New 6U VMEbus Industry Pack Carrier Card provides secure front panel I/O connections for demanding applications

Acromag’s new AVME9668 is a non-intelligent slave board that interfaces IP modules to the VMEbus. The full-height (6U) board holds four IP modules.  All field I/O connections are made through the front panel of the carrier board. To accommodate rugged, high-performance applications, the front-panel SCSI-2 connectors provide screw-down or spring latch connections that hold cables securely. And with support for 8MHz and 32MHz clocks, data can be processed at very high speeds. Prices start at $650 with extended temperature models (–40 to 85°C operation) available for an additional $100.

The carrier board provides full data access to the IP module’s I/O, ID and memory spaces. Each IP module can have up to 8MB of memory space. With full access to the programmable registers, users can easily configure and control the operation of the IP modules from the VMEbus. Also, up to two interrupt requests are supported for each IP module. The VMEbus interrupt level is software programmable. Individual passive filters and fuses on each IP module power supply line provide optimum filtering between the IP modules and the carrier board. Shielded SCSI-2 cable field I/O connections ensure maximum noise immunity.

Hamilton Standard, a Division of United Technologies Corporation, is a global supplier of technologically advanced aerospace products. They design and manufacture aerospace systems for commercial, regional, corporate, and military aircraft.

The design test lab in East Hartfort, CT recently evaluated Acromag's PCI boards for a possible application in one of their automated test stands. Previously, they were using National Instrument's boards. However, the Acromag PCI boards met or exceeded their performance requirements and were more flexible than the existing NI boards. Hamilton Standard is now purchasing Acromag’s APC424 and APC330 boards at a cost savings. The customer was particularly pleased with the added benefit that Acromag provided free Linux Libraries that support the function routines. The Linux Libraries are downloadable from the Acromag web site.

BKL Technology in Middleton, MA is the local Acromag Sales representative that supports Connecticut.

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See Acromag at the Real-Time & Embedded Computing Conference which is designed for those developing computer systems and time-critical applications serving multiple industries; data communication and telephony, military and aerospace, industrial control, instrumentation, consumer electronics, image processing, process control, medical instrumentation, vehicular control and maintenance, embedded appliances and more.

Next Shows:

May 24, 2005 - Boston, MA

Question: I am beginning a design that will need to be implemented and supported over the next seven years. What is Acromag’s policy on the end-of-life of their products.

Answer: Great lengths are taken to accommodate the needs of our OEM and military customers that demand stable designs with long product life cycles. Our goal is to design for an expected life cycle of ten years or more. Acromag design engineers achieve this 10-year goal by starting with careful selection of parts and the availability of second-source suppliers. When necessary, Acromag has made "lifetime" buys for parts that have been discontinued to ensure that we can still supply boards for our existing customer base years into the future. And in other cases, Acromag has redesigned boards to maintain form, fit, and functional equivalency.

Acromag works hard to maintain close relationships and consult with our customers to provide long range notification when a products nearing retirement. Customers are typically contacted twelve to eighteen months prior to discontinuing a model. Although Acromag makes every effort to accurately estimate a product’s end of life, it is not always possible. Constant changes in part availability are an ongoing challenge. Acromag tries to maintain generous part inventories to compensate for cyclical short-term part shortages. In addition, Acromag keeps very close relations with their major suppliers to help prevent forced product terminations due to unforeseen part shortages or discontinued components.

In addition, Acromag maintains the documentation to repair products for a minimum of 7 years from the date of EOL. Acromag also attempts to maintain an inventory of parts to repair boards for this period. Unfortunately, this is not always possible due to the degradation of some part over time.

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Acromag, Inc.
30765 S. Wixom Rd.
P.O. Box 437
Wixom, Michigan 48393-7037
Phone: 248-624-1541
Fax: 248-624-9234
e-mail: solutions@acromag.com
www.acromag.com

"The great tragedy of science - the slaying of a beautiful hypothesis by an ugly fact."

Thomas H. Huxley