Diamond Systems RUBY-MM-1616AP : RMM-416AP-XT 4-Channel 16-bit Analog Output PC/104+ Module with Digital I/O

Production PC/104-Plus designs often need only a few precise analogue outputs, set against a long list of digital inputs and outputs. The RMM-416AP-XT is the four-channel analogue output board in the Diamond Systems RUBY-MM-1616AP series, with four 16-bit outputs, the series’ 48-line digital I/O and the PC/104-Plus PCI connector. Diamond lists a 50-unit minimum order, so it is aimed at volume builds.

Each output takes its own range: 0-5 V, 0-10 V, ±5 V or ±10 V, or 0-20 mA, 4-20 mA and 0-24 mA current. The four channels update simultaneously from a software command or an external trigger, and the waveform generator can drive all four at update rates up to 100 kHz. Output current is limited to ±5 mA per channel in voltage mode, and every channel is calibrated at the factory with its own offset and gain registers.

Digital I/O comes from an FPGA with level-shifting transceivers: 48 lines with programmable direction, two 32-bit counter/timers and four 24-bit pulse width modulators. Analogue outputs and the external trigger share one 50-pin header, and the digital lines use another. The RMM-816AP-XT and RMM-1616AP-XT carry eight and 16 outputs on the same board for designs with more analogue channels.

The RMM-416AP-XT operates from -40 to +85 °C. The PCI connector is not 5 V tolerant, so the host must use 3.3 V signalling on PC/104-Plus; the ISA connector is 5 V tolerant, and the board takes only +5 V from the bus. Diamond’s manual warns that 5 V PCI signalling can damage the board, so we check the host first. The Universal Driver supports D/A output, waveform generation, calibration, digital I/O and PWM.