Avidyne Corp. of Lincoln, Mass., and Heads Up Technologies, Carrollton, Texas, are partnering to a provide XM Satellite Radio services on Avidyne’s EX500 multifunction displays with XM’s WX Satellite Weather data link. More than 170 music, sports and entertainment channels will be available through the service. The WX Satellite Weather data link also features Heads Up Technologies’ XMC050 Bluetooth wireless remote control and display. The service is available for new and retrofit applications. In a new EX500 installation, customers would install a Heads Up XMD076A combination weather/radio receiver. For existing EX500s, customers would use an XMR050 radio receiver, which can be linked to the antenna-out port on the XMD076 weather receiver that is currently installed. Both systems use the Bluetooth wireless remote control, which shows program information, presets, signal and battery strength, or category/channel name, artist name and song title. The Bluetooth control allows crew and passengers to access flight information and XM services throughout the aircraft. According to Avidyne, the XM services can be used while the MFD remains clear for vital flight information. Other features that can be integrated into the EX500 include Avidyne’s MultiLink data link weather service, FlightCenter flight tracking services and two-way test messaging, CMax electronic approach charts and interfaces for up to 19 different weather radar systems. Visit www.avidyne.com and www.heads-up.com.
A multifunction VME card is now available from North Atlantic Industries of Bohemia, N.Y. The single-slot 64C2 card can host up to six independent modules, each of which can accommodate analog-to-digital, digital-to-analog, synchro-to-digital, function generator, discrete input/output (I/O), transistor-transistor I/O, transceiver I/O, linear/rotary variable differential transformer (LVDT/RDVT) and RTD channels. An Ethernet interface allows the card to be used as a standalone remote sensor. The 64C2 comes in operating ranges of -40 to 85 degrees C and 0 to 70 degrees C. Visit www.naii.com.
Aitech Defense Systems, Chatsworth, Calif., has introduced a high-density PCI mezzanine card (PMC) that supplies up to 64 Gbytes of Flash memory in two banks. The M222 is designed for high-speed read, write and erase performance in applications such as maps, databases, radar images, electronic intelligence (ELINT) data and other graphics. Also included is Aitech’s Flash Memory Manager (FMM) software package, which provides real-time operating system (RTOS) support. Visit www.rugged.com.
Parker Hannifin has introduced its liquid flow-through (LFT) electronics chassis, which is designed with advanced liquid cooling technology. The chassis is self-contained with a closed-loop liquid cooling system. It contains coolant, a control system, smart pump, filter, accumulator, heaters and three board-level heat-absorbing devices. The product can cool up to 850 watts per slot. That number increases to 2,000 watts with dielectric fluids such as hydrofluoroethers (HFE) and synthetic oil (PAO), or up to 4,000 watts with non-dielectric fluids, such as water/glycol mixtures. The LFT chassis can be scaled to individual applications, and accommodates any computer board, including VME, VITA 41/VXS and VITA 46-48/VPX. Designed for military implementation to Mil-Std-810F, the chassis also is compatible with two-level maintenance. Visit www.parker.com/advancedcooling.
Norwegian company, VMETRO, has unveiled two board-level applications to support the Xilinx Virtex-5 family of field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). Both devices are based on open standard form factors such as PCI and PCI mezzanine cards. The DEV-FPGA05, intended for PCI-based development platforms, is based on the LX50 Virtex-5 FPGA. For embedded military applications, the PMC-FPGA05D module is available with a Virtex-5 LX110. Visit www.vmetro.com.
Sundance Multiprocessor Technology of the UK has launched its SMT8101, a radio frequency (RF) development platform that combines four modules into one PCI- and compactPCI-compatible board. The first module, which can be scaled using a Xilinx Virtex-II Pro field programmable gate array (FPGA), includes a 1-GHz, 64-bit digital signal processor (DSP) that offers fixed-point processing. The second module can sample two analog inputs at 1 Gigasample/s (Gsps), using an Atmel analog-to-digital converter. From the two DSP signals, the third module outputs two 14-bit resolution analog signals at 1 Gsps. The fourth is a quad-site module carrier that provides access to TIM modules over the PCI bus. Visit www.sundance.com.
CMC Electronics’ SatLite, a high-gain satcom antenna system set for release in mid-2006, is now an option for business aviation aircraft. SatLite supports Inmarsat Aero-H+, Swift 64 and Swift Broadband satellite communications services. The top-mounted antenna is based on the CMA-2102 and integrates a beam steering unit. SatLite is compatible with ARINC 781- and ARINC 741-compliant terminal equipment. Visit www.cmcelectronics.ca.
Porta Systems Corp. division, North Hills Signal Processing, has developed an ultra-compact Mil-Std-1553 data bus box coupler. Based in Syosset, N.Y., the company says the coupler is ideal for weight-sensitive programs with limited space for installation. The product includes a mounting tab, and North Hills’ transformers and Mil-R-39007, Level S, resistors. The coupler also is available with patch cords for onsite installation. Visit www.northhills-sp.com.
Curtiss-Wright Controls Embedded Computing has released two new products–the SVME/DMV-682 FireBlade, a 6U VME multilayer switch, and the PBOD, a Flash Disk PCI mezzanine card (PMC) or switched fabric mezzanine card (XMC). Intended for use in IPv4/v6 intra-platform networks (IPNs), the SVME/DMV-682 also can transform legacy, bus-based VME systems into high-performance, network-ready systems. The PBOD provides up to 64 Gbytes of high-speed storage. The company says PBOD is ideal for environments with extreme temperature, shock or vibration. Visit www.cwcembedded.com.
ICS Sensor Processing, a Radstone Embedded Computing company in Ottawa, Canada, has announced its ICS-645B data acquisition card. The device features 32 input channels at sample rates up to 20 MSPS (million samples per second) and a programmable clock sourse in a single PCI card. Visit www.radstone.co.uk.
Gowanda Electronics has announced its SMT 2920, the first in a series of surface mount inductors for radio frequency (RF) applications. Designed for operating ranges of -55 to 105 degrees C, the SMT 2920 molded toroid is designed for high temperature, high Q and high-frequency applications. Visit www.gowanda.com.
Goodrich Corp. subsidiary, Sensors Unlimited of Princeton, N.J., now offers its SUI image analysis software for two shortwave infrared cameras–the SU320MSW-1.7RT and the SU640SDWH-1.7RT. Visit www.oss.goodrich.com.
Model SS-108, a force balance accelerometer switch from Woodlyn, Pa.-based Columbia Research Laboratories, is now available. The switch incorporates Columbia’s HP suspension system. Visit www.columbiaresearchlab.com.
Novatech Instruments Inc. of Seattle has introduced its Model 1940A, a 400-MHz, four-channel direct digital synthesizer in a 1U, rack-mountable case. The four channels can be set individually to any value between 200 KHz and 400MHz. Visit www.novatech-instr.com.
Aviation Supplies & Academics, Newcastle, Wash., offers a course that helps pilots transition from conventional round dials to the glass cockpit environment of the Garmin G1000. Visit www.asa2fly.com/g1000.