Summit Microelectronics Hot-Swap Controller Provides Fault Detection and Isolation for High-Availability Communication Line Cards

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Contact:  Tom DeLurio Summit Microelectronics +1.408-436-9890 Barbara Kalkis Maestro Public Relations Tel: +1.408.996.9975 Summit Microelectronics Hot-Swap Controller Provides Fault Detection and Isolation for High-Availability Communication Line Cards CAMPBELL, CA -- April 5, 2001 -- Summit Microelectronics has announced immediate availability of the SMH4812 distributed-power hot-swap controller used in communications equipment add-in line cards. The device has been designed to offer advanced benefits for designers of high-availability line cards and systems. The SMH4812 allows an add-in board to be inserted into a powered backplane and eliminates any possible disruption of the system operation. Upon card insertion the SMH4812 monitors the input voltage to ensure that it is within its valid range and checks the pin detect inputs for proper card insertion. At this point the SMH4812 applies power to the DC/DC converters by driving an external FET with a programmable slew rate controller to control inrush current. Once the voltage input to the DC/DC converters has stabilized, the converters are enabled. The controller monitors card operation and turns off the card in the event of fault detection on the primary side, such as over-current or loss of regulation on the primary supply voltage. The unique forced shutdown input allows the card to be turned off in the event of a fault detection on the secondary side. In either case, the card will be isolated from the rest of the cards in the system preventing the fault from propagating beyond the individual line card. The hot-swap controller is fully programmable which allows its operation to be optimized for each individual line card design. Programmable options include over-current filtering and response, pin detection intervals, and power on delay timers. Rick Orlando, chief technology officer for Summit Microelectronics, said, "Our goal is to simplify the design of high-availability systems, and the feature set of the SMH4812 has been defined to meet that goal. Capabilities that were introduced on our high-end SMH4804 are now available to system designers in an entry-level product, the SMH4812, targeted at single DC/DC Converter line cards." The SMH4812 is available now in the 16-pin SOIC and SSOP-16 packages. Available in volume quantities, the controller is priced at $4.33 in units of 1,000 devices. About Summit -- Power Management for Communications Summit Microelectronics Inc. develops semiconductors that manage the power functions in communications system equipment. Using Summit's proprietary technology customers can achieve carrier-class availability, the highest standard of reliability available today for telecommunications, data communications, and Internet applications. Founded in 1997, Summit is headquartered in Campbell, California. The Company is ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certified and is in the process of gaining STACK certification. Summit's website is www.summitmicro.com. ### Summit Microelectronics, Inc. 1717 Fox Drive San Jose, CA 95131-2312 Tel: +1.408-436-9890 Email:   return to top press archives home Copyright©2001-2003 by Summit Microelectronics, Inc.