2010 Design Engineer’s Guide to OpenVPX

1 OpenVPX From Concept to SpecificationTransitioning to OpenVPX for Next-Generation C4 ISR Systems Putting OpenVPX to WorkWho s Who In OpenVPX2010 Design Engineer sGuide to OpenVPX2010 Design Engineer sGuide to OpenVPXCovTo C+ AIntroSupplement to Embedded TechnologyFree Info at C+ AIntroOpenVPX Design Guide , September the Show BeginVPX is like a three act play. Act one was the launching of anew high density platform for critical embedded comput-ing applications. Leveraging the wildly popular VMEbus in 3 Uand 6U Eurocard formats, VPX added the capability of usinghigh speed serial switch fabric technologies such as Ethernet,PCI Express, serial RapidIO, and others, that can be configuredin various backplane topologies. VPX also greatly increased thenumber of backplane pins to handle more data traffic and userI/O making it more effectivefor today s two was the addition ofan architectural framework thatmanages and constrains mod-ule and backplane designs,including defining pin outs,and that sets interoperabilitypoints within VPX while main-taining full compliance.

2 Thisarchitectural framework isreferred to as OpenVPX . Itwas recently ratified by VITAand ANSI, making it availableto the general efforts of the Open VPX(VITA 65) working group rep-resent a significant shift in theindustry. Major industry buy-ers came to VITA to get anarchitectural framework forVPX in place, and quickly. Theteam responded start to finishin less than 14 months, whichis quite incredible given thescope of the project. Muchwork is still ahead as addition-al framework alternatives aredefined to meet specific needs of new applications of the three is the rollout of products, from boards to completesystems, that follow the family of VPX specifications. Over 30companies have announced, or plan to announce, productsbased on the series of specifications that define VPX. Duringthis act, there will be much jockeying for position as the vari-ous profiles defined in OpenVPX ( ) startto gain acceptance.

3 Trends will emerge that point to specificserial switch fabrics, board/system sizes, interconnect topolo-gies, and many other configuration options possible with is initially targeted at the military and aerospace mar-kets but several other market segments have similar needs forcritical embedded systems and are showing strong interest inVPX technology. These markets include: industrial, medical,communications, transportation, and a recent survey of the embedded computing industry con-ducted by VITA, 40% of the respondents indicated that theyare designing new products with VPX now, and an additional36% indicate that they intendto use VPX in future is an overwhelming voteof confidence for the technol-ogy. Suppliers are workinghard to expand the productofferings, ensuring thatdesigners will have the rightcommercially available prod-ucts for their upcoming proj-ects.

4 Designers are verypleased with the perform-ance, scalable and expand-able architecture, high com-putational density, extendedtemperature, shock, and vi -bra tion capabilities, andchoices of cooling are looking forward tothe long product life cyclesthat they have enjoyed withprevious generations of tech-nology from VITA appears that designershave plans to take advantageof the backplane topologyflexibility built into the VPXspecification. Designers areevenly spread between centralized (star) configurations, dis-tributed switching (mesh or ring) configurations, and hybridswitching where numerous combinations exist, even some withparallel buses like VMEbus and PCI VITA members working on VPX have over thirty addi-tional working group projects underway to improve and com-pliment the original VPX specification.

5 New projects will sure-ly be introduced to the working groups as the technologymatures. These companies are fully committed to ensuringthat VPX is the best solution for future critical embedded com-puting AldermanExecutive DirectorVITACovTo C+ AIntro12 OpenVPX Design Guide , September 2010 Free Info at 2010 FORWARDFEATURES4 OpenVPX From Concept to SpecificationTransitioning to OpenVPX for Next-Generation C4 ISR SystemsPRODUCT BRIEFSOpenVPX/VITA-65 Serial RapidIO Gen-2 Switch6U OpenVPX Rugged Single Board Computer6U VPX Load BoardForced Air-Cooled EnclosureTwo-Slot OpenVPX Development PlatformIPv4/IPv6 Gigabit Ethernet Switch40On the CoverInitially targeted at the military and aerospace markets, OpenVPX will find new applications in a wide variety of critical embedded courtesy of Pentek (Upper Saddle River, NJ).CovTo C+ AIntro 1 Let the Show Begin1015 Putting OpenVPX to Work19 Who s Who In OpenVPX21 6U OpenVPX Radar System Upgrade151 When interoperability and open standards are musts,trust Tyco Electronics to deliver robust products andservices for your OpenVPX system architecture.

