Saft will develop 12 batteries using VL 34P cells for each destroyer with custom electronics, housing and an integrated charger to support the IFTP’s Load Center breakers, giving them the ability to shut down electronically, even when there is no power. Under the second contract, Saft will provide 22 batteries, also based on VL 34P cells, for each ship for the IFTP’s Housekeeping Power Supply (HKPS). The batteries will supply onboard back-up power, carrying the destroyers’ loads until they can be shut down. The DDG 1000 destroyer is the first in a class of the U.S. Navy’s multi-mission surface combatants tailored for littoral, air and sub-surface warfare.

Saft America
Cockeysville, MD.
(410) 771-3200.
[www.saftbatteries.com].

SprayCool Enclosures Fly on Global Hawk ASIP Flight Test

SprayCool’s liquid-cooled enclosures were included in the first test flight of Northrop Grumman Airborne Signals Intelligence Payload (ASIP) aboard a Block 30 Global Hawk UAV. One of the most significant new capabilities on Global Hawk is the addition of a Northrop Grumman-developed signals intelligence (SIGINT) sensor. SprayCool enables ASIP’s critical electronics to be installed in the unpressurized compartments of the Global Hawk UAS.

The recently completed flight test of an ASIP sensor on the U-2 aircraft verified the successful application of SprayCool technology in a high altitude environment. Global Hawk testing further supports the use of this technology on a high altitude, long endurance platform. A series of flight tests are planned over the next few months to validate all aspects of ASIP performance on Global Hawk. An initial production contract on Global Hawk ASIP chassis was awarded to SprayCool in the summer of 2008. SprayCool is also on contract to provide SprayCool chassis for a scaled derivative of the baseline ASIP sensor, which will fly on another platform.

SprayCool
Liberty Lake, WA.
(509) 232-2600.
[www.spraycool.com].

System Designers Look to FPGAs as Processor Platform

To combat the always persistent processor obsolescence challenges encountered when using commercial silicon, embedded system designers and more specifically military/aerospace embedded system designers, are evaluating programmable logic platforms as alternatives to traditional commercial silicon. As part of VDC Research Group’s 2009 market study on embedded processor platforms, we surveyed over 200 embedded processor users on their requirements and expectations for embedded processors. We asked them if they would consider replacing their current processor platform with an FPGA or other programmable logic device. The results are shown in Figure 4 broken out by the type of processor platform currently used by the respondents. This data, collected in Q4 2008, show that a significant percentage of all embedded processor user categories are at least considering programmable logic if not using it already.

Approximately one third of the total respondents to the questionnaire classified their primary vertical market focus as military/aerospace and an even greater proportion than that of all the respondents who answered that they were considering or already using FPGAs were military/aerospace respondents. The reason that military/aerospace embedded systems designers are on the leading edge of this trend of increasing usage of programmable logic is the unique set of requirements that embedded military systems face. With end product lifecycles that average 10 to 15 years and can be as long as 50 years, embedded military systems designers are most challenged by the problems of processor platform obsolescence. However, now in many applications commercial silicon can be replaced with an FPGA implementing a soft CPU core, which does not become obsolete because the CPU IP will exist forever and can be implemented easily in the successive releases of the FPGA even if the original FPGA model itself is discontinued. For more information please contact Eric Heikkila of VDC at: erich@vdcresearch.com

VDC Research Group
Natick, MA.
(508) 653-9000.
[www.vdcresearch.com].