US : Kontron announced its recent acquisition of Giga Stream UMTS Technologie GmbH, reinforces its plans to be a leading platform provider for the next generation 3G wireless network.

Inset above is the Kontron AMC module - AM4001 ( more details below ).

The added expertise from the multi-media switching provider puts Kontron well on target to deliver within the year a full range of next generation AdvancedTCA ( ATCA ) hub, storage and carrier blades, plus numerous Field Replaceable Unit ( FRU ) networking line cards based on the Advanced Mezzanine Card ( AdvancedMC ).

This positions Kontron as the clear-cut, leading provider of open standard, modular platforms demanded by wireless equipment manufacturers who seek economies of scale and faster time-to-market for carrier-grade mobile network applications. The range of network elements capable of being ported to ATCA/AMC include radio network controllers ( RNC ), Gateway GPRS Support Nodes ( xGSN ), IP Multimedia Subsystem ( IMS ) servers, Mobile Station Controller ( MSCs ), and media servers.

"ATCA and AMC platforms in 3G UMTS networks are so ideal as they provide an incredible array of application design possibilities coupled with ultra-dense processing," says Benoit Robert, Kontron Executive Director, Product Development. "There is still plenty of development going on in today's mobile networks, which makes versatility and upgradeability extremely important to network providers."

AdvancedMC - extending the power density and design versatility of ATCA
Advanced Telecom Computing Architecture ( ATCA ) is a fast emerging model for carrier-grade systems to be built on standardized hardware as defined by the PCI Industrial Computer Manufacturers Group ( PICMG ). Among the numerous benefits, faster time-to-market and increased resources for application development are foremost. Another PICMG open standard initiative is AdvancedMC which extends the value of ATCA at the mezzanine level and opens up a whole host of design opportunities.

Kontron AdvancedMC FRU line cards will include E1/T1, STM1 ( ATM and POS ) as well as FE and GbE to support wireless, wireline and inter-working protocol functions for IP, ATM and TDM networks. These Kontron AMC modules will also be available in combination with ATCA carrier cards for high density stacking of either four full-height or eight half-height cards, enabling wireless OEMs to dramatically increase their services and applications density per cabinet.

Crystal Cube Consulting recently reported that a significant full-scale rollout of AMC modules will occur in 2006, while unit activity and revenue is expected to generate in excess of US$13 billion by year-end 2009. Similarly for ATCA, a separate report estimates there is a potential of up to $20 billion dollars by year end 2007.

Kontron ATCA / AMC solutions already available
Kontron has already assembled and delivered an initial offering of ATCA / AMC platforms and chassis to top tier clients. Of note is the Kontron AT8001 ATCA processor board powered by a low voltage, high performance Intel® Xeon® processor up to 2.8 GHz, and is the sole blade on the market to support two AMC modules, as part of Kontron's "AMC Everywhere" architecture campaign.

The first Kontron AMC module is the AM4001 and features the low power, high performance of an Intel® Pentium M® processor up to 2 GHz and the Intel E7320 chipset. Available in single width, full and half-height options, the AM4001 offers dual Gigabit Ethernet, dual Serial ATA, and x4 PCI-Express interconnects in compliance with AMC.0/.1/.2/.3 specifications. Kontron also offers ATCA-compliant 12U, 5U and 3U chassis with Kontron shelf manager cards, as well as an ATCA hub switch blade.

Faster-Go-To-Market strategy
Kontron shortens the application design process by ensuring that each ATCA / AMC building block is fully interoperable and designed to be both the right technology and the right architecture in mind to suit any development needs. Pre-integrated and application ready right out-of-the-box, Kontron ATCA/AMC solutions are customizable and also feature best-in-class carrier-grade software such as MontaVista Linux Carrier Grade Edition ( CGE ), and hot-standby Solid CarrierGrade data manager from Solid Information Technology. This complements Kontron's existing offering of Intelligent Platform Management Interface ( IPMI v1.5 ) firmware, Hardware Platform Interface ( HPI ) support, and operating system and applications software.