Rugged single-board computer based on EPIC form factor offered by VersaLogic for industrial applications

EUGENE, Ore., 4 Oct. 2011. VersaLogic Corp. in Eugene, Ore., is introducing the Newt EPIC format single board computer for industrial and medical applications with substantial I/O requirements -- particularly for applications with no video output. The embedded computing board also may be used with plug-in video expansion modules, VersaLogic officials say.The Newt CPU boards use the Vortex86DX system on chip (SoC) from DMP Electronics Inc. in Taipei, Taiwan, offer 800 MHz performance, operate in temperatures from -40 to 85 degrees Celsius, and typically draw 3.6 Watts of power. The boards are based on the EPIC form factor, which measures 4.5 by 6.5 inches.VersaLogic engineers designed the Newt computer board for embedded computing applications that require low power consumption and passive cooling, explains VersaLogic President Len Crane. The rugged Newt boards meet MIL-STD-202G specifications for mechanical shock and vibration. Optional latching Ethernet connectors provide additional ruggedization for use in extremely harsh environments, company officials say.

The Newt board has built-in data-acquisition ports including 16 analog inputs, as many eight analog outputs, and 32 digital I/O lines. Basic on-board I/O includes single or dual Ethernet with network boot capability, as much as one gigabyte of soldered-on DDR2 RAM, as many as four USB ports, four serial ports, IDE controller with support for two devices, CompactFlash socket or eUSB interface (optional) for removable flash storage, and three general-purpose timers.

An industry-standard PC/104-Plus expansion site provides plug-in access to expansion modules. The SPX expansion interface provides additional plug-in expansion for analog, digital, and CANbus I/O. Newt is compatible with Windows, Windows Embedded, Linux, VxWorks, and QNX software operating systems.

This new product is RoHS compliant. Customization options include 128 megabytes to 1 gigabyte of soldered-on RAM, CompactFlash and eUSB flash memory interface, standard RJ45 or latching Ethernet connectors, additional on-board I/O (USB, A/D, D/A, DIO, Ethernet, etc.), bolt-on heat plate, conformal coating, revision locks, custom labeling, and customized testing and screening.

For more information contact VersaLogic online at www.versalogic.com.

Related stories

-- SATA interface expansion module for SUMIT-based embedded computing applications introduced by VersaLogic;

-- Rugged EBX single-board computer based on Intel Core 2 Duo introduced by VersaLogic for harsh-environment applications; and

-- Rugged small-form-factor USB expansion embedded boards with SUMMIT interface introduced by VersaLogic.