Signal Recording Instrument synchronizes two 16-bit channels.
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Press Release Summary:
With up to 4 TB of removable RAID storage and dual 200 MHz, 16-bit sampling channels in 4U rack-mount unit, Model RTS 2703 forms complete Windows XP workstation that can stand alone or connect to gigabit Ethernet network for remote access and control. Both sampling channels deliver nearly 90 dB of spurious free dynamic range and use same start, stop, triggering, and clock timing to ensure that data sets are synchronized. NTFS recording format simplifies file access and eliminates conversions.
Original Press Release:
Pentek's RTS 2703 Signal Recording Instrument Synchronizes Two 16-Bit Channels at 200 MSPS
UPPER SADDLE RIVER, NJ - Pentek, Inc., today announced its Model RTS 2703 Real-Time Recording Instrument, which packs up to 4 Terabytes of removable RAID storage and dual 200 MHz, 16-bit sampling channels into a 4U rack-mount instrument. Both sampling channels use the same start, stop, triggering and clock timing to ensure that the two data sets are fully synchronized. In addition to the data acquisition and recording functions, the instrument forms a complete high-performance Windows XP workstation that can run under standalone operation as well as connect to a gigabit Ethernet network for remote access and control.
"This instrument is the first to offer two A/Ds with 16-bit resolution and a 200 MHz sampling rate. It's ideal for radar, communications and storage applications that need high-speed synchronized recording of multiple data channels," said Chris Tojeira, recording systems product manager at Pentek. "A single instrument can capture two 90 MHz bandwidth signals and users can easily synchronize multiple instruments to increase channel count for beamforming applications."
High Performance Data Acquisition and Storage
The two 16-bit data acquisition channels deliver nearly 90 dB of spurious free dynamic range, allowing users to detect small signals of interest surrounded by large interferers. A hardware-driven DMA engine continuously streams data at 200 Msamples/second from each channel to dedicated five-unit RAID arrays with a capacity of 2 TB per channel, ensuring more than an hour of continuous recording without dropping a single sample.
The storage system incorporates 10 SATA disk drives configured as dual five-unit RAID arrays. The units can offer RAID levels 0, 1, 5, 6 10 and 50 and can be configured to offer redundancy in the recording to ensure that data is never lost. The hot-swappable RAID disks are front-panel accessible, which allows users to readily remove and replace the drives for extended recording or transport to another location.
Simple Access to Recorded Data
Unlike the proprietary file formats typically used in other high-performance data recording instruments, the RTS 2703 records its data files in the Windows-compatible NTFS file system. This means users can access files with the instrument's workstation capabilities immediately after recording with no file conversion processing required. Users can also remove the RAID drives from the instrument and use them immediately in another Windows-compatible system with no file conversion or other special software.
Each data file includes a header containing a time stamp, file size and recording parameters such as channel number and acquisition settings. With long files, users can extract segments of interest from within the file and save them as separate files. Data is accessible off-unit through a variety of mechanisms, including transfers using the built-in USB or gigabit Ethernet ports to external storage or other network-connected computing systems. Users can also copy files to optical disk using the 8X double layer DVD +R/RW drive on the front panel.
SystemFlow Software
As with other members of Pentek's RTS 27xx family, the dual-channel recording instrument is fully supported by Pentek's Model 4990 SystemFlow Instrument Software. This includes a Windows-based graphical user interface (GUI) that provides a simple means to configure and control the instrument. Virtual-instrument push buttons, status indicators, pull-down menus and data-parameter entry windows provide simple and intuitive operation for all functions. Custom configurations can be stored as profiles and later loaded when needed, allowing the user to select pre-configured instrumentation settings with a single click.
SystemFlow Signal Viewer
SystemFlow also includes a powerful signal viewing and analysis tool, so users can monitor signals before, during and after a recording session. The SystemFlow Signal Viewer includes a virtual oscilloscope and a virtual spectrum analyzer for detailed signal analysis in both time and frequency domains.
Advanced signal analysis capabilities include automatic calculators for signal amplitude and frequency, second and third harmonic components, total harmonic distortion (THD) and signal to noise and distortion (SINAD). With time and frequency zoom, panning modes and dual annotated cursors to mark and measure points of interest, the SystemFlow Signal Viewer can often eliminate the need for a separate oscilloscope or spectrum analyzer to monitor signals of interest.
Pricing and Availability
The price of the Model RTS 2703 Dual-Channel Signal Recording Instrument, including SystemFlow Instrument Software, starts at USD $58,995. Delivery is 10 to 12 weeks ARO.
About Pentek
Pentek develops, manufactures and markets innovative DSP systems to original equipment manufacturers, distributors and value-added resellers. Pentek offers powerful VME, VPX, VXS, PMC, XMC, cPCI, PCI, PCIe boards for data acquisition, software radio and digital signal processing featuring Texas Instruments C6000 DSPs, Freescale G4 PowerPCs and Xilinx FPGAs. Pentek's I/O includes A/Ds, D/As, FPGAs, digital up/downconverters and more. Pentek equips all products with high-performance I/O including gigabit serial interfaces and offers strong DSP software support.
Pentek, GateFlow and ReadyFlow are trademarks or registered trademarks of Pentek, Inc. Brand or product names are registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective holders.
For access to the release and data sheets, please visit: www.pentek.com/whatsnew/viewrelease.cfm?index=143
North American Sales Contact: Mario Schiavone, Pentek, Inc., One Park Way, Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458-2311; Telephone 201-818-5900, ext. 770; Fax 201-818-5904; Email news@pentek.com; Website www.pentek.com.
International Sales Contacts: Elexo in France at (33) 0141 22 1023, Galleon Embedded Computing in Germany at (49) 89 5908 2101, LVD Systems in Italy at (39) 011 966 1319, RECAB AB in Sweden at (46) 8 6830300, Advanced Embedded Systems in the UK at (44) 0 1202 885 675, Sela Electronic Systems in Israel at (972) 3 6479969, MISH International in Japan at (81) 42-538-7650, Beijing Betaone Sysjob Ltd. in China at (86) 10 82784106 and Acetronix Co. Ltd. in Korea at (82) 24202343, ext. 106, Dynamic C4 Pte. Ltd. In Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia at (65) 6405 4506. For a list of Pentek representatives and distributors, please visit www.pentek.com/contact/replist.pdf.
