SRC Computers, Inc.,
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.: SRC Computers, Inc., a recognized leader in general purpose reconfigurable computing, has announced that it has been chosen by Lockheed Martin to provide both ground and airborne processing solutions for the U.S. Army's Tactical Reconnaissance and Counter-Concealment Enabled Radar (TRACER) program. The $40 million TRACER contract was awarded to Lockheed Martin by the Army in May of this year and incorporates low frequency synthetic aperture radar systems into Predator class unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
The TRACER program addresses the Army's critical need to identify hidden targets, enemy equipment and facilities. The system's design is predicated on Lockheed Martin's proven foliage penetration (FOPEN) technology, which was developed specifically to detect vehicles, buildings, and large metallic objects in broad areas of dense foliage, forested areas and wooded terrain. These dual-band synthetic aperture radars can provide images to ground units in all-weather, day or night conditions and incorporate a data link that allows processed results to be downlinked to ground stations immediately.
“SRC is very excited to be working with Lockheed Martin on this program,” said Jon Huppenthal, President and CEO of SRC Computers. “SRC's unique IMPLICIT+EXPLICIT Architecture provides TRACER with compute-intensive reconfigurable processing in a compact form-factor that reduces size, weight and power consumption, all of which are critical for UAVs.”
SRC's ground solution consists of an air-cooled SRC-6 system with dual microprocessors, two Series E MAP processors, Hi-Bar crossbar switch, and multiple Common Memory banks providing 32 Gbytes of storage. Programming will be accomplished using SRC's Carte high-level language development environment.
The airborne Signal Data Processor (SDP) is comprised of a spray-cooled multi-MAP SRC-6 that weighs 80 pounds, consumes less than 900 watts of power and measures 18″D x 17″W x 14″H. The SDP is capable of operation to at least 25,000 feet in an unpressurized environment and contains one dual microprocessor, four Series E MAPs and 80 Gbytes of memory in five banks connected by a Hi-Bar crossbar switch. The spray cooling technology is being provided by SprayCool of Liberty Lake, Washington, an SRC subcontractor. SRC's airborne solutions are expected to be delivered in 2008.
About SRC
SRC Computers, Inc. is a recognized leader in general purpose reconfigurable computing and offers powerful programmer-friendly servers, workstations and embedded systems. Established in 1996 by legendary computer architect Seymour Cray, SRC has developed the IMPLICIT+EXPLICIT Architecture that allows its products to provide orders of magnitude increases in performance over conventional microprocessor-based systems. In addition to its headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colorado, SRC also maintains a software development facility in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Carte, Compact MAP, Hi-Bar, SNAP, MAPstation, IMPLICIT+EXPLICIT, and MAP are trademarks or registered trademarks of SRC Computers, Inc.
