Actel partners with Pigeon Point Systems to deliver TCA management solutions

Building upon its existing portfolio for the growing TCA market, Actel Corporation announced it has partnered with Pigeon Point Systems, the market leading supplier of TCA management components, to deliver system management platforms for higher performance applications. Leveraging Actel’s single-chip, mixed-signal Fusion Programmable System Chip (PSC) with an embedded FPGA-optimized 32-bit ARM Cortex-M1 processor and optimized Pigeon Point firmware, the first products will include development kits to speed the design of Advanced Telecom Computing Architecture (ATCA) and Advanced Mezzanine Card (AMC) carrier board management controllers, all based on the Intelligent Platform Management Interface (IPMI) architecture.

Defined by the PCI Industrial Computer Manufacturers Group (PICMG), the Telecom Computing Architecture (TCA) encompasses ATCA, AdvancedMC (AMC) and the MicroTCA frameworks. An industry-standard specification experiencing rapid deployment in applications including telecommunications access, storage and data center equipment, ATCA provides manageability and redundancy at the shelf level and an IPMI-based standard management framework at the board level. According to industry estimates from market research firm VDC, the opportunity for the overall standards-based TCA system market is expected to be roughly $1.8 billion by 2009.



Fusion PSCs — The Silicon Standard for TCA System Management
Actel’s mixed-signal Fusion PSCs incorporate analog functions, embedded flash and FPGA fabric in a single chip. As a result, the Actel Fusion PSC can integrate system management functions and offer programmable flexibility, providing an implementation that reduces parts count by 25 percent and board area by roughly 33 percent. At a time when designers are searching for system and power management solutions that minimizes system cost and complexity while improving power efficiency and reliability, Actel’s mixed-signal Fusion PSC family is an ideal alternative to multiple discrete devices.

Actel