Parallel processing and real-time data acquisition

A detailed description of a low-cost, very-high-performance data-acquisition front-end processor is given. The front-end processor, called the transputer foundation module, is built around the Inmos transputer, an ideally suited real-time parallel processor. Special-purpose digital signal processing hardware is combined with the transputer foundation module to form a high-power, flexible data acquisition and processing system. The transputer foundation module can concurrently perform data acquisition, reduction, and high-speed transfer. One such system is capable of acquiring data at burst rates of 40 MB/s and performing 2000 and 1024-point complex FFTs (fast Fourier transforms) per second.<>