Embedded industrial PCs are increasingly popular in industrial applications due to their reliable functionality, fanless design, compact size, and low cost. Especially in recent years, with the development of embedded technology, embedded computers have become increasingly agile and feature-rich, quickly finding applications in various fields and occupying a growing share of industries.
So, compared to the more common industrial computers, what are the differences and disadvantages of embedded industrial PCs?
I. Overall Strength of Embedded Industrial PCs in terms of Product Functionality
1. The product has strong adaptability; its functions almost completely correspond to those of the controlled objects, and it is expandable, but not to secondary targets, resulting in very high production costs.
2. Miniaturization is one of the secondary performance aspects. Performance is a compact concept, and there is no existing layout approach. Taking into full account external interfaces and installation space is effective and feasible.
3. High reliability: Under the concept of achieving reliable power supply, industrial control computers must consider the concepts and definitions of reliability, including heat dissipation, electromagnetic compatibility, pollution and moisture prevention, and shock resistance.
4. Ultra-low power fanless systems are considered mainstream. Due to the miniaturization of installations, cooling capacity is limited, and the MTBF (Mean Time Between Failures) requirements for embedded systems are also very high, especially in unattended applications, making ultra-low power fanless systems a necessity.
Second, the difference between embedded industrial control computers and the increasingly popular industrial computers.
First, embedded industrial PCs are typically located at the front end of the measurement and control system, often alongside mainstream industrial computers. The computing power, software resources, and database capabilities of these mainstream industrial computers are far superior to those of embedded industrial PCs. Second, in the creation of large-scale systems, the system expansion capabilities and data collection and communication capabilities of mainstream industrial computers are also irreplaceable by embedded industrial PCs.
Furthermore, popular industrial computers have inherent disadvantages in fields such as data visualization, process embedded industrial control computers, data statistical analysis, scientific computing, prototype simulation, and loop simulation.
