Cobham Tactical Communications and Surveillance, the RF specialist company, has announced the development of a powerful, flexible, new software-defined radio platform (designated SOLO8SDR) as the cornerstone of its next generation of wireless surveillance products. This means that a device running on the platform can run multiple apps, much like a smartphone and, in effect, run whatever transmission applications the user requires at the time.
With this first product launch, law enforcement, security and broadcast professionals now have access to a new surveillance 'frontend' transmitter capable of offering a wide range of capabilities to help combat crime.
Cobham has developed two variants; an ultra-miniature OEM module that can be easily integrated with a wide range of devices such as a PTZ camera or covert housing and a standard transmitter variant for remote deployment.
According to Cobham's Business Development Director, Andrew Tilbury, "We are very excited about the new platform and the engineering team is extending the capabilities of the device every day. This new processing power and application flexibility will enable us to rewrite the book on wireless product capabilities. With twin HD SDI camera inputs, on-board recording, power management managed by integral video analytics, an embedded data radio for remote control and Ethernet encoding and connectivity, these will be the most powerful devices we have ever produced and there is more to come."
"The core of the new platform is a Linux OS Dual ARM core and programmable logic, offering the capability in a flexible software defined radio. We envisage the platform running apps like a smartphone and depending on the code running in the core, the unit switches personality," said Neil McSparron, Engineering Director. He added, "This new development would not be possible without the ongoing commitment by Cobham to the flexibility that the latest FPGA systems can offer compared to ASIC based devices."