RAD Data Communications has announced that it has expanded its unique System on an SFP family by adding a new thumb-sized gateway with pseudowire functionality.
RAD's new MiTOP-E1/T1 intelligent pseudowire access gateway extends TDM-based services over packet-switched networks (PSNs), allowing E1/T1 services over Ethernet-based networks. Ingeniously housed in a Small Form-Factor Pluggable (SFP) enclosure, it is designed for quick and simple insertion into any 100BaseFx Ethernet device port with a Multi-Source Agreement (MSA) compatible socket. It is the first and only such product on the market.
"The MiTOP-E1/T1 is a simple and cost-effective alternative to external, standalone gateways or conversion cards for each user device, saving on space, power consumption, cabling, and simplifying management," explains Jacky Acoca, Business Development Manager at RAD Data Communications. "The thumb-sized MiTOP-E1/T1 provides Ethernet switch manufacturers the opportunity to add TDM-over-PSN functionality to their own devices while speeding up time to market," Acoca continues. "For their part, incumbent carriers and service providers will find the MiTOP-E1/T1 a cost-effective migration solution to a packet infrastructure."
The MiTOP-E1/T1 does not require any special software in the host equipment because a highly integrated ASIC, designed by RAD and field tested in more than 50,000 deployed ports, enables it to function autonomously. Nor does it require power supply cords, since it draws minimal current directly from the hosting device. The MiTOP-E1/T1 is hot-swappable and features a special release mechanism for easy extraction from the SFP socket.
Suitable for both private enterprises and TDM services, the MiTOP-E1/T1 converts the data stream from its user E1/T1 ports into packets for transmission via its 100BaseFx port to the host device, and then on to the PSN. A remote pseudowire gateway converts the packets back to TDM traffic. High-performance ASIC-based buffering and forwarding techniques are used to achieve minimal end-to-end processing delay. Timing synchronization between TDM devices is maintained using advanced clock distribution mechanisms.
The MiTOP-E1/T1 employs standard emulation, both SAToP and CESoPSN, for TDM pseudowire. The product also uses standard MPLS and UDP/IP encapsulation, allowing it to function either in a bookend application or opposite other standard pseudowire gateways. The MiTOP-E1/T1 is fully compatible, therefore, with RAD's IPmux family of pseudowire gateways and its ACE-3xxx family of cell-site gateways, as well as any other standards-based pseudowire gateway.
The MiTOP-E1/T1 incorporates enhanced inband management using a Web browser and out-of-band management over an I2C interface. Remarkably, given its miniature size, it offers a full set of Operation, Administration and Maintenance (OAM) capabilities.
