Elma Electronic Inc., in cooperation with Pentek Inc. and Concurrent Technologies, has developed a small form factor (SFF), OpenVPX-based signal acquisition system for processing and recording applications. 

The new SigPro1, the first in Elma's OpenATR Series of systems, demonstrates interoperability of a multivendor OpenVPX-compliant board set, strengthening the VPX ecosystem and reducing user dependence on single-sourced systems.

Ken Grob, director of embedded computing products at Elma, noted, “A system based on hardware components from multiple companies spreads out the risk of being tied to one manufacturer and a specific range of products or integration services. Because it can be implemented across many partner products, OpenVPX, like its sister specification VME, is a viable technology for wide-scale adoption, particularly in military environments.”

Rodger Hosking, vice president and co-founder of Pentek, said, “This demonstrates the OpenVPX interoperability amongst embedded system vendors. The platform is ideal for rugged environments for radar, high-speed data acquisition, signal processing and beamforming applications.”

Recording at over 200 MB/sec, the rugged SFF signal processing platform can be used for data acquisition, radar, beam forming and other signal processing applications in harsh environments. It can operate in dual channel record and playback mode with dual A/D converters operating at 200 MS/s, 14-bit or 500 MS/s, 12-bit.

The system is based on Pentek’s Cobalt series FPGA XMC with a high performance A/D front end, Concurrent Technologies’ 803 Series 3U VPX-REDI Core i7 single board computer for processing and a storage subsystem using high capacity solid state disks developed by Elma. 

“Working closely with our industry partners enables us to deliver to customers the newest Intel embedded processors on high performance OpenVPX platforms,” added Brent Salgat, president of Concurrent Technologies Inc.

The new SigPro1 is a very configurable hardware platform base for multiple uses.  Any of Pentek’s FPGA cards, all of which support configurable front-end data acquisition and recording environments using Pentek’s Talon data record software, can be implemented in the new SFF system.

The platform uses a three-slot VPX backplane, with the card payload packaged in a compact, conduction-cooled chassis measuring only 5.12” x 6.9” x 12.25”. The SigPro1 is passively cooled, with sealed MIL-STD DTL 38999 connectors for I/O.

Using Pentek’s Talon data acquisition and record system architecture and application software, the platform can function as a data recorder. System Flow, Pentek’s data record application, operates at the core of the Talon system.

SigPro1, which operates from a 28 VDC power supply, includes two-output D/A converters and two 2-1/2” SATA drives.  Other I/O includes two Gigabit Ethernet ports, two USB ports and an external VGA port.

Other FPGA firmware and application software can be integrated into the new SFF signal processing platform. It is offered by Elma as a general purpose platform and by Pentek with its Talon Data Record software.

Pricing and delivery is dependent upon configuration.

For more information, please visit Elma’s Embedded Computing Products site at  http://www.elmasystems.com/, Pentek at www.pentek.com, or Concurrent Technologies at www.gocct.com. Contact Elma sales at sales@elmasystems.com, or call (510) 656-3400.