Accelerate time-to-market with Kontron's enhanced VPX/OpenVPX ecosystem

The focus of these additions to Kontron's VPX/OpenVPX ecosystem surrounds the optimization of the data plane in VPX/OpenVPX multiprocessor systems and to relieve OEMs and developers from the complex, low level hardware and data management. This helps OEMs take existing or new HPEC applications to a new level of performance and bandwidth with reduced development efforts and R&D costs.

After the successful launch of processor boards and switches, we now round off our VPX/OpenVPX ecosystem with hardware and software for the complex task of efficient data flow management in multiprocessor based HPEC systems. We provide a complete system platform solution based on modular building blocks from one location, including pre-validated customizable COTS hardware, comprehensive software and integration services for customers system-level solutions. All this is based on products that offer highest compatibility, reliability and longest product life cycles by design and is complemented by Kontron's specific Long Term Supply service for highest design security of current and upcoming longlife applications, explains Vincent Chuffart, Product Manager at Kontron.

Kontron OpenVPX backplanes
The Kontron OpenVPX backplanes are compliant to the VITA 46.4 specification and provide a high bandwidth PCI Express architecture for the data plane. They are available with a distributed or centralized configuration and enable OEMs to set up nearly all possible system topologies. The distributed backplanes come in a 3-, 4- or 5-slot configuration. The centralized backplane features six payload slots and two switch or storage slots with Gigabit Ethernet on the Control Plane. All VPX boards can be used with these backplanes, including the powerful Kontron 6U VPX dual CPU board VX6060. This approach, allowed by the VPX mechanical standard, provides superior computing power while keeping VPX infrastructure cost as low as possible.

Kontron 3U VPX PCI Express and Ethernet hybrid switch VX3905
The Kontron 3U VPX PCI Express and Ethernet hybrid switch VX3905 is the ideal partner for the centralized backplane to efficiently handle a high bandwidth. It provides up to 24 Ports with 32 lane PCI Express Gen 1 / Gen 2 switching and additional 9 port gigabit Ethernet switching capabilities for the control plane. By this it offers a tenfold increase in I/O bandwidth between computing boards in High Performance Embedded Computing applications compared to VME, unleashing a new kind of applications for data processing platforms used for Radar, Sonar and general image processing.

Kontron 3U FMC carrier board VX3830 and 3U XMC/PMC carrier board VX3800
With the Kontron VX3830 and VX3800 OEMs can easily expand the I/O flexibility of their dedicated VPX systems. The Kontron 3U FPGA Mezzanine Card (FMC) carrier board VX3830 is based on a Xilinx Virtex-5 FPGA and offers enhanced I/O capabilities with high integrated performance logic. The Kontron 3U XMC/PMC carrier board VX3800 is designed to support any standard XMC/PMC mezzanines. It provides one XMC/PMC site, alternately used as a PCIbus 32-bit/66 MHz or as an XMC site with either a x4 or a x1 PCI-Express link to the VPX backplane.

Kontron VXFabric
As the hardware environment is set, OEMs need an efficient solution for inter-board communication. The Kontron VXFabric simplifies this task for VPX/OpenVPX system architectures by a set of ready to use libraries and kernel modules. The highest level of communication bandwidth is achieved through classic Linux and TCP or UDP sockets based on PCI Express physical layer. By decoupling the application software from the low-level silicon management, Kontron VXFabric not only simplifies and accelerates application development but also helps to extend application lifecycles, as it enables migration to upcoming communication standards such as 10G and 40G ETH for the backplane.

Kontron's VPX/OpenVPX ecosystem for developing high-performance and SWaP (Size, Weight and Power) optimized systems, now features all core components and software for a direct start into system development. All Kontron VPX/OpenVPX platforms are available either as standard off the shelf solutions or can be customized to application specific requirements. Through this service, Kontron helps OEMs to speed up their time-to-market and increase overall quality of applications.

As a member of the OpenVPX Industry Working Group, Kontron took an active part in developing the OpenVPX (VITA65) specification, which defines system level VPX interoperability for multivendor, multi-module, integrated system environments. All Kontron VPX products are 100 percent compliant to the OpenVPX specification for highest interoperability, optimizing time to market and total cost of ownership.