Curtiss-Wright Protects Critical Data on New Arm?-based 3U VPX Single Board Computer with TrustedCOTS? Security
Press ReleaseOctober 23, 2019
AUSA 2019, Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Washington D.C. (Booth 2209) - October 14, 2019 - Curtiss-Wright's Defense Solutions division, a proven leading supplier of open-architecture rugged compute solutions, today introduced the embedded industry's first 16-core Arm processor-based 3U OpenVPX™ single board computer (SBC) with advanced security features. One of the biggest challenges facing rugged system designers today is how best to deploy as much compute power as possible while selecting the smallest, least power-hungry architecture and providing protection for critical mission data against malicious cyber attacks and reverse engineering. The new VPX3-1707 processor module meets this design challenge head-on with Arm's exceptional performance-per-watt functionality and support for Curtiss-Wright's TrustedCOTS™ Enhanced Trusted Boot features, including NXP Secure Boot and Arm TrustZone, along with a security FPGA allowing customer extensibility and customization.
The fully rugged VPX3-1707's NXP Layerscape LX2160 processor provides 16 64-bit Arm v8 Cortex-A72 CPU cores at up to 2.2 GHz. This new SBC joins Curtiss-Wright's VPX3-1703 and V3-1703, the industry's first DO-254/DO-178C safety-certifiable Arm-based processor board, to expand options for system designers seeking alternatives to the industry's most common processor architectures, such as those based on Intel® or Power Architecture® devices. The VPX3-1707 is designed for use in deployed systems that require optimal performance in harsh environments. It's ideal for demanding controller, ISR, and mission computer applications.
"The Arm processor architecture has seen incredible success in commercial, small form factor technologies, as well as an emergence in enterprise server-class devices," said Lynn Bamford, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Defense and Power. "Arm's proven ability to deliver impressive levels of performance within a low power envelope makes it a valuable option for rugged embedded and defense technology. With the VPX3-1707, Curtiss-Wright adds a high-performance SBC to our expanding portfolio of Arm-based technology aimed at bringing new innovation to SWaP-constrained applications."
VPX3-1707 Performance Features
- NXP LX2160 Arm A72 16-core 64-bit CPU up to 2.2 GHz.
- Available in 8/12/16-core configurations
- Up to 32 GB DDR4 memory
- x4 PCIe® XMC mezzanine site
- Air-cooled and conduction-cooled variants
- I/O support includes:
- 1000BASE-T Ethernet ports + 2 x 10GE-KX control plane
- PCIe Gen 3 data/expansion plane
- 4 serial channels
- 4 output 5V tolerant LVTTL discrete digital IO (DIO) ports
- USB 2.0 and 3.0 ports
- Developed in alignment with the SOSA™ Technical Standard
Software Support
Software support for the VPX3-1707 will include Linux® and Wind River® VxWorks® 7 (when available), along with Curtiss-Wright's U-Boot firmware, providing a comprehensive suite of system debug, exerciser, and update functions, BIT, and non-volatile memory sanitization.
About Curtiss-Wright Corporation
Curtiss-Wright Corporation is a global innovative company that delivers highly engineered, critical function products and services to the commercial, industrial, defense and energy markets. Building on the heritage of Glenn Curtiss and the Wright brothers, Curtiss-Wright has a long tradition of providing reliable solutions through trusted customer relationships. The company employs approximately 9,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit www.curtisswright.com.
