Sinara@DIOT DIO module design

[kaolpr]

There is a design of 16 channel DIO SMA here: https://github.com/sinara-hw/DIO-SMA16-DIOT

This design makes it very hard to fasten connectors as it fits 16 channels into 6 HP fornt panel. We have evaluated it in TechnoSystem and we believe the UX is unsatisfactory. Therefore we want to suggest a module with mixed SMA/MCX connectors.

Initial mechanical front panel arrangement (legibility is to be improved):

Why mixing? It seems that many customers value the possibility to connect very popular SMA cables with no extra adapters. We can easily fit 8 SMA connectors and locate 8 MCX connectors between them (see photo of the mechanical model). This arrangement allows relatively convenient SMA fastening without a need for disconnecting any adjacent cables. At the same time, we use all 16 LVDS lines that come at a high cost in DIOT.

We also suggest increasing number of isolated domains to 8 and group them in SMA-MCX pairs.

In the final design we're planning to use DC-DC converters suggested by @gkasprow here: sinara-hw/meta#94

@gkasprow @jordens @marmeladapk Any comments? Is this approach ok for you?