Although it’s still between 10x and 50x the price per GB of a magnetic HDD, the media’s robustness is too hard to ignore. But like every other bit of information stored in a system these days, security is just as important as price or capacity. So flash storage vendor SiliconSystems is meeting the security challenge head-on with the SiliconDrive Secure SDK – a development environment designed for embedded designers to add security features to storage.

Designed to work with the company’s flash-based drives, the SDK features an API designed to control: SiKey (ties the drive to a specific host); SiZone (data zones with different parameters); SiSweep (data erasure); SiScrub (erasure followed by a programmed pattern); SiPurge (nonrecoverable erasure); SiProtect (write protection/read-only access); and SiSecure (password required). Ease-of-use features in the SDK include prototype software, the flexibility to include some or all of the security features, and the ability to enable or disable security remotely in field installations. For serious flash memory security freaks (or the truly paranoid), this SDK is a must.

Mission-critical systems shouldn’t fail. But in the real world, problems occur, and it’s nice when a system can notify administrators of state changes. Alternatively, in data logging or other monitoring applications, being notified via e-mail or cell phone when certain conditions occur is a handy feature. Onset Computer’s Alarm and Readout Tool, a plug-in software module for use with the company’s HOBOware Pro software, is capable of notifying users when events happen.

The tool automatically notifies users via cell phone text messages or e-mail when temperature, humidity, and other conditions exceed user-defined limits. The module also enables data from networked HOBO data loggers to be automatically offloaded and stored on a centralized computer. This feature is useful in autonomous or remotely controlled systems, or in large sensor networked systems. HOBOware Pro is the ultimate COTS product and runs on a PC or Mac to provide data logger launch, readout, plotting, and other functions in a handy GUI.

So we all know that FPGAs make great DSP engines, right? And that PMCs are a handy way to add functionality to your VME SBC, correct? But how in the heck do you program that FPGA? These things are not like microprocessors, after all. You can’t just write C code for them, compile, and go. Or can you? VMETRO and Impulse Accelerated Technologies say you can, with their V5+C kit. Using a VMETRO Virtex-5 FPGA PMC-FPGA05 and an Impulse C-to-VHDL compiler, the kit helps designers quickly hardware-accelerate DSP algorithms and quickly prototype on an FPGA within an ANSI C environment.

The long and short of it is that new designers don’t need to be VHDL-literate, and experienced designers can work faster. The Impulse C compiler optimizes code to help “parallelize” DSP algorithms for FPGA use, boasting up to 10x performance increase over pure CPU implementations. This software “umph” is supported by the QDR and DDR memory on the VMETRO PMC module, plus the digital front panel I/O including twin 14-bit ADCs (105 and 210 MSps), FPDP-II, 33 channel RS-485/422, and more. As for software/hardware integration, this combo is optimized by C-callable interfaces to the PMC’s hardware architecture. The kit includes the PMC mounted on a PCI-X carrier board.

Though you’ll probably deploy a PMC module for fielded systems, lab work is often done with PCI cards in low-cost PCs. Today, with PCI Express slots, data transfers from sensors are faster than ever. That’s the intent behind ADLINK’s DAQe-2200 x1 PCI Express data acquisition cards. The family of cards can sample up to 64 analog channels with input voltages ranging up to 10 V.

The 2204 model is a 12-bit A/D card with 3 MSps (simultaneous); the 2205 is a 16-bit A/D card with 500 KSps (simultaneous); and the 2206 is 16-bit/250 KSps. All boards offer differential mode (making 32 analog channels) to eliminate noise, analog and digital triggering, and a system synchronization bus to “lock together” up to four cards. Scatter-gather is a must-have DMA feature that not only moves data quickly but also offloads the system host. And, there are two 12-bit analog outputs with waveform generation, plus 24 programmable digital I/O lines.

