Mercury Computer Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: MRCY) announced at the Military Embedded Electronics and Computer Conference (MEECC) its strengthened commitment to ruggedized COTS computing, with the introduction of two new conduction-cooled products — the Conduction-Cooled 800 MHz 7447A RACE++(R) Multicomputer, and the RACE++(R) Series MYRIAD-4130 Carrier Board. Mercury also announced the expansion of its service offerings through partnerships with Tracewell Systems and Parker Hannifin. The Company reaffirmed its commitment to develop products in the VITA 46/48 segment, in addition to other complementary form factors and standards.
“Mercury is known as the performance leader in high-end military signal and image processing solutions. Today we’re expanding our value proposition in a number of dimensions,” said Barry Isenstein, vice president and general manager of Defense Electronics at Mercury. “The RACE++ Series MYRIAD-4130 is the industry’s first RACE++ VME64 “half-slot host” carrier card, addressing entry-level VME signal processing. We have also set a new VME performance standard at the high end by scaling our conduction-cooled capability to approximately 0.5 TeraFLOPS, with the introduction of our 800 MHz 7447A Conduction-Cooled Multicomputer. Mercury continues to address the comprehensive computing needs of our customers, who continually drive us to deliver increasing value and ever-greater levels of performance in the smallest, lightest and lowest power footprint possible.”
The Conduction-Cooled 800 MHz 7447A Multicomputer meets Mercury’s Level 3 environmental specification that insures system operation when subjected to wide temperature ranges, moisture, vibration or extreme shock, or dirty or corrosive atmospheres and environments with little or no airflow. The 800 MHz 7447A Multicomputer represents the third generation of Mercury conduction- cooled solutions designed around the VME64 architecture.
The RACE++ Series MYRIAD-4130 is a conduction-cooled, hybrid slot 1 host, compute element, and PMC carrier combined in a single VME slot. The MYRIAD- 4130 is an ideal choice when space, weight and power consumption are at a premium, as it does not devote an entire card slot to provide just host functionality. The 7447A Multicomputer and the MYRIAD-4130 can be configured together and with COTS products from other vendors, to create high-performance signal and image processing solutions that provide reliable operation in extremely harsh environments. In addition to the newest conduction cooled offerings, Mercury is currently shipping its MCP3 FCN, a 3U conduction-cooled product based on the Compact PCI standard.
Mercury remains steadfast in its commitment to develop products based on the next generation of devices as they become available and characterized for the expectations of the ruggedized COTS systems marketplace. In conjunction with this product stream, Mercury will continue to deliver on its heritage of providing the best system optimization point for device and module operating speeds against power consumption, physical size and weight, and environmental requirements of the deployed program.
Mercury plans to introduce conduction-cooled systems based on the VITA 46 (AMF) and VITA 48 standards (ERDI). VITA 46/48 addresses the large-system 6U market and the 3U market for smaller, high-performance, space-constrained systems. Randy Banton, vice president of Defense Electronics Engineering at Mercury, began the chairmanship of the VITA 48 committee on behalf of the VITA Standards Organization in early 2004. This working group is operating in conjunction with the VITA 46 working group co-sponsored by Mercury. VITA 48 provides enhancements for ruggedization of VITA systems such that designs can address air-, conduction-, spray- and liquid-cooling system environments.
Mercury views VITA 46/48 as a key addition to its strategy to scale COTS multicomputers to next-generation processing elements, fabrics, and I/O requirements, which will demand aggressive cooling and ruggedization strategies when deployed in-theater. Mercury is also pleased to report that the VITA 48 working group has completed its first LFT (liquid flow-through) proof-of-concept, a three-slot VITA 46/48 liquid-cooled chassis, which will be on display at MEECC.
The chassis shows a mechanical example of how board LFT coldplates plug into LFT slots with industry-standard quick-disconnects. This work is in continuation of the 16-slot air- and conduction-cooled proof-of-concept chassis shown at the Bus & Board conference in January. The proof-of-concept work will continue to evolve toward operational demonstrations in the second half of calendar 2005.
Additionally, Mercury expanded its services through partnerships with Tracewell Systems and Parker Hannifin, and is focused on developing and providing solutions for the harsh environments faced by tactical and unmanned platforms. Tracewell is a leading designer and manufacturer of sophisticated system packaging, while Parker Hannifin provides uniquely capable liquid- and spray-cooling technology, as well as other thermal management solutions. The combined expertise will enable the development of compute solutions with custom conduction, liquid and air cooling that deliver the best possible performance within application size, weight, and power constraints.
“Mercury offers a broad array of integration and consulting services to our customers, but these partnerships greatly augment our capabilities in the area of thermal management and ruggedization,” Barry Isenstein continued. “Together with Tracewell and Parker Hannifin, Mercury will be well equipped to create greater efficiencies for our customers as we provide them with compute subsystems that meet diverse requirements.”
For more information on Mercury’s conduction-cooled solutions, visit Mercury’s web site at www.mc.com/conductioncooled. For information on VITA 46/48, visit the VITA Standards Organization at www.vita.com/vso-stds.html.
About Parker Hannifin
With annual sales approaching $8 billion, Parker Hannifin (NYSE: PH) is the world’s leading diversified manufacturer of motion and control technologies and systems, providing precision-engineered solutions for a wide variety of commercial, mobile, industrial and aerospace markets. The company employs more than 48,000 people in 46 countries around the world. For more information, visit the company’s web site at www.parker.com, or its investor information site at www.phstock.com.
About Tracewell Systems
For more than 25 years, Tracewell Systems, Inc. has provided electronic packaging and integration solutions that enhance the performance of a wide range of VME, VXI, PXI, cPCI, ATCA, and proprietary bus systems. As a vertically integrated manufacturer with a full range of engineering disciplines, the company can supply complete level 5 system integration, ranging from concept design, software and manufacturing services, to system engineering, PC board assembly, metal fabrication, wiring and functional test. Tracewell offers complete design and manufacture of system packaging, backplanes, power and monitoring systems, supplying everything from off-the-shelf standard products to fully customized and integrated rack systems. Tracewell works as a strategic partner with its customers, adding value through development of system solutions for telecommunications, test and measurement, medical, military and other demanding applications.
About Mercury Computer Systems, Inc.
Mercury Computer Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: MRCY) is the leading provider of high-performance embedded, real-time digital signal and image processing computer systems. Mercury’s products play a critical role in a wide range of applications, transforming sensor data to information for analysis and interpretation. In military reconnaissance and surveillance platforms the Company’s systems process real-time radar, sonar, and signals intelligence data. Mercury’s systems are also used in state-of-the-art medical diagnostic imaging devices including MRI, PET, and digital X-ray, and in semiconductor imaging applications including photomask generation and wafer inspection.
Mercury provides advanced 3D image processing and visualization software and optimized systems to diverse end markets including life sciences, geosciences, and simulation. The Company also provides radio frequency (RF) products for enhanced communications capabilities in military and commercial applications.
Based in Chelmsford, Massachusetts, Mercury serves customers in North America, Europe and Asia through its direct sales force and a network of subsidiaries and distributors. Visit Mercury on the web at www.mc.com.