QPAC530 at IPOT '98
Quintek Ltd announce the launch of their first SHARC based Capture
module for the Spectrum Signal Processing range of SHARC hardware and
software.
The launch of the QPAC Capture SHARCPAC module at IPOT '98 continues a
tradition of leading-edge design and development from this Bristol-based company. This is the first time that a UK company with over 13 years experience in the Image Processing market, has developed a dedicated IP module using the SHARC processor. The power and potential for existing and future applications is very exciting.
TECHNICAL BACKGROUND
QPAC measures just 11.5x8cm and conforms to the Analog Devices SHARCPAC standard. It is designed to fit onto the Spectrum range of PCI and VME motherboards, and can form part of a much larger network of modules incorporating A/D; FPGA; Multiple processing etc.
Technical features include:
€on-board 21060 SHARC processor
€2MBytes of on-board SRAM
€3 Colour camera inputs per module
€Supports NTSC and PAL
€Parallel DSP Processor Core
TARGET APPLICATIONS
Quintek Ltd have had much experience in developing products for Traffic Monitoring; Surveillance and Inspection applications. These market areas are the first to be targeted within the UK and will be coupled with
presentations to R&D Departments at major UK Universities.
Prices start from $3999 and all modules come with full software and
documentation. Quintek Ltd offer 12 months hardware guarantee and 3
months E-mail technical support.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Quintek Ltd formed an alliance with Alex in December 1996 and became
specialist Systems Integrators for the UK. Clare Anning, Commercial
Manager for Quintek Ltd said:
"When we formed this alliance with Alex last year we were very excited
by the extensive range of SHARC hardware and software. Everything from
FPGA modules to Octal processing packs, designed for use with PCI and
VME Motherboards. However there was an immediately evident Œhole¹ in the range, with a lack of dedicated modules for Image Processing users. The launch of QPAC has now plugged this gap and has allowed Quintek to introduce the full Alex product range to the Image Processing industry."
Since January 1998 Alex has become a part of Spectrum Signal Processing. Spectrum is the leading worldwide supplier of DSP system solutions. This has lead to an increase in technical support availability and spending on research and development.
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Advanced Software and Development Tools
To support the development of SHARC-based systems, Spectrum will also be integrating Alex's popular APEX software solutions, such as the APEX-Pro (a real-time scaleable parallel environment with high-level support for inter-processor and through routing communication); APEX-Lite (a parallel run-time environment); and APEX-Debug (a multiprocessor, analysis tool that can support many processors across many boards). Alex's strong software capabilities will complement 3L's multiprocessing software capabilities, thereby supporting Spectrum's acquisition strategy aimed at providing the industry with DSP systems dedicated to delivering high-performance and ease-of-use.
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Spectrum Signal Processing Inc. (NASDAQ NMS: SSPIF / TSE: SSY), the
industry leader in high-performance DSP systems, today extended its
offerings of products based on the Analog Devices SHARCÒ DSP with the
integration of recently-acquired Alex Computer Systems' product lines.
Spectrum will round-out its current SHARC-based hardware and software
offerings by integrating Alex's broad SHARC-based product portfolio.
Based on the Analog Devices ADSP-2106x floating-point DSP family, this
product line consists of very advanced software tools specifically for
very large SHARC-based systems, DSP carrier boards, SHARCPAC processing modules, and application specific I/O modules.
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SPECTRUM SIGNAL PROCESSING PROVIDES TIME-SAVING SYSTEM-LEVEL
EVENT TRACE TOOL FOR DEVELOPING PARALLEL DSP APPLICATIONS
New Event Trace Tool Enhances Real-time Debug for SHARC-based
Applications
San Jose, CA, USA - November 3, 1998 -- Spectrum Signal Processing Inc. (NASDAQ NMS: SSPIF / TSE: SSY), the industry leader in high-performance DSP systems, today at the Embedded Systems Show unveiled APEX-Debug 3.0 with a new Event Trace feature. This tool allows engineers developing parallel DSP systems to simultaneously view each processor's activity in the system. Now developers working on SHARC-based applications can view the internal operation and behavior of the DSP, quickly identify disruptions, and correct them at the system-level.
