Based on the AcQ LpDAS technology, the intelligent Remote Data Concentrator (iRDC) is a small, lightweight, conduction cooled embedded computer unit. It is suitable for aircraft installation or demonstrators and provides analog, ARINC-664/AFDX®, discrete and fieldbus interfaces. The iRDC can be used as both an intelligent as well as a non-intelligent platform. In an intelligent configuration a user application is hosted on the iRDC with access to the available I/O. The application platform interface is ARINC 653 part 4 (minimum subset) which makes it easy to write and port applications to the iRDC, for example SCADE® applications. In the non-intelligent configuration the I/O can be controlled or monitored by means of the AFDX® avionics databus.

Configuration by means of XML-files makes the iRDC a flexible platform and a readily available solution to challenging protocol conversion, monitoring, data logging and control problems.

Architecture
At the heart of the iRDC, a user programmable PowerPC® processor runs the software application and controls the various interfaces and avionics databuses. Hardware interfaces are integrated into a FPGA in order to make full use of the processor capabilities for software applications. Furthermore the iRDC integrates an analog to digital converter card, an AFDX® End System card and a low capacity AFDX® fieldbus card.

Software
PikeOS®, a real-time operating system, is available on the iRDC platform. PikeOS® supports ARINC-653 system partitioning and scheduling. The user application is separated from the platform software by means of partitioning and interfaces to platform software via the ARINC-653 part 4 API.

Future Developments
The development of the iRDC platform is continuously in progress and additional features will be developed in the future. Other derived AFDX® implementations and CAN support for the iRDC will be available soon.