December 19, 2017
TTTech Computertechnik AG has been awarded a platinum prize for its radiation-hardened TTEthernet ASIC with fault-tolerant deterministic Ethernet services by the Military & Aerospace Electronics Innovators Award Committee. This powerful system-on-chip (SoC) contains a 32-bit computing core, a fully deterministic 25-port Gigabit Ethernet switch core as well as an Ethernet end point, 1 Mbyte of internal memory, and a rich set of peripherals.
“We are very proud to receive the highest possible MEA Innovators Award for our latest system-on-chip, which supports the design of advanced and optimized integrated avionics architectures for next-generation spacecraft and launch vehicles”, said Christian Fidi, TTTech’s Space Products Manager. “Over the last 20 years, TTTech has continuously proven its capability to lead and innovate in the most critical embedded control applications like commercial aircraft avionics or data-handling in human spaceflight.”
The TTESwitch Controller Space is currently used in the avionics network of next-generation launch vehicles such as Ariane 6 and in key US spaceflight programs. For several years, TTTech’s TTEthernet products have been successfully applied in NASA’s ORION MPCV. The current award shows that TTEthernet products are among the front runners in the wider adoption of Deterministic Ethernet in aerospace and space applications.
Alan Bergstein, publisher of Military & Aerospace Electronics (www.militaryaerospace.com), said: "This prestigious program allows Military & Aerospace Electronics to celebrate and recognize the most innovative products and services in the aerospace electronics industry. Our 2017 honorees are an outstanding example of companies who are making an impact."
The TTESwitch Controller Space is the most robust integrated device in a product family based on a powerful system-on-chip (SoC), fabricated in a 65 nm low-power CMOS process. The power consumption, depending on the use-case and SoC configuration, is between 0.1 Watt and 2 Watt (at 14 Gbit/s throughput in switch mode). The stand-by mode power consumption is below 0.02Watt. The product is available in either 352-pin CQFP or 400-pin PBGA package to support high-end long term as well as cost competitive high-volume missions. It contains a 32-bit LEON2FT computing core, a fully deterministic 25-port Ethernet switch core as well as an Ethernet end point, 1 Mbyte of internal memory, and GPIO, RS-232/422/485, PCI, SpaceWire and (Q)SPI interfaces. It enables the design of reconfigurable multi-protocol gateways, 10/100/1000 Ethernet backbones and distributed fault-tolerant computers.
This device is qualified for the full temperature and radiation range required for space applications, according to international space standards. Radiation hardening is achieved by design measures and by libraries for the C65SPACE manufacturing process which have recently been qualified by the European Space Agency.
The TTESwitch Controller Space in ceramic or plastic packaging supports optimized design of complex avionics systems and integration of payload and control platforms with significant reduction in software complexity/size and integration test efforts. Target applications are launchers, space systems, human-rated spacecraft, satellites, high-altitude UAV and other applications in demanding environments.
