Extreme Engineering Solutions (X-ES) is shipping three 6U single board computers that run Linux on Freescale's dual-core, 1.2GHz QorIQ P2020 processor. The XCalibur1700 6U CompactPCI, the XCalibur1730 VME, and the XCalibur1740 6U VPX SBCs respectively adopt the cPCI, VME, and VPX form factors, and offer dual XMC/PrPMC sites, three gigabit Ethernet ports, plus SATA, serial, and USB connectivity.

According to X-ES, which seems to crank out single board computers (SBCs) faster than we can cover them, the three new 6U SBCs complete its dual-core QorIQ P2020 processor-based product line, which now includes boards based on 3U CompactPCI, 6U CompactPCI, 3U VPX, 6U VPX, VME, XMC, and PMC form factors.

Like the similar, single-core P2010, the QorIQ P2020 is clocked at 1.2GHz and is primarily aimed at networking and storage applications, says Freescale Semiconductor.

XCalibur1700
(Click to enlarge)

We have previously covered two X-ES SBCs based on the eight-core, 1.5GHz QorIQ P4080: the XPedite5470 OpenVPX board and the XPedite5430 CompactPCI (cPCI) SBC, both of which shipped last year. (The other major processor family supported by the Xpedite and XCalibur product lines is the Intel Core platform.)

Showing even more love for Freescale's PowerPC-based QorIQ system on chip (SoC) platform, X-ES says that by the third quarter of this year, it plans to support all five current generation QorIQ processor platforms on the seven form factors it supports.

XCalibur1700 block diagram
(Click to enlarge)

X-ES says its customers can take advantage of the P2020's pin-compatibility with other QorIQ P1 and P2 families to customize the boards with P1011, P1020, P2010, and P2020 SoCs. This is said to enable the application of varying levels of tradeoff between price, power consumption, and performance.

The XCalibur1700 offers the more widely used cPCI format, while the 1730 supports VME, and the 1740 supports VPX. Used mostly in mil/aero applications, VPX is maintained by VITA (VME Industry Trade Association), and offers improved connector technology compared to VITA's VME standard, including support for serial fabrics and other modern bus technologies.

XCalibur1730 (left) and XCalibur1740
(Click on either to enlarge)

All three formats are variations on the basic PCI Mezzanine Card (PMC) standard for stacking and communicating between different SBCs or other I/O boards. As such, they all offer dual XMC/PrPMC sites for I/O communications.

XMC stands for a switched mezzanine card while PrPMC (processor PRC) can work as a host processor on a PCI bus, and offers additional signaling capabilities. One PMC fits on a standard 3U board while 6U models like these can handle dual PMCs.

XCalibur1730 (left) and XCalibur1740 block diagrams
(Click on either to enlarge)

Common features of the three boards include Freescale's 1.2GHz, dual-core P2020, as well as up to 8GB DDR3 SDRAM, says X-ES. The SBCs also offer up to 16GB of user flash, and 256MB of boot flash, says the company. Three gigabit Ethernet ports are also standard, as are a SATA port, a USB port, and dual serial ports.

Like all of the company's P2020-based products, the three new XCalibur17xx 6U SBCs support MIL-STD 810F requirements, and are available in both air-cooled and conduction-cooled configurations, says X-ES. The air-cooled, commercial version supports 32 to 131 deg. F (0 to 55 deg. C) operating temperatures, while the rugged, conduction-cooled versions support -40 to 185 deg. F (-40 to 85 deg. C) temperatures and also offer "appropriate shock and vibration testing," says the company.

All the SBCs are said to support a wide variety of commercial, industrial, and military applications. Board support packages (BSPs) are available for Linux, Wind River VxWorks, and Green Hills Integrity operating systems, says the company. (More details on the new XCalibur boards may be found in the block diagrams above, as well as detailed data sheets available via the links farther below.)

Stated Glenn Beck, Aerospace and Defense Segment Marketing Manager at Freescale Semiconductor, "X-ES is providing software compatibility across many of our QorIQ processors. X-ES has taken advantage of the pin compatibility of QorIQ to provide customers a broad spectrum of price, performance and power products."

Availability

The XCalibur1700 6U CompactPCI SBC, the XCalibur1730 VME SBC, and the XCalibur1740 6U VPX SBC are all available now, says X-ES, which did not reveal pricing. More information, including detailed data sheets, may be found at the company's XCalibur1700 6U page, the XCalibur1730 page and the XCalibur1740 page.

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