AMBLER, Pa., 4 Sept. 2010. MEN Micro Inc. now offers the 6U field programmable gate array (FPGA)-based, triple-redundant A602 64-bit VMEbus single board computer (SBC) that uses a lock-step architecture keeping software development at a minimum for avionics applications.

LAUREL, Md., 3 Sept. 2010. PCI Systems Inc. in Laurel, Md., is offering A 3U OpenVPX conduction cooled armored portable six-slot chassis for rugged conduction-cooled embedded systems. The chassis is a COTS product for instrumentation and can be used for several applications by changing the switch mezzanine. The rugged enclosure with integrated GPS has a mezzanine card with three-axis shock sensor and chassis-management field-programmable gate array (FPGA), eight-lane-per-slot PCI Express Gen2 switches, with optional Gigabit Ethernet switch and Serial RapidIO switch.

ECHING, Germany, 2 Sept. 2010. Kontron in Eching, Germany, is introducing a version of its computer-on-module ETXexpress-AI single-board computer based on the COM Express Type 6 pin-out definition as defined in the newly launched COM Express 2.0 specification by the PCI Industrial Manufacturers' Group (PICMG). The new Type 6 pin-out offers configurable digital display interfaces (DDI) SDVO, DisplayPort, HDMI/DVI, and 23 PCI Express Gen 2 lanes.

THE MIL & AERO BLOG -- I know what you’re thinking -- please not another marketing buzz term. I hope "board agnosticism" or "board agnostic" doesn't fall into that category, because I fear I may have accidentally coined it this week at the AUVSI show in Denver while talking to embedded systems designers. Read more

FREMONT, Calif., 1 Sept. 2010. Elma Bustronic Corp., in Fremont, Calif., is introducing a 3U VPX air blocker board to fill unused slots and redirect or contain air flow. VPX systems can require high levels of heat dissipation, and the air baffle helps cooling and can reduce static pressure build-up.

LAUREL, Md., 30 Aug. 2010. PCI Systems Inc. in Laurel, Md., is introducing OpenVPX conduction cooled PCI Express cable link boards to help embedded computing engineers design rugged conduction-cooled embedded systems. The PCI Express x4 and x8 cable adapters are for high-speed applications such as video, imaging, and audio devices to test add-on boards in a conduction-cooled chassis.

MIDDLETON, Wis., 27 Aug. 2010. Embedded computing expert Extreme Engineering Solutions (X-ES) in Middleton, Wis., is introducing the XPm2010 3U PICMG 2.11 cPCI power supply that takes in MIL-STD-704 28-volt DC input voltage and provides as much as 300 Watts of power on 3.3, 5, and 12 volts at 90 percent efficiency for U.S. and international military and avionics applications in 3U CompactPCI air transport rack (ATR) systems.

DENVER, 25 Aeg. 2010. BIttWare announced at AUVSI's Unmanned Systems North America 2010 the release of their 4S-XMC (4SXM), the next member of the companys S4 family of board-level signal processing solutions which leverage Altera Corp.'s Stratix IV family of field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). The board is designed for network-centric application development.

TEMPE, Ariz., 25 Aug. 2010. Emerson Network Power in Tempe, Ariz., is introducing the COMX-CORE-512 and COMX-CORE-312 COM Express embedded computing board products for data security, scientific modeling, telecommunications, media servers, finance, and other applications requiring high data precision. The COMX-CORE-512 features a 2.4 GHz Intel Core i5 processor and the mobile Intel QM57 Express chipset, while the COMX-CORE-312 offers the Intel Celeron P4505 processor and Intel HM55 Express chipset for lower-performance applications.

Technology focus -- Switch fabric high-speed serial networking for demanding embedded parallel processing architectures is benefitting from industry standards and the OpenVPX Multiplane Architecture to take its place in high-performance aerospace and defense applications like radar, signals intelligence, and electronic warfare.

TORONTO, Ontario, 21 Aug. 2010. Connect Tech Inc. introduced the Xtreme/CPU - PCI/104-Express processor module, based on Qseven modules provided by congatec in Deggendorf, Germany. The Connect Tech Xtreme/CPU is an embedded carrier board that enables complete integration with any industry standard Qseven module.

