The Macrolink MVS316 is a 6U VMEbus Eurocard adapter that bridges SCSI peripherals to VMEbus-based systems. It delivers high-performance I/O through dedicated on-board RISC processing, handling SCSI protocol management, data movement, and port arbitration independently. This architecture minimizes host CPU overhead while sustaining throughput to 40 MB/sec on the VMEbus side and up to 38.6 million bytes/sec measured end-to-end across the SCSI interface.
Technical Specifications
VMEbus Interface
• Addressing modes: A16, A24, A32 (master and slave)
• Data widths: D08, D16, D32, D64 (slave); D32, D64 (master)
• DMA support: Single-cycle and block-mode transfers
• Burst throughput: Up to 70 MB/s with Scatter/Gather
• Sustained transfer rate: 40 MB/sec
• Cycle time: As low as 102 ns
• Address pipelining supported
SCSI Interface
• Protocol support: SCSI-3 Ultra Fast/Wide, UltraSCSI, SCSI-2 Fast/Wide
• Single SCSI port with 68-pin high-density connector
• Synchronous transfer rates: Up to 40 MB/sec (SCSI-3 Ultra), 40 MB/s (SCSI-2 Fast/Wide)
• Asynchronous transfer rates: Up to 10 MB/sec (SCSI-3 Ultra), up to 20 MB/s (SCSI-2 Fast/Wide)
• Measured sustained throughput: 38.6 million bytes/sec (inclusive of SCSI overhead)
• Device support: SCSI-1, SCSI-2, SCSI-2 Fast/Wide, and Ultra SCSI
• Up to 30 Physical IDs per controller
• Initiator and Target mode operation
– Key Features
• Dedicated RISC processor for autonomous SCSI functions
• On-board status and data movement processing
• Software-configurable operational modes
• Built-in diagnostic test suite
• LED status indicators
– Typical Applications
Industrial computing environments, embedded systems, and test platforms requiring multi-protocol SCSI connectivity with deterministic VMEbus integration and minimal host processor involvement.
– Compatibility & Integration
Accommodates mixed SCSI-generation device chains. VMEbus address pipelining optimization and DMA capabilities enable efficient data exchange in high-throughput measurement and acquisition systems.
