Digitizers deliver endless data streaming with 10 GS/s sampling speed
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Spectrum’s
M5i.33xx digitizers are able to acquire data at 10 GS/s, streaming it
non-stop to a GPU for analysis or to an SSD array for storage, with the
streaming PC made out of COTS parts.
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Send
data to a GPU for continuous signal processing
For situations that
involve streaming and intensive signal processing, the M5i.33xx series
digitizers use SCAPP (Spectrum CUDA Access for Parallel
Processing). The SCAPP software package transfers the acquired data,
using an RDMA process, directly from the digitizers to off-the-shelf GPUs based
on Nvidia’s CUDA Standard. Once there, users can utilize the GPUs multiple (up
to 10,000) processing cores and large (up to 48 GB) memory for on-the-fly
parallel processing.
SCAPP includes a set
of routines for interaction between the digitizer and GPU cards, as well as a
set of CUDA parallel processing examples. These examples provide easy building
blocks for powerful processing functions like Digital Down Conversion (DDC),
filtering, signal averaging, data de-multiplexing, data conversion or Fast
Fourier Transforms (FFTs). All the SCAPP software is based on C/C++ and Python,
making implementation and customization easy with just normal programming
skills.
For
example, in applications that require continuous spectral analysis, time domain
data can be collected at 10 GS/s and streamed directly to a GPU for non-stop
conversion to the frequency domain. Using a system that includes an M5i.33xx
series digitizer (switched to the new 8-bit-mode), SCAPP and a moderately
priced GPU, a conversion process that involves multiplexing, windowing, FFT and
averaging with an FFT block size of 1M – could run endlessly! At the 10 GS/s
sampling rate, such an FFT will cover a frequency range from DC to 5 GHz and
deliver a frequency resolution of 10 kHz. Larger FFT block sizes can also be
used to produce even better resolutions.
Stream
data to RAID storage for post-acquisition analysis
The
company also offers streaming and data storage systems based on a Supermicro
server, with an AMD EPYC processor, and RAID storage using U.2 SSDs. With up to
240 TB of storage, these COTS systems can record an
incredible
6+ hours of data at the maximum 10 GS/s sampling rate. The acquired data is
completely seamless,
with
no gaps or missing information. Once stored, it can be inspected, partitioned
and processed. The systems provide a unique data logging capability at
unprecedented speeds and over ultrawide frequency ranges.
PC-systems
with COTS parts
Oliver
Rovini, CTO at Spectrum, said: “We’re always looking for ways to provide
cost-effective solutions to challenging signal acquisition and analysis
applications. By allowing our digitizers to interface directly with standard PC
components, like GPUs and RAID based SSD storage systems, our customers can
benefit directly from the latest developments in the PC world. GPUs offer a
great solution for processing intensive situations, like those often found in
imaging, communications, astronomy, spectroscopy and aerospace applications while
storage systems provide a unique tool for anyone needing to monitor signals
over extended time periods, such as for those users involved in quality
control, mapping or surveillance.”
Software
possibilities
To enable easy
integration into almost any test system, the digitizers can be programmed with
a variety of popular languages including C, C++, C#, Delphi, VB.NET, J#,
Python, Julia, Java, LabVIEW, and MATLAB. An SDK is provided that contains an
assortment of programming examples and the necessary driver libraries for
running with either Windows or LINUX operating systems. For situations that
require a turnkey solution, the company also has its own measurement software,
SBench 6 Professional, which provides full card control, along with display,
analysis, storage, and documentation capabilities. SBench 6 is designed to
handle large data files and has a number of processing tools, including a
plug-in interface that allows the use of custom calculation functions, as well
as variety of import and export filters.
The
M5i.33xx series digitizers and streaming systems are available now. The new
8-bit transfer mode is part of every M5i digitizer card. For more information
please visit:
https://spectrum-instrumentation.com/products/families/33xx_m5i_pcie.php
About Spectrum Instrumentation
Spectrum
Instrumentation, founded in 1989, uses a unique modular concept to design and
produce a wide range of more than 200 digitizers and generator products as
PC-cards (PCIe and PXIe) and stand-alone Ethernet units (LXI). In 30 years,
Spectrum has gained customers all around the world, including many A-brand
industry-leaders and practically all prestigious universities. The company is
headquartered near Hamburg, Germany, known for its 5-year warranty and
outstanding support that comes directly from the design engineers. More
information about Spectrum can be found at www.spectrum-instrumentation.com