Electronic agility is often necessary in electronic-warfare (EW) environments, and the latest RF/microwave tuner mission computer from Curtiss-Wright's Defense Solutions division provides the agility needed to stay ahead of emerging EW threats. Based on a commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) open architecture, the model MPMC-9323/EWS-DRS mission computer is a multiple-channel tuner system featuring a model SI-9172 Vesper tuner/exciter from Leonardo DRS optimized for size, weight, and power (SWaP).
The compact design of the highly integrated mission computer helps speed system implementations for system integrators while also providing them with a chassis that is small and light enough to meet modern SWaP requirements. The compact system building block is well suited for applications in communications intelligence (COMINT), electronic intelligence (ELINT), and signal intelligence (SIGINT).
The mission computer integrates a three-rack-space (3U) SI-9172 OpenVPX module from Leonardo DRS, a Xilinx Kintex-7 XF07-523 field-programmable-gate-array (FPGA) mezzanine module from Curtiss-Wright, and digital-signal-processing (DSP) engine based on an Intel Xeon D-based CHAMP-XD1 DSP engine. The system provides tuner channels from 2 MHz to 6 GHz with 10-µs tuning speed and 100-MHz intermediate-frequency (IF) passband. It is available with 1 and 10 Gb/s Ethernet and Universal Serial Bus (USB) interfaces meeting MIL-STD-810/MIL-STD-461 requirements.
The mission computer is housed in a compact 3U, two-slot OpenVPX chassis measuring just 10.5 × 5.9 × 7.7 in., weighing 18 lb., and optimized for SWaP. It is also designed to meet or exceed the most demanding thermal requirements. In support of the wide RF/microwave bandwidth, the mission computer is equipped with VITA 67.3 subminiature blind-mate multicoaxial RF backplane connectors.
“We are excited to extend our support for Leonardo DRS embedded RF Tuner technology with the introduction of our new Electronic Warfare System-DRS mission computer, which combines the recently announced SI-9172 Vesper Tuner/Exciter with our best-in-class DSP engine and FPGA processor modules in a compact rugged chassis,” said Lynn Bamford, senior vice president and general manager for Curtiss-Wright’s Defense Solutions division. “This pre-integrated COTS mission computer speeds the deployment of cost-effective, proven electronic-warfare solutions to the warfighter.”