LONDONDERRY, N.H., 19 Aug. 2010. Verotec Inc. in Londonderry, N.H., is introducing is introducing standard backplane technology and extender cards for VPX, VME, VME64, VXI and VXS applications, available as either stand-alone components, or integrated into thermally managed systems with subracks, enclosures, and power supplies. In addition to supporting VMEbus and its later derivatives, backplanes conforming to the requirements of CompactPCI, PCI, ATCA, and microTCA are also produced, as are units for legacy applications such as STEbus and Multibus. Modified standard or fully custom backplanes are also available to meet specific customer requirements.

CHELMSFORD, Mass., 18 Aug. 2010. Mercury Computer Systems Inc. in Chelmsford, Mass., is introducing a protocol-agnostic multi-fabric interconnect technology for embedded computing systems such as radar, electronic warfare, and electro-optical/infrared applications that are based on Intel microprocessors. Protocol Offload Engine Technology -- better-known as POET -- forms a bridge between microprocessors and high-speed serial switch fabric technology such as Serial RapidIO, PCI Express, and Gigabit Ethernet.

MARLBOROUGH, Mass., 17 Aug. 2010. Aspen Systems Inc. in Marlborough, Mass., is introducing the ECU-Chill environmental control unit (ECU) with refrigeration for cooling electronics in mobile military or other harsh-environment applications, and enabling commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) electronics to be used for computing and communications in extremely hot or cold environments.

IRVINE, Calif., 17 Aug. 2010. Advantech Embedded Core Services in Irvine, Calif., is introducing the AIMB-270 industrial-grade Mini-ITX small form factor computer motherboard that supports Intel Core i7/i5/Celeron mobile processors with FCPGA 988 sockets. The graphics engine is integrated onto the processor chips, and includes Intel Dynamic Video Memory and Intel Clear Video technology. Connectivity and expansion options for the AIMB-270 include one PCI Express x16 expansion slot, six serial ports, four SATA II 300-megabyte-per-second connectors, eight USB 2.0 ports, dual display output with VGA, DVI, and LVDS display output interface options. AIMB-270 is capable of SATA RAID 0, 1, 5 & 10.

RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif.,  14 Aug. 2010. General Micro Systems, Inc. (GMS)  introduced a new rugged computer system -- Golden Eye II --  based on the upgradable Intel Penryn processor. The new system, targeted for avionics and vetronics applications, uses an Intel Core 2 Duo processor running as fast as 2.26 GHz with 6 megabytes of L2 Cache, supported by as much as 8 gigabytes of memory (RAM) and as much as 2 terabytes of removable storage.

TAIPEI, Taiwan, 12 Aug. 2010. Advantech Co. Ltd. in Taipei, Taiwan, is introducing the IPC-100-60SE 1U fanless industrial embedded computer system with Advantech mini-ITX motherboard with a built-in Intel Atom N450 processor. The fanless design operates silently is designed for space-critical and silent industrial applications in harsh environments. This industrial computer provides a mini PCI Express socket on board and PCI expansion capability via an optional riser card, and is suitable for space-critical applications, including encasing inside automation equipment.

The Mil & Aero Blog -- Executives at Curtiss-Wright Controls Embedded Computing, at long last, are stepping out from the shadows of their past and are relocating to a new headquarters in the Washington, D.C. suburbs -- to a place with no connection to the company's past as it rose to become one of the dominant suppliers of rugged embedded computing components and systems for aerospace and defense. Read more here.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., 3 Aug. 2010. VITA, the open-systems embedded computing trade association in Scottsdale, Ariz., is launching the VXS Marketing Alliance to promote the adoption and development of ANSI/VITA 41 VME switched serial fabric products and applications. More than 80 VXS products are available and deployed throughout the world, VITA officials say. VXS is an ANSI/VITA standard that combines parallel VMEbus with enhancements to support switched serial fabrics including PCI Express, RapidIO, StarFabric and InfiniBand over a high speed P-zero connector.

NATICK, Mass., 30 July 2010. The communications segment of the embedded computing hardware market is stabilizing in 2010 following the downturn of 2009, report analysts at market researcher VDC Research in Natick, Mass. Nearly half the decision makers involved in embedded computing for communications say they expect their company’s spending on embedded computer boards to increase this year, while only 2 percent expect a decrease of any amount, VDC researchers say. Fifty-one percent say they expect the market to be flat this year compared to 2009.