Q. What
are the PCI expansion options on the SwissBlade?
A. The Plug-N-Run
G3 SwissBlade carrier board is available
in configurations that include combinations
of a vertical PCI slot, a PMC socket
and two Type II PC CardBus slots. A
customized version with a right-angled
PCI slot that permits a PCI add-in
card to be oriented parallel to the
board may also be ordered from PFU
Systems.
Q. Can I use
the PMC socket simultaneously with the PCI
slot and vice versa?
A. The PMC socket
can be used simultaneously with the
PCI slot.
Q. Can
I use the CardBus PC Card slots simultaneously
with the PCI slot and vice versa?
A. The CardBus PC Card slots
can be used simultaneously with the PCI slot.
Q. Can I use
the CardBus PC Card slots simultaneously
with the PMC socket and vice versa?
A. The CardBus PC Card
slots cannot be used simultaneously when
using the PMC socket. The cage of the CardBus
PC Card slots has to be removed to allow
the PMC card to be inserted into the PMC
socket.
Q. Which
CardBus controller is supported on the SwissBlade?
A. The SwissBlade supports
dual CardBus PC Card slots using the Texas
Instruments PCI4520 IEEE 1394a & CardBus
controller.
Q. Which Ethernet
PHY is supported on the SwissBlade?
A. The SwissBlade implements
Fast Ethernet LAN using an Intel® 82562ET
10/100 Base-T PHY that connects directly
to the Ethernet MDI interface on the Plug-N-Run
G3 module. As the Intel® 855GME chipset
on the Plug-N-Run G3 module integrates
an Ethernet MAC, a separate Ethernet controller
is not required on the SwissBlade.
Q. Is
Boot-Over-LAN supported on the SwissBlade?
What are the benefits of using Boot-Over-LAN?
A. Yes. The SwissBlade
supports Boot-Over-LAN using the integrated
PXE code in the Plug-N-Run G3 Flash ROM
to facilitate booting from a remote boot
server making diskless operation possible.
The benefits of Boot-Over-LAN include deployment
and central administration of operating
systems and application software, automated
system maintenance, automated system checking
and ensuring security where a guaranteed
secure system is needed. Therefore lowering
total cost of ownership.
Q. Is Ethernet
network connection status available on the
SwissBlade?
A. Yes. The LAN activity
and link speed network connection status
is available from LEDs integrated in the
RJ45 Ethernet connector.
Q. Where
can I download the Ethernet device drivers?
A. The Ethernet devices
driver package for the Intel 82562ET is downloadable
from PFU Systems' website. For details on
device driver installation, please refer
to the SwissBlade user manual.
Q. How many USB
2.0 ports are available on the SwissBlade?
What is the maximum data rate of the USB
2.0 ports?
A. The SwissBlade supports
six USB 2.0 ports. The data rates supported
by the USB 2.0 ports are 1.5Mbps, 12Mbps
and 480Mbps.
Q. Which
type of FireWire is supported on the SwissBlade?
A. The SwissBlade supports
the IEEE 1394a standard. This standard
allows for a maximum of 400 Mbps data rates.
The SwissBlade does not support the IEEE
1394b standard.
Q. Which IEEE
1394a controller is used on the SwissBlade?
A. The SwissBlade uses
the Texas Instruments PCI4520 IEEE 1394a & CardBus
controller.
Q. What are the
data rates supported by the IEEE 1394a ports
on the SwissBlade?
A. The IEEE 1394a ports
on the SwissBlade provide for differing performance
requirements by supporting real time data
rates of 100, 200 and 400 Mbps.
Q. Do
peripherals connected to IEEE 1394a ports
on the SwissBlade require a separate power
supply?
A. The two IEEE 1394a
ports on the SwissBlade support power sourcing
through the 6-pin 1394 connectors.
Q. Why is IEEE
1394a preferred over USB 2.0 for industrial
imaging applications?
A.The IEEE1394a is preferred
over USB 2.0 for industrial imaging applications
for the following reasons:
- IEEE 1394a is a proven technology whereas USB
2.0 is a recent introduction.
- Availability of a wide choice of IEEE 1394a imaging
solutions such as industrial cameras, mass storage
solutions and consumer electronics products.
- IEEE 1394a is a peer-to-peer system whereas USB
2.0 is a host-client design that always requires
a host.
- Though both IEEE 1394a and USB 2.0 support isochronous
data transfers, the latter is not truly isochronous
due to its reliance on host/client architecture.
- IEEE 1394a can power peripherals with 1.5 amps
@ 8V ~ 40V whereas USB 2.0 can provide only up
to 0.5 amps @ 5V per port.
- IEEE 1394a supports flexible topologies such
as daisy chain and tree topologies whereas USB
2.0 only supports a star topology.
- IEEE 1394a for imaging applications enjoys a
larger installed base of application software whereas
imaging application software for USB 2.0 is still
in an early stage.
Q. What
are the key features of the IEEE 1394a serial
bus?
A.
-
IEEE 1394a supports
data rates of 100/200/400 Mbps
- True plug-and-play. Each device connected
to the 1394a supports hot plugging and
automatic configuration
- Guaranteed bandwidth for real-time applications
using isochronous data transfers
- Freeform daisy chaining and branching
for peer-to-peer communication. 1394 devices
can communicate with each other without
needing a host system
- Power sourcing of 1394a peripherals
- No terminator or device IDs required,
as with SCSI
- Enables high frame rates over USB cameras
for better image quality.
- Removes the need for costly analog video
computer frame buffers to capture digital
video.
- Flexible topology allowing up to 63 devices
with a maximum of 16 cable hops of up to
4.5 meters between each 1394a device.
- The Digital VCR Conference (DVC) has
accepted IEEE 1394 as the standard digital
interface
- The European Digital Video Broadcasters
(DVB) has endorsed IEEE 1394 as their digital
television interface
Q. Which miscellaneous
signals are available on the SwissBlade and
how do I access them?
A. The SwissBlade brings
the LPC Bus, SMBus and GPIO signals to
the 50-pin mezzanine expansion header to
facilitate user I/O expansion, implementation
of GPIO driven control interfaces, system
management, etc. |