6 As a dedicated partner with VITA, Tyco Electronics is committed to making your OpenVPX requirements a competitive advantage. Visit us at learn moreabout our commitment to VITA and VPX for your SystemArchitecture (logo) and Tyco Electronics are logo is a trademark of Info at C+ Design Guide , September 2010 The OpenVPX Industry Working Group,a 28-company team founded by MercuryComputer Systems, collaborated with acommon goal and accelerated the com-pletion of a system architecture specifica-tion for open system COTS suppliers andintegrators to specify, Design , and buildmulti-vendor interoperable : January 2009 OpenVPX Speci -fication effort by Mercury ComputerSystems begins, based on VPX embed-ded community s need to acceleratemulti-vendor interoperable solutions. March 2009 First open member-ship face-to-face meeting and call formembership.

7 Spring/Summer 2009 Ongoingmeetings, conference calls and discus-sions. October 2009 OpenVPX specifica-tion completed and transition toVITA 65 working group. January 2010 VITA 65 Workinggroup completed comment resolu-tion, balloting and ratification of thespecification. June 2010 ANSI VITA 65-2010 rat-ification of the OpenVPX SystemArchitecture hours were spent with embed-ded community technical and businessleaders (suppliers and integrators) tocome up with a system-level architecturespecification, dedicated to creating well-defined interoperability points for multi-vendor, 3U and 6U VPX integrated solu-tions. The inter-company marathon was atestament to what can be done whenexperts are dedicated to solving a signifi-cant industry issue for the good of the ulti-mate primary customer the What?

8 If the following is important to yourcompany or your customer, thenOpenVPX should be important to you. Reduce TCO in integrated systems lifecycle; Use of common language for simpli-fied RFP generation; Choice of ecosystems to lower costs,get best-of-breed capabilities; Technology refresh possibilities withreduced obsolescence hurdles; Highly interoperable, multi-vendorintegrated solutions development; Open standards, performance migra-tion, and proliferation; Reduced risk to deployment for QRCprograms; 1 GiGE, 10 GiGE, sRIO, PCIe gen ; Optimized SWaP smart processing viaopen vs. OpenVPXA board-level specification approachfor VME bus technology was suitable dueto its architectural simplicities, and it waslogically brought forward as an approachfor VPX specifications. While significantVITA standards work was in process, manytechnology users felt that the focus on theboard-level specification(s) was not suit-able for creating interoperable solutionsfor the complex application space thatVPX technology is designed to serve.

9 Thisincludes a next generation of complex,rugged, integrated assets that consist ofhigh-speed backplane fabrics and newprocessor technologies like multi-corex86 and GPGPUs. In late 2008, VITA s Executive Director,Ray Alderman, and Mercury Computer sindustry research determined a need for anew systems approach to specifying January 2009 the Open VPX IndustryWorking Group was formed as the firststep on the path forward to add system-level clarity to the specifications to accel-erate the commercial benefits of VPXtechnology for integrated, multi-vendorsystems. Available today, the ANSI-approved, OpenVPX systems architecturespecification builds upon VPX technology(VITA 46 and dot specs) but does so froma top down, system engineering approachto specify interoperability points at theslot, module and backplane level.

10 OpenVPX Taxonomy The group created a common build-ing block language to convey the keyattributes of the OpenVPX definition of Planes, PipesandProfiles were key taxonomy definitionsallowing the user to specify a wide rangeof building blocks with a common setof From Concept toSpecificationFigure 1. Cascading ChallengesCovTo C+ AIntro 4 Call: 1-888-294-4558 Email: / vpx Call, Email or Visit 2010 Kontron AG. All rights reserved. Kontron and the Kontron logo and all other trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners and are recognized. Rev. # D106us01 How do I reduce my risk when building my application solution around VPX/ OpenVPX ? CONTACT USCRITICAL QUESTIONS .. ANSWERED If it s embedded, it s drives the latest industry standards with unparalleled technical expertise; providing you proven capabilities and minimizing your risk.