FPGA Product launch builds on Opal-RT's extensive experience
in PC-based real-time simulation
DETROIT, March 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Opal-RT Technologies Inc.
(http://www.opal-rt.com ), the world leader in distributed real-time simulation on
PC-based platforms, today announced a new range of Field Programmable Gate
Array (FPGA) I/O products for use in PC-based real-time applications.
Based on the Xilinx Virtex II processor, Opal-RT's FPGA product family is
designed to address I/O performance and channel density limitations,
particularly in applications where time steps of less than 10 microseconds are
required.
"There is a growing trend towards the use of FPGA-based processors for I/O
applications," said Paul Goossens, Opal-RT's Vice-President of Marketing.
"The lower cost-per-channel of FPGA technology, coupled with the superior
performance, reconfigurability, and distributed processing capabilities of our
FPGA product family make it an ideal complement to our existing real-time
products. We were the first to deliver true distributed hard-real-time
simulation on the PC platform, and we have been able to build on our extensive
experience to give our customers the performance they need for the most
demanding applications, while tightly integrating this pioneering technology
with our core product line."
FPGA technology offers many advantages for real-time simulation of dynamic
systems, particularly when detecting and generating pulse edges, such as PWM
signals on electric drives, at high frequencies. In addition to the FPGA
product family's increased performance, channel density, and potential for
cost savings, these new additions to the Opal-RT product lineup are also
programmable, enabling the engineer to use VHDL to configure the product to
the engineer's specific requirements.
Opal-RT's FPGA-based IO boards can use distributed processing for
scheduling and management, as well as for direct memory transfer from and to
the main processor memory, relieving the main processors from IO-intensive
tasks. High-end processors can then be dedicated to complex mathematical
calculation, which increases overall system efficiency and increases the model
sampling frequency.
Opal-RT's FPGA product family is optimized to run on PCs operating under
the QNX(TM) or RedHawk(TM) Linux Real Time OS. They are available for either
PC/104, for embedded and mobile applications, or PCI, for desktop and
industrial applications.
Support for SignalWire
Opal-RT's FPGA product line includes support for SignalWire(TM) -- a next-
generation serial data link that Opal-RT has developed to complement IEEE 1394
in high-performance real-time applications. (See press release "Opal-RT
Technologies Introduces SignalWire" dated March 8, 2004). For a lower cost,
SignalWire provides very fast serial connectivity -- up to 1.25 Gbits/s (full
duplex), 3 times faster than IEEE 1394 -- with a latency of 200 ns, about 10%
of the latency of IEEE 1394.
Opal-RT's FPGA product family includes the following:
High-Speed Digital I/O Interface (HSDIO) with High-Precision Event Capture
and Generation
The HSDIO is designed to install in either a PC/104 or a PCI bus,
depending on the target computer form-factor. The PC/104 version has 64 user-
programmable Digital I/O lines, while the PCI version has 128. Each group of
8 lines can be software-configured as inputs or outputs, and are capable of
sampling up to 100 MHz.
Most off-the-shelf Digital I/O boards provide good performance when
digital events occur in synchronization with the simulator cycle times.
However, precision problems can arise when events occur between time steps.
The HSDIO allows up to 512 rising and falling edges per group to be generated
and captured between simulator time steps, at a resolution of 10 ns, thus
eliminating timing errors inherent in such applications as PWM and discrete
events modeling.
Passive Data I/O Carrier
This is a simple mounting board that supports two mezzanine modules for
digital I/O and analog signal acquisition. The modules can either be DIO, ADC
or DAC, and the passive carrier connects to the HSDIO directly through a 64-
line digital interface. This configuration is ideal for relatively simple
hardware-in-the-loop applications where the passive carrier is mounted in the
same casing as the HSDIO.
Active Data I/O Carrier
This high-performance carrier is similar to the Passive Data I/O Carrier
but incorporates an on-board FPGA processor that extends it capabilities to
include a SignalWire interface port as well as a 16-line DIO interface. The
Active Carrier board provides a flexible, low-cost solution for interfacing
different types of data acquisition/signal conditioning modules to the
existing system. It supports up to two data acquisition modules for signal
I/O and transmits the data via a SignalWire real-time link to an HSDIO on a
target PC.
High-Speed Digital & Analog I/O Modules
The Opal-RT FPGA product family also includes Digital & Analog Input &
Output modules. The Analog Input & Output Modules support up to 16 I/O
channels each, while providing on-board signal conditioning and simultaneous
output on all channels eliminating skew errors inherent in multiplexed
channels. The Digital I/O Modules also support on-board signal conditioning
with up to 16 input or output lines.
Pricing & Availability
Opal-RT's FPGA product line is now available directly from Opal-RT
Technologies and the company's worldwide network of distributors. Special
pricing is available where systems are to be used in academic research
projects.
About Opal-RT Technologies Inc.
Opal-RT provides software, hardware, and related solutions for real-time
simulation applications, with the aim of enabling real-time parallel
processing through flexible and affordable technologies.
The company offers a full range of engineering simulation products -- from
enabling technologies to turnkey engineering simulators -- and consulting
services that include systems integration, software development, simulation
and modeling, problem-solving, and training. Opal-RT's core expertise is in
distributed hard-real-time simulation, with experienced engineers designing
real-time simulators for automotive, electrical power, aerospace, robotics,
and other industries where fidelity and fault tolerance requirements push
rapid prototyping and hardware-in-the-loop testing to their limits. Opal-RT's
unique approach integrates parallel, distributed computing with commercial-
off-the-shelf technologies. The resulting RT-LAB product range enables
customers to develop simulations quickly, easily, affordably, and
competitively. For more information about Opal-RT's range of Engineering
Simulators and Distributed Processing Tools, see http://www.opal-rt.com .
About RT-LAB
RT-LAB is the real-time technology that revolutionizes the way model-based
design is performed within the engineering organization. Through its
openness, RT-LAB has the flexibility to be applied to any simulation and
control problem, and scalability to provide a low-risk entry point for any
application, allowing the developer to add computation power where and when
needed -- whether to dramatically speed up simulations or for real-time
hardware-in-the-loop applications.
RT-LAB and SignalWire are registered trademarks of Opal-RT Technologies
Inc.
QNX is a registered trademark of QNX Software Systems
RedHawk is a registered trademark of Concurrent Computer Corp.
SOURCE Opal-RT Technologies Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.opal-rt.com
CONTACT:
Paul Goossens, VP Marketing of Opal-RT
Technologies Inc., +1-877-935-2323, ext. 233,
Paul.Goossens@opal-rt.com
NOTE TO EDITORS: 2004 SAE World Congress, Booth #1222, Cobo Hall,
Detroit, Michigan
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