Next Generation VPX Optical Backplanes

The increasing demand for new optical backplane technology is being driven by increased processing power and open standards established by industry-government consensus.

VITA 66.5 was created as the next step in the evolution of optical backplanes for OpenVPX systems. Moving the fiber optic transceiver from mid-board to the backplane connector, allows to free up board space and eliminate the need for fiber cable. This improves ease of assembly and maintenance for blind-mate plug-in cards. VITA 66.5 also increases fiber density on the backplane, allowing more data throughput per unit area.

Bringing more fiber optics into the system also provides the inherent advantages of size, weight, and power consumption (SWaP) as well as elimination of interference between channels.

This webinar will review the OpenVPX/VITA 66.5 standard specifying embedded, military sensing and computing systems based on a new type of active, optical backplane. This will bring significant improvements in lifecycle management, maintenance, and SWaP (size/weight/power) to ruggedized airborne, ground, and naval platforms.