Schroff reckons its new modular CompactPCI backplanes offer systems developers significantly more design freedom while keeping costs low.
Schroff reckons its new modular CompactPCI backplanes offer systems developers significantly more design freedom while keeping costs low. The CompactPCI backplane solution consists of modular backplanes, power piggybacks and one or more power backplanes. The modular backplanes comply with revision 3.0 of the CompactPCI core specification.

Models with three to eight slots are currently available in either 3 or 6U formats, the five-slot and seven-slot versions are bridgeable.

All backplanes can be abutted without loss of space, ie without losing a slot width, which would normally happen when combining two backplanes.

The user therefore saves valuable space in the subrack.

The piggyback board, which is plugged directly into the rear of the backplane, is used for connecting each power supply.

This board contains an ATX connector, various universal supply terminals for M4 eyelets (power bugs) and three drive connectors.

Thus the board not only enables power to be fed to the backplane from various sources, but also serves as a central node for power distribution in the system.

The ATX connector is used for connecting the power backplane to the P47 connector, which acts as an adapter between the backplane and 19in power supplies compliant with PICMG 2.11 (eg Schroff’s maxpowerPRO).

The user can mount this board in any position in the subrack backplane area.

By using another connector it is possible to tap-off the Inhibit or Power-on signals (ATX) for controlling the power supply unit.

Schroff developers are already working on another piggyback board designed for rear I/O solutions.