Rugged Removable Storage

Cartridges:
Parvus’ removable mass storage cartridges are intended for embedded computer systems (i.e. PC/104, VME, CompactPCI) that specifically require removable media to be protected from shock and vibration. Typically utilized onboard aircraft and ground vehicles to store and transfer mission data, these ruggedized hard drives are designed in either solid-state or spinning-media varieties with memory capacities available in potentially any size commercially sold for PCMCIA (PC Card) ATA Flash and 2.50" ATA notebook computer hard drives.

All cartridges come factory-configured in either primary or secondary IDE configurations (Master or Slave). Each cartridge encloses its solid-state or rotating media in a rugged, aluminum shell, which integrates internal shock & vibration isolation material to protect the hard drive in field use. Each is hardened with a black anodized finish and incorporates a recessed area on one side where a customer label can be affixed. A sturdy, 48-pin Euro-DIN connector is positioned at one end to reliably ensure thousands of mate and un-mate cycles. Industry standard IDE signals, as well as power connections, are brought out through the DIN connector to eliminate the need for a separate power cable.

Bays:
Parvus’ mass storage cartridges are designed to mate with one of several cartridge bays, which can also be externally shock-mounted for additional protection. All external connections on each bay is made through an industry standard IDE connection with 0.10” or 2mm headers to accommodate the appropriate type of hard drive. Single slot and dual slot bays have been designed in various configurations. Some versions incorporate ejection push buttons for simple cartridge removal.

A single-slot version specifically designed to fit in a standard 3.5” hard drive bay of a desktop PC tower is also shown below. This unit enables convenient data retrieval and programming of cartridges before/after the cartridges have been removed from the end embedded system, which is installed onboard an aircraft or vehicle. This bay is powered through a standard floppy drive power cable on a PC power supply.

Many of Parvus PC/104 systems development projects have incorporated these mass storage devices. Example photos of some of these systems are shown below. For mission sensitive data, Parvus has also developed a coordinating zeroization module capable of physically destroying storage media with an electrical pulse if required.

NOTE: This page showcases a CUSTOM product designed by Parvus for a specific systems engineering project. For more information on how a similar product can be designed to meet your specific requirements, contact Parvus Sales at 801-483-1533 or via email (sales@parvus.com).