myOPALE - Modular Building Blocks for AI on the Edge

ECRIN Systems designs and manufactures rugged VPX COTS Boards, Mil-COTS and rugged systems, and their core business is the integration of COTS building blocks from Open Standard form factors like PICMG 1.3, to achieve the best system performance at reduced cost and shortest time to market.

Read More about ECRIN Systems

One of their latest solutions is the myOPALE building block system, which provides truly disruptive technology to realise ambitious design goals for industrial computers that target size, weight, and power consumption (SWaP)-constrained operating environments.

The myOPALE modular concept is based on four key points, all inspired by open or de facto standards used in the embedded market. It eliminates the mechanical link between the CPU module and its I/O cards thanks to PCI Express Gen3-over- cable interconnection in a standard half-height 5.25-inch casing.

myOPALE datasheet

The design is based on COM Express Type 6 and integrates Embedded Low Power SKU’s with 10 years life support. In Skylake and Kaby Lake versions, Intel Core i7 or Xeon E3-1500 CPU with Chipset platforms are selected, which directly drive 24 PCIe Gen3 lanes as their expansion bus.

There are a wide range of configurations and options available. If you would like to discuss the myOPALE concept please contact us at info@sarsen.net.

ECRIN can provide a complete integrated computer with Environmental Qualification Tests passed and mandatory Certification stickers for domestic and export countries. ive 24 PCIe Gen3 lanes as their expansion bus.

Embedded World 2019 - Don't Miss These Exhibitors

embedded world 2019

From 26 - 28 February 2019 the focus will once again be on all things embedded.

The community comes together at the Nuremberg Exhibition Centre to shine a spotlight exclusively on embedded technologies. It reflects the trends in the sector with more than 1,000 exhibitors presenting state-of-the-art covering all aspects of embedded systems.

This year Sarsen Technology will be joining ECRIN Systems, VersaLogic and DAVE Embedded Systems to showcase all the latest and greatest innovations from these market leading companies.

For more information or to arrange a meeting at the show please get in touch - info@sarsen.net
 

Not To Be Missed

ECRIN Systems www.ecrin.com	Hall 2 - Stand 449	Founded in 1976, Ecrin Systems' core business is the integration of COTS building blocks from Open Standard form factors like PICMG 1.3 to achieve the best system performance at reduced cost and shortest time to market. Their Opale family of smart industrial PCs will be on display, alongside their VPX COTS Boards, Mil-COTS and rugged systems.
VersaLogic www.versalogic.com	Hall 3 - Stand 257	VersaLogic Corporation is the trusted name in embedded computer products. Featuring 5 to 10 year availability, -40 to +85° C operating temperature, Mil Standard 202G shock and vibration testing, and outstanding US-based support, VersaLogic products are ideal for critical applications that value ruggedness, reliability and long life. VersaLogic has a host of new technology to showcase at Embedded World, as well as some of their tried and tested boards and solutions including their Zebra ARM based i.MX6 board, which was recognided by EETimes.com as one of the top Single Board Computers of 2018!
DAVE Embedded Systems www.dave.eu	Hall 4 - Stand 481	DAVE Embedded Systems is a well-established Italian company, focussed on the design of highly complex miniaturised embedded electronic systems. Join DAVE at embedded world where they will be showcasing their past and present solutions and expaining their additional support services in detail. Their latest technology innovation is a new System on Module (SoM) based on NXP i.MX8 which will be introduced for the first time at the show.

Article - The Bus Too Tough To Die!

 

MilesTek has offered complete connectivity solutions since 1981, and since then their customers have come to expect more than just top quality products. MilesTek provides answers that help customers solve their installation or project questions, as well as writing and sharing useful articles, white papers and industry news. 

The latest article from the Mil/Aero component experts at MilesTek is an in-depth look at the MIL-STD-1553 bus.

Considering how long it's been in service, the MIL-STD-1553B bus has survived remarkably well, despite other, more advanced solutions having gained wide acceptance in the last few years.

However, the fact remains that the maximum data rate of 1Mb/s is orders of magnitude too slow for today’s data-intensive systems, therefore on paper logic dictates that it will soon fade away. That may be a logical assumption, but it’s likely to prove wrong, for several reasons.

 The most obvious is that MIL-STD-1553B continues to fly on at least 30,000 aircraft, as well as on commercial and military ships, and is widely used in industrial and ……

To continue reading this article which was originally published in Aerospace & Defense Technology please click here.

