Boards enable PC to control over 1,000 CompactPCI components.July 28, 2009 -
Bridge plug-in boards utilize StarFabric PCI bus network to extend PCI/compactPCI bus and connect it to other PCI/compactPCI systems or extension boards, up to 13 m, with data transfer rates of up to 880 Mb/sec. Based on switched fabric network topology, boards convert parallel PCI data traffic to serial format. Available in PCI and CompactPCI card designs, boards can connect up to 7 switches in series and cascade up to 1,000 end nodes.
(Archive News Story - Products mentioned in this Archive News Story may or may not be available from the manufacturer.)
Original Press release
Hartmann Electronic
300 E. Auburn Ave.
Springfield, OH, 45505
USA
THE Bridge Boards Extend Your PCI Bus
Secondary Headline: THE Bridge boards allow a single low-priced PC to control more than 1,000 CompactPCI system components
Hartmann Electronic, the specialist in system platforms and backplane technology, have introduced THE Bridge boards. StarFabric - a network of PCI busses THE Bridge boards extend your PCI/compactPCI bus and connect it to other PCI/compactPCI systems or extension boards - up to a distance of up to 13 meters, with data transfer rates of up to 880 Mbytes per second. For purposes of data transfer via StarFabric, the bridge converts the parallel PCI data traffic to a serial format.
Starfabric is based on a switched fabric network topology. This is a collection of switchable point-to-point connections. In such a network, all stations are partners with equal rights, and each one can communicate with any other directly or via a switch. The advantage of a switched fabric is that the stations in the network do not need to share the bandwidth.
Each node in the network stores all existing nodes and paths. The routing-capable StarFabric protocol can determine the shortest path to a target node. When a path fails, an alternate path to the desired target node can be quickly calculated.
Up to 7 switches can be connected in series. In this star-shaped network, up to 1,000 end nodes can be cascaded as desired, thereby implementing redundant networks.
THE Bridge plug-in boards are available in two different designs:
- PCI card: 64-bit with automatic bus width detection (32-bit/64-bit) without hotswap support
- CompactPCI card: 32-bit and 64-bit with hotswap support with or without rear I/O for system or peripheral slot
Available variants:
- V (I/O) = 3.3V or 5V
- 33MHz/66MHz PCI bus clock frequency (automatic clock frequency selection). The card with the slowest system clock frequency determines the bus clock frequency
- Configurable as a root or leaf card
- Transfer rate of 2.5 Gbit/s (single link), or 5 Gbit/s (bundled link)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 
