Officials at StacoSwitch in Costa Mesa, Calif., are offering the M723 panel-mount joystick, which is part of the StacoSwitch Molded Elastomer Technology series of products. The rugged-duty NEMA-4 sealed joystick is for clean-room medical and most industrial applications, with a military option, company officials say. The stick is made from a fungus-inert sealed elastomer enclosure, and has green LEDs for backlighting even in mid-level ambient conditions. It measures 3.7 by 1.2 by 1.4 inches, and can be mounted in horizontal or vertical positions. The joystick connects through a computer's PS/2 port. For more information contact StacoSwitch by phone at 714-549-3041, by fax at 714-549-0930, by e-mail at [email protected], by post at 1139 Baker St., Costa Mesa, Calif. 92626, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.stacoswitch.com/.
Online database to disseminate information to VXI systems integrators
A searchable database called VxiDesignOnline.com with more than 1,300 VXI products from more than 120 manufacturers is available, sponsored by VXI Technology Inc. of Irvine, Calif. The database is a technical resource to help users and systems integrators obtain product data sheets, estimated prices, technical specifications, application notes, and complete system pricing in Excel spreadsheet format. The database is free, and contains no online advertising. Each VXI product vendor has his own password-protected administrative page, so they can update their information in real time. For more information contact VXI Technology by phone at 949-955-1894, by fax at 949-955-3041, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.vxitech.com/. The online database is available at http://www.vxidesignonline.com/.
BAE to help DARPA push RF technology forward
Experts at the BAE Systems Advanced Systems & Technology division in Nashua, N.H., won three contracts from the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to create technology for a new generation of digital receivers and RF systems. The awards, worth a collective $19 million, are for the Technology for Efficient Agile Mixed Signal Microsystems (TEAM), Intelligent RF Front Ends (IRFFE), and Technology for Frequency Agile Digitally Synthesized Transmitters (TFAST) programs. BAE experts will design microchips for tightly integrated RF circuits and reconfigurable high-throughput digital signal processing, says Will Shores, the division's director of business development. TEAM will develop an inexpensive systems chip. IRFFE will develop amplifiers that help receivers and transmitters adapt in real time to changing conditions. TFAST, meanwhile, will come up with new ways to fabricate large-scale circuits.
Astrodyne offers 300-watt switching power supplies for embedded uses
Leaders of Astrodyne in Taunton, Mass., are offering the MKS320-series family of high-density enclosed switching power supplies. These devices, which provide 300 watts of power, are for low- to moderate-power telecommunications, industrial control, and embedded applications. The MKS320-series accept universal input from 85 to 265 volts AC, and four of these models provide ingle outputs from 5 to 24 volts DC. These power supplies are as much as 30 percent smaller than competing products and provide power densities of as much as six watts per cubic inch, Astrodyne officials say. They operate in temperatures between –10 and 60 degrees Celsius without forced cooling or output power derating. For more information contact Astrodyne by phone at 508-823-8080, by fax at 508-823-8181, by post at 300 Myles Standish Blvd., Taunton, Mass. 02780, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.astrodyne.com/.
Rockwell Collins and Navy team to create new waveform technology
Scientists from Rockwell Collins in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, are teaming with other experts at the Office of Naval Research in Arlington, Va., and the Naval Air Systems Command at Patuxent River Naval Air Station, Md., to develop a new waveform technology called Bandwidth Efficient Advanced Modulation — better known as BEAM. This technology enables the transfer of information at data rates as fast as 80 kilobits per second over a standard 25 kHz UHF satellite communications channel, Rockwell Collins officials say. Prior to BEAM, the highest data rates over such channels have been 56 kilobits per second, and more typically are around 16 kilobits per second, company officials say. For more information contact Rockwell Collins by phone at 319-295-1000, by fax at 319-295-5429, by post at 400 Collins Road NE, Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52498, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.rockwellcollins.com/.
MEN Micro offers PC-MIP mezzanine card with non-volatile FRAM memory
A new PC-MIP mezzanine card is available fro MEN Micro Inc. of Carrollton, Texas, that features non-volatile ferroelectric random acess memroy (FRAM), and can provide as much as 512 kilobytes of FRAM without the need of a battery. The new card, called the P15, and as many as six of these cards can fit on a 6U PC-MIP carrier card. The FRAM components can support as many as 10 billion read/write cycles. The card can operate in the industrial temperature range of -40 to 85 degrees Celsius. For more information contact MEN Micro by phone at 972-939-2675, by fax at 972-939-0055, by e-mail at [email protected], by post at 3740 North Josey Lane, Suite 203, Carrollton, Texas, 75007, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.menmicro.com/.
DDC unveils 3.3-volt MIL-STD-1553 interface terminals
Officials at Data Device Corp. on Bohemia, N.Y., are releasing a 3.3-volt MIL-STD-1553 BC/RT/MT terminal as part of their Enhanced Mini-Ace series. Called the Mini-Ace Mark3, the device is a small 1553 terminal packaged in a ceramic quad flat package. The device measures 0.77 square inches by 0.13 inches, and uses 23 percent less board space than present ceramic package designs, DDC officials say. The device is a hermetic design for applications that operate at military or industrial temperature ranges. Several different environmental screening options are available. For more information contact DDC by phone at 631-567-5600, by fax at 631-567-7358, by post at 105 Wilbur Place, Bohemia, N.Y., 11716-2482, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.ddc-web.com/.
Teledyne Relays offers new line of DIN rail relays
Teledyne Relays officials in Hawthorne, Calif., are introducing four families of industrial solid-state relays for DIN rail or panel mounting. These relays have integrated heat sink and diagnostics, as well as output transient suppression, company officials say. These space-saving relays, which have designations of DR, DRD, DRL, and DRS, are for motor control, industrial process control, and heating control. The relays have green light-emitting diodes that function as status indicators for diagnostics. The DR, DRD, and DRL relays come in zero-cross and random turn-on models with thyristor output. The DRS model, meanwhile, provides diagnostics. For more information contact Teledyne Relays by phone at 323-241-1264, by fax at 323-779-9161, by post at 12333 West Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles, Calif. 90064, or on the World Wide Web at http://www.teledynerelays.com/.
Northwest Power offers low-profile power supplies
Leaders of Northwest Power Integrations Inc. of Milwaukie, Ore., are introducing the PowerBank PB150PFC low-profile power supply with power-factor correction capability. The power supplies come with outputs of 1,200 watts at 100 volts AC, as well as 1,500 watts at 200 volts AC. Northwest Power is a Vicor Integration Architect, and is building the power supply in partnership with Vicor Corp. of Andover, Mass. Vicor Integration Architects build custom power solutions based on Vicor's high-density power modules. For more information contact Northwest Power by phone at 503-652-6161, by fax at 503-652-6868, by post at 4211 S.E. International Way, suite F. Milwaukie, Ore., 97222. Also contact the Vicor Integration Architect page on the World Wide Web at http://www.vicorpower.com/vias/.
