NE724A - Network Interface Controller Board

NE724A – Network Interface Controller Board

In stock

Product Introduction:
The NE724A is a dedicated network interface controller (NIC) board designed for GE Mark V and Mark VI control systems. It provides the physical and data-link layer connectivity required for the control system to communicate with external devices over Ethernet or other network protocols. The NE724A plugs into the VMEbus backplane of the controller rack and presents a standard Ethernet port (RJ-45 or AUI) to the external network. It handles all the low-level packet framing, error checking, and collision detection, offloading this work from the main CPU. The “724A” designation identifies this specific network interface model within the GE Mark family.

Technical Specifications:
Board Type: Network Interface Controller (NIC)
Model: NE724A
Network Standard: Ethernet 10Base-T (RJ-45) or 10Base2 (BNC/AUI)
Speed: 10 Mbps
Protocol: IEEE 802.3 (Ethernet), TCP/IP, UDP/IP
Connector: RJ-45 (10Base-T) or AUI/DB-15 (10Base2/10Base5)
VMEbus Interface: VME32 or VME64
Memory: 32 KB dual-ported RAM for packet buffering
Processor: On-board Intel 82586 or AMD Am7990 Ethernet controller
DMA: Supports DMA transfers to/from VMEbus for high-throughput data transfer
LED Indicators: Link status, activity (TX/RX), collision detection
Power: +5V (500 mA) from VMEbackplane
Form Factor: VMEbus Eurocard (3U height)

Functional Features:
Offloaded Processing: The on-board Ethernet controller handles all packet assembly and disassembly, freeing the main CPU for control tasks.
DMA Data Transfer: Supports direct memory access (DMA) between the network and system RAM, enabling high-speed data transfer without CPU intervention.
Multiple Protocols: Supports TCP/IP for plant-wide communication and UDP/IP for fast, connectionless data like real-time trends.
Auto-Negotiation: Some revisions support auto-negotiation for speed and duplex settings.
Diagnostic LEDs: Clear LEDs show link status (green), activity (amber), and collisions (red) for quick troubleshooting.
Ping Support: Supports ICMP ping for network connectivity verification from the control system.