Continuous Computing recently released two blades that adhere to the AdvancedTCA (ATCA) specification—the FlexCore ATCA-FM30 and the FlexDSP ATCA-TI320. FlexCore allows for three times the density improvement over current solutions, while FlexDSP is a general-purpose ATCA DSP blade that suits triple-play applications.

The FlexCore blade optimizes system deployments by providing in only two slots the same functionality typically found in six cards, thereby allowing telecom equipment makers to develop cost competitive 3G wireless network elements by combining multiple functions in one chassis, such as RNC, SGSN, and GGSN. FlexCore includes an integrated Intel Pentium M application processor that eliminates two CPU blades in the system. Switching, application processing and storage options are all contained in the single FlexCore blade.

The FlexDSP allows a new set of applications to run on ATCA platforms, including media servers, media gateways, video gateways, wireless nodes, and IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) applications. It supports voice (with a capacity of 8064 voice channels in one slot), video, and data processing. More information about the FlexCore and FlexDSP is available on Continuous Computing's web site at www.ccpu.com.