Intel’s not just putting two cores on a die for bragging rights; the fact is that dual cores are just more efficient than a single CPU such as last year’s favorite: the Pentium M. According to Concurrent, their VX 407/04x SBC uses a 2.16 GHz Core 2 Duo T7400, which burns only 34 W compared to 27 W for a 2.0 GHz Pentium M 760 – a savings of nearly 50 percent per core. Socketed on the company’s VME/VXS SBC, the CPU can access up to 4 GB of DDR2-667 SDRAM at up to 10.6 GBps.

Available as either a VME64x board with dual 10/100/1000 Ethernet ports via P2 or with VITA 41.3 VXS switched connections on P0, a third Ethernet port is available via the front panel along with a single 64-bit/66 MHz PMC/XMC connection. Other I/O includes graphics, keyboard/mouse, five USB 2.0 and two RS-232/422 ports. There’s also EIDE, SATA150, stereo in/out, and provisions for an onboard 2.5" EIDE HDD or dual CompactFlash storage. A secondary PMC carrier board is available to provide for two more PMC/XMC sites.

So your new mission-critical computer has one or more Ethernet RJ-45 jacks. Do they work? It’s not always so easy to tell, since the built-in lights only illuminate when there is other operational equipment at the other end of the wire. And with legacy equipment in abundance, what speed of Ethernet do you have? Troubleshooting something so simple can be extremely complex if you’ve got to lug out computers, cables, and hubs or switches, but not with the LinkCheck from Smartronix.

The battery-operated network test tool can be used to test for the presence and speed of either 10 Mb or 100 Mb Ethernet connections. The IEEE 802.3af POE-compliant device uses three daylight-readable LEDs to determine link integrity and speed. We like the simple elegance of this device (and wish they’d send us a few for our own office LAN. Where are the perks?).

Perhaps more than any SBC we’ve seen recently, the XPedite8070 from Extreme Engineering is, well, extreme. It’s not loaded with a Swiss Army knife’s full of I/O like some of our favorite SBCs (sorry, Ben), but it’s more like cramming a blown nitro-methane 426 Hemi into a freaking Chevy Vega. Or a Pinto. Or a Scion xB for you Gen-Xers. Either way: huge performance in a small space.

The 3U VPX-REDI (VITA 46/48) form factor is VME’s future: small size with serial fabrics for gobs of I/O. The dual P.A. Semi PA6T-1682 2.0 GHz PowerPCs are carefully tuned for performance and low power: The whole SBC consumes only 34 W. There’s 2 GB of DDR II (1 GB/core), 32 Mb NOR, and 1 GB NAND flash. As for I/O, there’s PCI Express, 10 GbE, and dual isolated 1 GbE ports. Plus you can customize yours with Linux, VxWorks, or PNE 1.4, and maybe even door decals. Go ahead, floor it – this one’ll snap your head back from the acceleration.

In defense applications, the only component more common than MIL-STD-1553 is wire. That is: 1553 implementations are everywhere. And each 1553 bus needs myriad transformers to accompany MIL-STD-1553 transceivers. Beta Transformer Technology Corporation (a name that doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue, does it?) has introduced an itty-bitty low-profile transformer series called the DSS-1000 for use with MIL-STD-1553A and B, MacAir A-5690, A-5232, A-3818, and A-4905.

The 16-pin surface mount package measures a slight 0.575" (14.605 mm) by 0.700" (17.780 mm) and allows short and long stub ratios within one package. The package is even available in tape and reel configurations for high-volume applications. The transformers are compatible with +3.3 V, +5 V, +12 V, and +15 V transceivers and operate over the full military temperature range of -55 °C to +130 °C as you’d expect. Also, the devices are screened to MIL-PRF-21038 and MIL-STD-202. (In case you’re wondering, BTTC is a subsidiary of DDC, a company that knows MIL-STD-1553.)