Unrivaled Processing Performance on Rugged, Deployable Intel Xeon D Processor Boards

Since announcing their first single board computers (SBCs) based on the Intel® Xeon® D-1500 family of processors in 2015, Extreme Engineering Solutions (X-ES) has been busy, developing an industry-leading portfolio of embedded Xeon D products that is still growing.

These embedded SBCs provide designers with feature-rich computing solutions that are equally at home in a broad range of industries and applications, from challenging industrial environments to rugged defence deployments.

Originally available with up to eight cores, the Xeon D processors from Intel are now available with support for 12 and 16 cores in a single processor. Integrated on X-ES VPX SBCs, these high-performance, low-power processors are ideally suited for a variety of applications and infrastructure, including routers, network appliances, and battlefield communications.

Xeon D is also the first Intel processor with native extended temperature support, a key requirement for many defence and aerospace applications. Xeon D processors with up to 12 cores are rated by the manufacturer for an operating temperature range of -40⁰C to 85⁰C.

Keeping pace with strong demand from the defence and aerospace sectors, X-ES continues to introduce new products and features to their Xeon® D lineup. Their talented design engineering team draws upon an impressive breadth of experience with this architecture to minimise risk for even the most challenging designs.

There are a number of configurations available, including 3U VPX, 6U VPX, and COM Express form factors. For more information please contact Christos or Nigel who can discuss your application with you in detail.

We Take a Look at the Xilinx RFSoC

Way back in October 2017 Xilinx announced the delivery of their Zynq® UltraScale+™ RFSoC family. We've recently seen an upturn of enquiries about these devices, and with the Early Access/ silicon samples phase out of the way customers are very excited about the potential this technology can offer.

Photo: Xilinx.com

To create the RFSoCs, Xilinx built the analog directly into the popular MPSoC Zynq device, in the form of  high performance ADCs and DACs that feed directly into the Zynq interconnect fabric.

This means that the physical footprint and chip-to-chip latency is greatly reduced, and it also completely removes the external digital interfaces between the FPGA itself and the mixed-signal convertors.

Putting this RF quality analog function on an MPSoC opens up the playing field for a wide range of  commercial applications including test & measurement and high performance RF applications, with 5G wireless deployment right at the top of the list.

As SWaP is such a critical set of factors for the majority of defence applications military customers also benefit because the Zynq RFSoCs provide a combination of power efficiency, hardware flexibility and a reduction in required space, making them ideal for radar, early warning detection systems and man-portable communications equipment.

Based on 16nm UltraScale+ MPSoC architecture with an ARM Cortex-A53 processing subsystem and the highest signal processing bandwidth in a Zynq UltraScale+ device, the All Programmable RFSoCs monolithically integrate RF data converters for up to 50-75 percent system power and footprint reduction, and soft-decision Forward Error Correction (SD-FEC) cores to meet 5G and DOCSIS 3.1 standards.

There are now a number of proven Zynq UltraScale+ RFSoC solutions available on the market. Please get in touch if you'd like to discuss an application with one of our engineers - info@sarsen.net or +44 1672 511166.

www.sarsen.net

What is an Embedded Processing Unit (EPU) ?

Embedded Processing Unit

Definition - Fully assembled and tested x86 embedded computer based on COM Express form factor.

The EPU concept is based on the flexibility of a 2-board set forming a complete embedded computer product. When you combine two completely separate CPU and I/O modules, tightly sandwiched together, the final product provide a huge range of advantages and a much smaller footprint than equivalent single board computers.

VersaLogic's family of rugged EPU products are designed around the COM Express form factor, and are delivered as fully assembled and tested units (including heat plate).



What's Inside

 

EPUs offer a long list of advantages over other embedded computer board products, including:

• Fast time-to-market 
• Smaller footprint 
•  -40° to +85°C operation 
• Fully tested 
• Available off-the-shelf!

There is also often the added complication of designing a custom carrier card for COM Express modules. EPUs eliminate the effort needed to design with high speed signals, validate the I/O circuits to make sure they work properly, create testing methods for the finished units, etc. The expertise required to create software drivers, BIOS customisation, and API code for the on-board I/O is also removed for easy integration.

EPU modules are almost obsolescence proof. The industry standard form factor means it's really easy to migrate to an EPU with a newer CPU module, but keep your existing I/O configuration and connectors for drop-in compatibility. This is combined with VersaLogic's standard 5-year availability guarantee and Product Life Extension programs for almost completely future-proof technology solutions.

Have a look at the EPU Product Overview to find out more.

If you think one of VersaLogic's rugged, off-the-shelf EPU embedded computer models might be a good fit for your application please give one of our experienced engineers to discuss your requirements.

T: 01672 511166
E: info@sarsen.net