Methods and Procedure of Upgrading a Mark4 Formatter to a Mark5B Sampler

The VLBI terminal technology is developing rapidly over the world in recent years. Recording systems of the Mark5B type are installed in increasingly more stations, while the Mark5C type is under development and tests. In order to meet future requirement of high-speed recording, massive-data storage, and observations with DBBC, we need to upgrade the Mark5A to Mark5B or Mark5B+. Accordingly, a Mark4 formatter needs to be upgraded to a Mark5 sampler module. This paper describes the principle of relevant devices and the procedure of the upgrade of a Mark4 formatter.