APEX-Debug 3.0 with Trace is ideally suited for applications requiring
massively parallel systems and/or asynchronous event handling. This
product is an interactive, multi-processor graphical debug and
optimization tool that gives the designer a user-friendly, graphical
view of the DSP's activity. With APEX-Debug, the designer can view data flow through multiple DSPs and view system-level interactions offering an immediate visual indication as to whether the application is running as expected. This debug tool is designed to work with minimal support from the run-time environment, leaving scheduling and communications under the control of the user.
The new Trace feature displays information in a fashion similar to a
logic analyzer, such that software events and states are shown on
different 'trace-lines'. Therefore, the designer benefits from the
powerful capability of viewing the timing and interaction of
user-defined or system events. For example, APEX-Debug can provide an
instantaneous snap-shot of the system, including a history of events to the point where debugging is activated. Post-mortem debugging is
extremely beneficial, particularly since the activities of each
processor in the network during the last moments of execution often
contain the key to tracking down programming errors. In this situation, APEX-Debug 3.0 with Trace becomes indispensable, providing users with very detailed information on the final state of each DSP. - more -
As more DSPs are added to the system, taking best advantage of available processing power is often more difficult than getting the application running. Having reliable optimization tools is integral to any parallel debugging utility. APEX-Debug 3.0 with Trace offers a number of powerful features (including profiling, communication statistics and event tracing), each of which provide vital information on performance and communication bottlenecks that could severely hinder system performance.
APEX-Debug is complimented by APEX-Pro, an advanced SHARC programming
environment offering high-level communication utilities, a customizable, multi-threaded host interface, plus an interactive visual utility for system configuration and diagnostics. The goal of the APEX-Pro development tool is to provide developers with a system-level tool that simplifies application development, freeing users from low-level hardware configuration and topology concerns. Spectrum offers a very wide range of scaleable (modular) SHARC-based, COTS products that are all supported by APEX-Pro and Debug tools.
"We recognize that our customers need to rapidly implement, debug and
deploy their system. APEX-Debug with the new Trace tool assists the
developer to visualize the interaction between multiple DSPs that are
executing activities in parallel at the processor-level. This
visualization tool enables the developer to debug complex system-level
software issues very quickly. This new product will allow rapid debug of complex hardware and software integration problems," said Phil Radtke, Software Marketing Manager at Spectrum. "APEX-Debug with the Trace tool greatly increases the sophistication level of SHARC-based COTS software available from system-level DSP providers."
Spectrum's APEX-Debug 3.0 with Trace for SHARC-based applications is
available for order today. Base pricing starts at US$4,950 for single
product purchases.
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Targeted to fast growing segments such as remote sensing and wireless
applications, Alex's family of software, boards, and modules are based
on Analog Devices (NYSE:ADI) SHARC processor which is entirely
complementary, not competitive, to Spectrum's existing product lines. In addition to hardware, the combination represents a significant
opportunity to dominate the embedded DSP software business by
integrating the features of Alex's "Apex" DSP software development tools with those of established software player 3L, a wholly owned subsidiary of Spectrum, located in Edinburgh, Scotland. Alex also has experience in developing and manufacturing ruggedized DSP boards for harsh environments. All Alex products will be available through Spectrum effective immediately.
Alex has secured significant design wins over the past 18 months with
large commercial and government contractors involved in areas such as
wireless applications (including signal intelligence and cellular base
stations), imaging applications (such as digital mapping and image
processing) and remote sensing applications (such as aircraft radar,
shipboard sonar, target recognition and electronic warfare). An order
from Boeing Space and Defense (NYSE:BA) represents one such win, with an initial order in excess of US$1M and potential of US$60M over 5 years. Another order was placed by Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) for US$2M over 2 years, and a contract was recently signed with the US Navy with the potential for US$10M over the next 5 years. Alex has also won business in Europe for wireless base station products -- one with a potential yield of US$7.5M which, if successful, will be used in the wireless market by Nokia, Lucent and Motorola.
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Enough already. For those technically challenged the above news suggest the long history of Alex and ADI and the growing relationship of Spectrum and ADI based on the acquisition of Alex and the integration of Spectrums software/tooling together with Alex's and 3L. Together they are redefining the software environment for application engineers for both ADI and TI's new high end cores solidifying their place in the dsp solution industry IMHO
Regards
Norden |
