MONSSTR

MONSSTR Product Family

Modular Non-volatile Solid State Recorder

CALCULEX offers a cutting-edge brand line of recorders known as MONSSTR, which are specifically designed to overcome the limitations of magnetic recording technology. The harsh environments that are often encountered in military and aerospace programs prohibit the use of magnetic tapes or disks for instrumentation data recording. Additionally, the increasing demand for higher data recording rates is difficult to achieve with conventional magnetic recording technology. Therefore, MONSSTR recorders are designed to utilize high-density, non-volatile flash memory in an innovative system architecture, enclosed in modular rugged packaging.

The MONSSTR recorders feature sustained data rates of up to one gigabit per second, storage capacities of up to 274.7 gigabytes, and a wealth of features that are uniquely possible with solid-state, random-access devices. These recorders are the most suitable solution to meet the stringent requirements of the next generation of instrumentation data recorders.

The minimum configuration of a MONSSTR recorder consists of an enclosure with a power module, one controller, and one memory canister. Additionally, an optional second controller may be included to provide full dual-recorder operation. The data multiplexer that is compliant with either the CALCULEX ARMOR system or IRIG 106 Chapter 10 may be installed in the secondary controller slot to combine multiple analog and digital data channels into a single composite data stream for input to the primary controller. Furthermore, MONSSTR recorders have power modules that are available for use with AC or DC power sources, including standard power modules for ruggedized units, which are 115VAC/400Hz, 28VDC, and 270VDC.

The storage capacity of MONSSTR recorders is remarkably impressive, with model 6000 memory canisters capable of holding up to 274.7 gigabytes, while model 5000 recorders can store up to 90.1 gigabytes of non-removable memory. Additionally, the data rates of MONSSTR recorders are exceptional, with model 6000 internal busses capable of sustained data rates of up to 128 megabytes per second and model 5000 busses capable of sustained data rates of up to 64 megabytes per second.

MONSSTR I/O controller design is elegantly organized into three “layers” of internal hardware and firmware: a physical layer, a logical layer, and a virtual layer. The physical layer performs basic memory read and write operations, while the logical layer performs error detection and correction operations and memory management. The virtual layer defines the “personality” of the controller for the user equipment interface. All MONSSTR I/O controllers are identical at the physical and logical layers.

CALCULEX offers a variety of MONSSTR I/O controllers featuring different virtual layer firmware and hardware to accommodate a variety of user equipment data communication protocols. The CSR-6121 and -5121 controllers feature a generic parallel I/O user equipment interface with maximum data transfer rates equal to that of the internal system bus, while the CSR-6123 and -5123 controllers emulate the Ampex DCRsi tape recorder. Additionally, the CSR-6124 and -5124 controllers feature ANSI Standard Fibre Channel fiber optic interfaces. MONSSTR recorders are designed to accommodate higher memory densities as they become available.