MIL/AERO
By: dl

1.6 GHz Atom-based box weighs in at a mere 4.5 pounds

Aitech Defense Systems has announced an RCU (rugged control unit) that it claims is about half the weight of comparable units. The 4.5-lb Nighthawk is based on a low-power, 1.6 GHz Atom microprocessor and what the company says is the “highest number of off-the-shelf and standard PC I/O interfaces available in a rugged, low-power, environmentally sealed controller.” Optional I/O includes MIL-STD-1553B, ARINC-429, ARINC-708, CAN, WiFi and WAN, plus video capture and processing, discrete and analog I/O and an 8-port Gigabit Ethernet switch.

The Nighthawk relies on silicon-rubber O-rings and flat EMI gaskets to prevent the intrusion of sand, dust, humidity and contaminants, and its internal and external surfaces are treated for corrosion resistance. Operating temperature range is -55 to +55°C, while shock and vibration tolerance comes in at  40 g peak single half-sine shock and 10 g RMS sine vibration at 5 Hz to 500 Hz. The RCU supports Windows Embedded XP, Linux and VxWorks.

www.rugged.com/news1677.htm