Rapid prototyping of a reusable 4/spl times/4 active ATM switch core with the PCI Pamette

PLATO, a new reconfigurable platform for experimentation with active networks, is under development. Due to the large number of factors affecting the final validation of the prototype, we have used the PCI Pamette as a rapid prototyping platform. A 4/spl times/4 active ATM switch has been prototyped, together with all the circuits that disassemble, route and re-assemble ATM cells. Several experiments have been conducted with this prototype, substantially speeding up the design process, leading to working subsystems before the final platform is fully debugged and providing significant insight into the operation of the final system. The design itself was moved from the Pamette to its final operating platform (called PLATO) in two days.