Taking a cue from Intel’s embedded road map, AMD has expanded its embedded offerings to include the new Sempron processor Model 2100+ and the Geode LX 800 @ 0.9 W processor. Both devices are now specifically geared toward harsh environments: the Geode for industrial temperature and the Sempron for fanless operation and high shock/vibration. Extended temp is used in myriad applications beyond the markets where VME is used, including: kiosks, automotive, wiring closets, and cellular base stations stuck out in rural Texas.

The LX800 Geode is an x86-compatible microcontroller designed to consume only 0.9 W while operating at -40 °C to +85 °C. The device includes the CPU core, plus video and display controllers, memory interface, security engine, and several I/O ports. The Sempron 2100+ is the low-cost version of AMD’s Opteron/Athlon series and runs both 32- and 64-bit software in fanless environments (unfortunately, my attempts at discovering the processor’s actual temperature range were unsuccessful). With the AMD companion M690T chipset and an appropriate S1 socket, the device is rated to withstand 50 g shock and 7 g three-axis vibration while consuming only 9 W at 1.0 GHz (core). It’s unusual for a processor manufacturer to pay attention to shock and vibration, so our hats are off to AMD for this one.

A core here, a core there. Everywhere a core-core. We’ve gone multicore crazy in the past 12 months – sort of reminds me of the pet rock fad in the ‘70s. Oddly, in mission-critical VME applications, Intel and AMD processors are less common than the PowerPC. So when Freescale introduced the dual core 8641D, well that’s a core we can be stoked about. GE Fanuc Embedded Systems’ PPC9A 6U VME SBC has got one of these bad boys, plus up to 4 GB of memory.

The 1.3 GHz PPC is also backed up by up to 1 GB of flash and a way to blast data out onto – wait for it – a 2eSST VME backplane. There are two PMC/XMC sites (PCI-X 133 MHz/eight-lane PCIe) feeding signals to P0 and P2. Also onboard are two GbE (10/100/1000), two USB 2.0, six serial, and 128 KB of NVRAM. Also unique to GE Fanuc boards is the AFIX (Additional Flexible Interface Xtension) site for more I/O including graphics, SCSI, 1553, digital I/O, and more flash). As you can see from the picture, conduction-cooled versions are available for deployed systems.

It ain’t sexy like quad DSPs or multicore CPUs, but protecting mission-critical circuits and boards from lightning strikes is absolutely essential. Think of heavy metal vetronics boxes mounted in heavy metal armored vehicles exposed on the battlefield and grounded via heavy metal tank treads. Getting the picture? One big circuit to ground. In true COTS fashion, the Strikesorb Surge Protection Device (SPD) from Raycap was originally designed to protect wind turbine generators from crippling lightning strikes, so it’s heavy duty.

Able to ward off direct strikes up to 200 kA, the unit meets IEC 61643-1 for surge protection devices and the recently updated (2007) UL 1449 2nd edition safety standard. Constructed of a unique single disc of distribution-grade varistor material, the industrial grade design allows it to sustain multiple and successive lightning strikes and power surges without requiring maintenance, even in harsh environments. The high-surge handling capability and ultra-low let-through voltage means the Strikesorb can take a shock while safely dissipating excess energy. This device just might save a fielded VME system that might otherwise go up in smoke or in a flash.

VME systems increasingly rely on fiber interconnects for high-speed signals between boxes or to special-purpose sensors. But how to create the voltages required for some of these specialized optical devices? Behold the Linear Tech LT3482, a fixed frequency, current mode step-up DC/DC converter with a built-in voltage doubler. This device was designed specifically to bias avalanche photodiodes in optical receivers. Feeding only 2.5 V to 16 V to it yields 90 V out with 10 percent relative accuracy over a -40 °C to +85 °C temperature range.

The device’s internal 48 V, 280 mA switch uses a voltage doubler to deliver voltages as high as 90 V at a user-selectable switching frequency of 625 kHz or 1.1 MHz. With only 80 µV of peak-to-peak ripple, the LT3482 is equipped with a 1.235 V internal reference plus an external auxiliary reference voltage, in-operation output voltage adjustment, soft-start, internal compensation, and thermal shutdown.

