PICMG2.16 chassis equipped for lower-density comms run

PICMG2.16 chassis equipped for lower-density comms run
Rochester, N.Y. - Performance Technologies Inc. will make a pitch for the lower-density telecom and networking equipment market this month when it launches its IPnexus ZT5091e 4U PICMG2.16-compliant chassis.

The ZT5091e chassis comes equipped with three power supply slots, a 3U IPMI management slot, an Ethernet switch-fabric slot and seven slots that designers can configure with add-in line cards. In a PICMG 2.16 setting, all seven of the slots can be used for adding capabilities like SS7 signaling to the box. When used in a traditional CompactPCI setting, on the other hand, one of the seven nodes must house a system master card, thus reducing the number of configurable slots to six, said Matt Doherty, product-marketing manager for Performance Technologies.

The new chassis delivers one contiguous H.110 bus and one contiguous CompactPCI bus. By using a single bus, designers can reduce the cost required to run the chassis by obviating two system master cards, Doherty said. "This also frees up a slot in the chassis to be an end node slot," Doherty added.

To ensure higher management reliability, Performance Technologies has implemented a star technology for its intelligent platform management bus. By using the star topology, the ZT5091e provides a direct link between the IPMI-based management slot and objects that need to be managed, such as the fabric slot, thus eliminating the problem with bus-based topologies.

On the power front, the ZT-5091e currently supports two active power supplies delivering 250 watts of power each, leading to a total output power of 500 W.

The chassis supports the company's IPnexus family of single-board computers, CompactPCI network access products and Ethernet switches. General availability is slated for September. Pricing is expected to be $4,000.

Call (585) 256-0200
www.pt.com