NLX Corp. (formerly INTELX) and ASTi teamed to provide a new communications switch at Tinker AFB. The purpose of the switch is to interconnect up to 5 multi-operator AWACS Mission Simulators and up to 32 external lines for interface to comms equipment such as radios, phones, etc.

Each simulator interface requires 30 audio input/output channels with PTT for a total of 150 channels from 5 different simulators. Signal conditioning equipment on the external lines provided by INTELX allows for connection of various types of equipment such as radios, phone equipment, etc. PTT output from ASTi equipment provides radio keying when required.

The switch provides both half and full duplex lines to fully simulate different types of real-world gear.

To meet the Air Force requirements for recording capability, the system can also record all 32 external lines simultaneously for up to 4 hours each channel.

The Simulator Communication System is composed of 9 ASTi DACS units, an ASTi Record Platform and a control unit developed by INTELX.

The nine DACS units provide interface to each of the 5 simulators and the 32 external lines. Both audio and I/O cards are installed in each system to accommodate the 4 wire audio and PTT signals. The control unit developed by INTELX runs a simple, nicely-featured GUI (Graphical User Interface) to allow the user to configure the switch, save configurations, monitor status, and run diagnostics.

All units communicate over a standard ethernet link to allow switch configuration information to be downloaded from the operator control console (see Functional Diagram below). In addition, a 100Mb ethernet network provides the mechanism for transferring voice between systems. This voice network also provides future expansion to DIS/HLA compatibility.

Click links to open diagrams in a new window:

• General Configuration
• SCS Functional Diagram
• DACS Switching Node - Simulator Interface
• DACS Switching Node - External Interface
• Record System