Anyone remember Smith charts from college? They had something to do with transmission line theory and stubs, both of which relate to “E” and “M” (or was it “B”?) fields. All electrical equipment creates electric and magnetic fields to some degree, especially as high-frequency switched fabrics move well
into the radio frequency (and beyond) range. Measuring magnetic fields – especially small ones – is the task of the Extremely Low Field “ELF” gauss meters from Sypris Test & Measurement. Combining multiple functions into one unit, the lightweight self-contained 4100 Series is designed for commercial
(and home) use to detect emissions from video terminals, AC power lines, appliances, and yes – VME boards.

Available in two units, the 4180 has a switchable axis mode that allows users to display the vector components of the magnetic field where direction and field strength must be determined. The 4190 has all the features of the 4180 but adds analog output, data logging, and extended bandwidth. This unit
can display the B field (or is it “M”?) in micro-teslas rather than milli-Gauss. Autocalibration and on-screen prompts make the units user friendly.

Although the x86 architecture isn’t dominant on VME boards, it makes the ideal server platform because it can run Windows, Linux, and Sun Solaris operating systems. This means that pure commercial comms, simulation, and enterprise applications can suddenly get deployed to the front lines. Based upon the AMD 64-bit 1.8 GHz dual core or 2.2 GHz single core Opteron processors, the
Themis TOP64D is an ideal deployable, embedded VME server.

The single processor slot board includes three GbE ports, a single XMC/PMC slot, and up to 4 GB of DDR memory. But there’s more: A dual processor, two-slot board includes six GbE ports, two Ultra320 SCSI ports, two PMC slots, and 8 GB of DDR memory (4 GB per processor). There’s also an onboard ATI ES 1000 graphics controller plus a VME64x backplane bus interface. Options include support for VITA 41 (VXS) to take maximum advantage of switched GbE fabrics.

When is a PowerPC SBC not exactly a PowerPC? When it’s based on the Freescale PowerQUICC-II MPC8548. The MEN Micro A17 packs loads of I/O and processing features onboard because of the high integration found in the PowerQUICC, but the integrated e500 core also includes floating point and an MMU – both handy features for mission critical applications that crunch numbers or use partitioned operating systems.

Clocking at 1.5 GHz, the board is designed for rough environment use and operates over a -40 ˚C to +85 ˚C range, includes soldered-in ECC DDR SDRAM (2 GB), flash disk, and FRAM for program storage. There are also front- and rear-panel I/O choices. Two GbE ports are available at the front, with two more via the optional P0 connector. And speaking of VME, this SBC uses Tundra’s Tsi148 bridge controller for 2eSST – delivering up to 320 MBps over the VMEbus. Two PMC sites are included, and one is XMC-ready for PCIe x1, x2, x4, or x8.

You might think that few VME boards run Linux, and you’d be right. Linux is reserved mostly for x86-based server products and less frequently for the mission-critical, real-time deployed systems where VME shines brightest. But Concurrent Computer Corporation’s RedHawk Linux RTOS, coupled with the company’s iHawk VME/VXS SBC, is ideal for simulation, data acquisition, industrial, and aerospace applications.

On the hardware side, Intel-based Core processors are mounted to single-slot VME or VXS boards. The magic here isn’t the SBC but the I/O options and flexibility, including: analog and digital I/O, MIL-STD-1553, ARINC 429, IEEE-488, reflective memory SATA, SCSI, EIDE, graphics, GbE, and … need we go on? … USB, RS-232, and GPIO. On the software side, the RedHawk Linux RTOS is based upon Red Hat’s Linux distro and boasts a fast response to external events, optimized IPC, SMP, load balancing, and maximum determinism. Basically, all things you’d expect from a robust RTOS … with a Linux kernel at the core.