LOS ANGELES, Calif., August 9, 2004 — Aechelon Technology, Inc. announced today that it is adding support for NVIDIA’ SLI’ (Scalable Link Interface) multi-GPU technology to its pC-NOVA‘ v3.0 image generation system. This NVIDIA Corporation technology enables seamless integration of two NVIDIA Quadro’ FX professional graphics boards per rendering channel for the industry’s first available, truly commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) single chassis multi-GPU rendering solution. The NVIDIA SLI enabled pC-NOVA systems will be demonstrated in the NVIDIA Booth #1732 at the SIGGRAPH 2004 conference in Los Angeles, CA, August 10-12.
NVIDIA SLI is a hardware and software solution that enables the internal connection of two PCI Express’-based NVIDIA GeForce’ 6 Series or NVIDIA Quadro FX graphics boards for full integration of their rendering power on a single PCI Express motherboard. This technology features an intelligent communication protocol embedded in the GPU and a high-speed digital interface on the graphics board to facilitate data flow. Dynamic load balancing, and advanced rendering and compositing ensure smooth frame rates and outstanding image quality without requiring an external compositor subsystem or the integration of multiple video outputs, and without any added latency when compared to a single GPU solution.
Aechelon Technology’s flagship product, pC-NOVA, transforms clusters of high-performance, commercial off-the-shelf PCs into high-resolution, multi-channel geo-specific image generators with rock-solid 60Hz frame rate, running unmodified Microsoft’ Windows’ 2000 and XP operating systems.
The C-RADIANT‘ plug-in module for pC-NOVA provides geospecific, multi-sensor image generation support, enables accurate physics based sensor simulation without requiring any additional custom hardware, and makes use of NVIDIA’s advanced fragment and vertex shader technology.
‘With the advent of SLI, NVIDIA delivers performance with commodity products that far surpasses any custom product on the market today or in the foreseeable future,’ said John Quinn, president and CEO of Aechelon Technology. ‘With SLI we are capable of generating full scene anti-aliased channels at resolutions limited only by the display technology available. For the simulation, the video quality achieved with NVIDIA’s FSAA and image filtering algorithms is absolutely stunning.’
pC-NOVA and C-RADIANT products are deployed in the AV-8B RNAWST systems and on several H-60 helicopter programs. They are also widely deployed at AFRL’s Night Vision Training System Laboratory and Distributed Mission Operation Testbed, and at NAVAIR’s Manned Flight Simulator. These products, together with the associated geospecific databases, have established a new standard for realistic image generation in training, foreign-area familiarization and mission rehearsal applications. NVIDIA SLI technology is expected to help take pC-NOVA systems to even higher levels of realism.
‘The demand for image quality and performance in visual simulation applications will never slow down until we can match the visual complexity of the real world. Teaming up with companies like Aechelon Technology, NVIDIA continues to design hardware and software solutions that bring the world of computer-generated imagery that much closer to those found in the real world,’ said Jeff Brown, general manager of Professional Graphics at NVIDIA. ‘Our latest collaboration with Aechelon combines NVIDIA SLI technology, NVIDIA Quadro FX 3400 image quality, and the real-time performance and mission-critical reliability of pC-NOVA to raise the image generation bar once again for simulation and training applications.’
About NVIDIA
NVIDIA Corporation is a market leader in visual computing technology dedicated to creating products that enhance the interactive experience on consumer and professional computing platforms. Its graphics and communications processors have broad market reach and are incorporated into a wide variety of computing platforms, including consumer digital-media PCs, enterprise PCs, professional workstations, digital content creation systems, notebook PCs, military navigation systems, and video game consoles. NVIDIA is headquartered in Santa Clara, California and employs more than 2,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit the Company’s Web site at www.nvidia.com.
About Aechelon Technology
Aechelon Technology is a leader in real time computer graphics applications for training, simulation and entertainment markets. The company provides commodity-based, high resolution, multi-channel, geo-specific image generators, correlated OTW and sensor databases and integration services.
The company’s image generators are field proven, and are delivered with full logistics support and documentation. Aechelon Technology is located on the Internet at https://aechelon.com, and is headquartered in San Carlos, CA.
For further information regarding this press release or Aechelon Technology, please contact:
John Quinn, CEO
Aechelon Technology
Aechelon Technology, pC-NOVA and C-RADIANT are trademarks of Aechelon Technology, Inc. NVIDIA, NVIDIA Quadro, and NVIDIA SLI are registered trademarks or trademarks of NVIDIA Corporation in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks mentioned in this press release are the property of their respective owners.