MicroTCA Communications Server Accelerates Deployment from Network Core to EDGE

[Nikos Kartalis]

Motorola, Inc. today launched a new series of communications servers that help enable equipment manufacturers to develop and deploy products faster and more cost-efficiently. With the Centellis™ 1000, Motorola has extended its portfolio to enable telecom equipment manufacturers and defense prime contractors to implement a common communications platform for a wide range of network core, edge and access applications. This new MicroTCA platform is particularly relevant to access layer applications, such as WiMAX access points, VoIP access gateways and cellular base stations where reducing the capital cost of installing or extending next-generation network elements is very important.

“Motorola’s MicroTCA communications servers support a pay-as-you-grow business model,” said Paul Virgo, marketing director, Embedded Communications Computing, Motorola. “Given the significant level of interest from our customers, Motorola believes that it is important to drive this standard into the marketplace now. By providing early access to this technology for our customers’ evaluation, Motorola can help reduce time-to market for new, fast emerging applications and can speed the overall adoption and maximize the potential economies of scale of MicroTCA.”

The Centellis 1000 series is designed to the draft specification of the MicroTCA open standard, making it physically smaller, with finer-grain scalability than Motorola’s initial communications servers based on the AdvancedTCA industry standard.

“The architecture similarities of ATCA and MicroTCA enable re-use of hardware and software, making application migration between the two platforms relatively easy and driving economies of scale,” said Eric Gulliksen, embedded hardware director, VDC. “Indications are that MicroTCA may mature more quickly than ATCA because of anticipated demand for this smaller form factor.”

The Centellis 1000 series is built on a 4U MicroTCA chassis offering a choice of Gigabit Ethernet or PCI-Express switch fabric. Initial AdvancedMC options will include:

• Processing modules based on Intel Pentium M and PowerPC (MPC7XXX) processor devices
• Packet voice resource modules
• Hard disk storage modules
• T1/E1/OC3/OC12 line interface modules

Accelerating Adoption
Motorola also announced strategic alliances that will accelerate the adoption of MicroTCA communications servers in telecom, defense/aerospace and other industries.

The company’s new strategic alliance with Interphase Corporation is expected to result in faster time to market for a range of application-specific options. The agreement provides for the joint planning, development and marketing of a range of I/O AdvancedMC cards which will be key components of Motorola’s AdvancedTCA and MicroTCA communications servers.

Motorola will support both MontaVista Carrier Grade Linux and Wind River® Platform for Network Equipment, Linux Edition on the Centellis 1000.

“This not only protects our customers’ tool chain investments, it also accelerates migration of existing and the development of new applications to MicroTCA technology,” said Virgo.

MontaVista Linux Carrier Grade Edition’s leadership in the telecommunications segment will help accelerate Motorola's position as a leading supplier of networking equipment to the telecommunications market. MontaVista Linux is also available on Motorola’s ATCA communication servers, providing a common operating environment from the core to the edge.

Wind River’s leadership over the past 20 years in delivering Device Software Optimization to a broad range of device customers, including those in the embedded computing market, supports Motorola’s strategy of offering MicroTCA into additional markets such as defense, medical and automation, and will help speed broader adoption of MicroTCA.

3GSM World Congress Demonstration
At 3GSM World Congress 2006 in Barcelona, Motorola will demonstrate Centellis 1000 series communications server proof-of-concept systems including applications in WiMAX and IP PBX. Additional information on other Motorola communications server demonstrations at 3GSM World Congress.

Pricing and Availability
Motorola will support early adopter customers in the second half of 2006 subject to specification ratification, and will make the Centellis 1000 series generally available in Q1 2007 with prices expected to start from below $5,000.