Embedded applications for Sandisk Flash. The market for flash memory is much more than just digital cameras.
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Embedded Boards Offer PC Compatibility Plus Elements
Essential for Embedded Applications
by Business Editors/Computer Writers
Oct 14 1997 7:54AM CST, BUSINESS WIRE
TEMPE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 14, 1997--Motorola Computer Group (MCG), Technical Products Division, leaders in the embedded computing market, Tuesday announced the ATXPII and NLXP55 motherboards.
These Pentium(R) processor-based platforms are designed specifically for use in embedded computing applications. Offering complete PC and Windows NT(R) compatibility, ATXPII and NLXP55 have specialized hardware features and OEM support which substantially extend their capability in real-time and industrial applications.
"Commodity Pentium processor PC motherboards provide compatibility, but often fail to meet specific embedded computing needs. CompatibilityPlus is the answer our OEM customers are seeking," said
Jerry Gipper, director of marketing for embedded technologies at Motorola Computer Group. "Our boards include dedicated timers, extended FLASH, hardware monitoring, and enhanced BIOS features.
"Additionally, we support a stable board supply and revision management program over typical OEM lifecycles, and more rigorous quality standards necessary for industrial rather than consumer
applications."
The ATXPII motherboard is based on an extended ATX form factor. Single or dual Pentium II processors with MMX(TM) technology, coupled with the 440LX AGPset, make ATXPII ideal for high-performance imaging applications, industrial workstations and scientific/medical instrumentation.
Its memory architecture is based on ECC DIMMs with serial presence detect, increasing system
reliability and simplifying field upgrades and memory configuration. Three DIMM sockets support up to
384MB of SDRAM or EDO DRAM. On-board 10/100 Mbit Ethernet, multimedia audio, and
Universal Serial Bus (USB) interfaces free the three PCI, one shared PCI/ISA, and one Accelerated
Graphics Port (AGP) slots for application-specific adapters.
As well as providing all of the functionality expected on a high-performance PC compatible
motherboard, ATXPII has a number of additional features which significantly increase its real-time
capability and suitability for the industrial environment.
Six 16-bit timers are cascadable to form up to two 32-bit and two 16-bit countdown timers each with
0.5 microsecond resolution. An ATA FLASH socket accepts a 1.8 inch EIDE FlashDrive, allowing a
complete system to be integrated without a fragile rotating hard disk.
Hardware monitoring of temperature, power supply voltage, fan speed, chassis intrusion and battery
voltage, together with a watchdog timer and E2PROM backup of CMOS parameters, support high
integrity OEM applications.
The NLXP55 embedded motherboard is based on the new NLX form factor, which is ideal for
embedded applications. A low profile NLX motherboard plugs into an NLX riser, which carries PCI
and ISA expansion slots, disk, floppy and audio connectors, and the power input connector.
This arrangement simplifies system cabling and improves reliability. The motherboard slides into the
enclosure, simplifying board exchange and speeding up maintenance. Selection of the appropriate riser
enables the system to be tailored to fit the needs of the application.
A riser with limited PCI or ISA slots allows a low-profile system to be configured, while risers with large
numbers of slots are ideal for applications such as computer telephony, which demand numerous I/O
interfaces.
A Pentium processor with MMX technology, teamed with 512 KB of level 2 cache and the 430HX
PCIset gives NLXP55 the processing power to handle compute-intensive tasks such as simulation. Two
ECC DIMM sockets with serial presence detect support up to 256MB of EDO DRAM.
On-board 2D/3D graphics, 10/100 Mbit Ethernet, multimedia audio and USB interfaces provide the
operator interface facilities and connectivity essential for many process control and automation
applications. The addition of interval and watchdog timers, hardware status monitoring, a
CompactFLASH memory socket, and BIOS FLASH for embedded code storage enable NLXP55 to
meet the needs of a variety of embedded applications.
ATXPII and NLXP55 carry an Award Software(TM) EliteBIOS with Motorola enhancements, and are
supported under Windows NT, including device drivers for interval and watchdog timers. Leading
real-time software environments, including LynxOS from Lynx Real-Time Systems, QNX(R) from QNX
Software Systems Ltd., and Tornado(TM)/VxWorks(R) from Wind River Systems(R) Inc., will be
available for both boards.
ATXPII will be available in production volumes during 1997, with suggested U.S. OEM quantity pricing
starting at $1,600. NLXP55 will be available in production volumes in the first quarter of 1998, with a
suggested U.S. OEM quantity pricing starting at $1,000.
About Motorola
The Technical Products Division of the Motorola Computer Group is a leading worldwide supplier of
computer board products and computer systems platform products to original equipment manufacturers
(OEMs) in technical and embedded markets. Information about MCG's products is available on the
World Wide Web at mot.com .
Motorola Inc. (NYSE:MOT) is one of the world's leading providers of wireless communications,
semiconductors, and advanced electronic systems, components, and data communications, personal
communications, automotive, defense and space services.
Major equipment businesses include cellular telephone, two-way radio, paging electronics and
computers. Motorola semiconductors power communication devices, computers and many other
products. Motorola's 1996 sales were $28 billion.
NOTE TO EDITORS: Motorola and the Motorola logo are registered trademarks of Motorola Inc.
CompactFlash and FlashDrive are trademarks of SanDisk Corp.
Pentium, Pentium II, and MMX are trademarks of Intel Corp.
Other brand or product names are registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective holders.
(Copyright 1997) |
