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Ramix Ethernet devices replace FDDI on Navy programs
By John McHale
Ramix Ethernet devices replace FDDI on Navy programs
by John McHale
VENTURA, Calif. — Engineers at Ramix are designing Switched Ethernet devices to replace FDDI
(fiber distributed data interface) technology in various U.S. Navy programs.
Navy officials want to replace FDDI devices because many suppliers have "end of lifed their products"
and finding new FDDI products can be quite costly, says Saeed Karamooz, president and chief
executive officer of Ramix. Ramix's Ethernet solutions have the same bandwidth 10 or 100 megabits
per second as the FDDI products but are much less expensive, are available right off the shelf, and use
the existing fiber plant installed for FDDI, he adds.
Click here to enlarge image
FDDI technology is used on Arleigh Burke-class destroyers such as the USS Curtis Wilbur, pictured
above.
The cost of an obsoleted FDDI part is anywhere from $3,000 to $6,000 while the Ramix device is
around $1,300, Karamooz says. The Ramix devices used by the Navy are the PMC675 — Intelligent
Dual 100-Base Ethernet PMC Module — and the RM939 — 6/18 port Managed VME Switch, he says.
Karamooz declined to comment on specific Navy programs due to contractual obligations.
FDDI devices are commonly used in Arleigh Burke-class destroyers as part of the Aegis system. The
technology serves as a network interface for the AN/UYQ-70 (Q-70) Advanced Display System
designed by Lockheed Martin, in Eagan, Minn.
Q-70 is a flexible, modular, open computer and display architecture design which supports the
common operating environment being implemented today in surface, subsurface, land, and airborne
platforms. This tactical workstation is configured using high-performance commercial-off-the-shelf
modules housed in militarized enclosures. The Q-70 can be installed in airborne, surface, and
submarine platforms to fulfill multiple combat system tasks, Lockheed Martin officials say.
"The combination of tried and tested Ethernet technology combined with very robust, relatively lowcost"
hardware and software with a low recovery time make this a compelling strategy, particularly as
it can be deployed today without risk, says Kim Barnhill, manager of strategic sales and marketing at
Ramix.
FDDI was developed in the 1980s, by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) as the next
generation networking technology, Barnhill says.
"Ethernet switching technology is key to FDDI replacement because it offers a far more deterministic
environment than a shared media or a collapsed backbone Ethernet hub," Barnhill says. "Both standard
collision domain Ethernet and collapsed backbone hubs provide extremely variable packet transit times
since resources are shared between all the connected devices."
Switched Ethernet provides a deterministic high throughput infrastructure for replacing FDDI,
however additional hardware is required to achieve the high levels of redundancy of FDDI, Barnhill
says. Intelligent network interface cards bring home the redundancy through the use of embedded link
monitoring software that monitors and manages the dual interfaces, he explains.
Replacing legacy mission-critical FDDI networks with 10.100 or Gigabit Ethernet is a viable and
proven proposition, " Barnhill says.
For more information on Ramix contact the company by phone at 805-650-2111 or on the World Wide
Web at http://www.ramix.com.
Military & Aerospace Electronics April, 2003
Author(s) : John McHale
About the Author
Military & Aerospace Electronics April, 2003
Author(s) : John McHale
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