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Date: 04/06/2009
During Computex Taipei 2009, Taiwan IPC maker Lanner Electronics (Nangang Exhibition Hall, L808) launched what it claimed was the world's first Intel Atom-based fanless embedded computer with discrete graphics for digital signage.
Just before Computex, Digitimes had the opportunity to sit down with Will Chen, CTO of Lanner Electronics, to talk about the new product, as well as discuss the evolution of Taiwan's IPC industry and the effect of Intel's Atom on the embedded space.
Q: With many traditional motherboard makers entering the IPC market, there are now many suppliers in Taiwan. How do IPC suppliers differentiate their products in such a market?
A: The traditional motherboard market is very much a commodity market, whereas the IPC market is more about providing integration, and the flexibility to provide customized products that fit closely with what the end customer needs. Larger suppliers have the economies of scale to produce commodity boards at higher volumes and lower margins, but they lack the flexibility and agility to produce customized products, or to adjust production for a special customer's project.
This is the niche that IPC companies fill. We offer a higher level of customization and flexibility, along with experience in designing computers with industrial specifications such as shock and vibration tolerance, wide
temperature range and power inputs, longer availability for parts and more reliable operation than commercial off-the-shelf products can provide.
Traditional motherboard makers think it's all about being in the market for a long time, but it's more about service and logistics, providing customization services for your customers and meeting their more specific requirements.
Q: The IPC industry is very fragmented. How can customers figure out which company best meets their needs?
A: What we've done at Lanner is take our main businesses and separate them into three main business units, making it easier for customers to understand our product lines. For example, our network communications unit focuses on designing and manufacturing appliance platforms for network applications like security and WAN acceleration. Applied computing focuses on embedded boards and small form factor systems for industrial and commercial uses, and the video communications group focuses on network video products.
Applied computing is everything you think of the traditional IPC business and at Computex we will be displaying several unique embedded products, including the industry's first Intel Atom-based digital signage platform with discrete graphics for high definition displays. This is a really interesting product because a lot of companies in the digital signage industry are now moving toward high definition, and they're looking for a small, lightweight, fanless platform that can handle HD output.
We're also showing a new mobile video surveillance platform designed for use in vehicles. It's a compact fanless system that can capture and encode four video streams, and stream the video to a control room via 3G wireless.
The network communications division will be displaying a range of new appliance platforms built on Intel's latest processor and chipset technologies - the Xeon 5500 and Tylersburg chipset.
Q: Traditionally, the IPC market is considered to be a little boring - factory automation and such. Does Lanner have any exciting products?
A: Well the truth is the products may be a bit less exciting than the latest consumer goodies, but you also have to realize that industrial applications have more varied requirements and required more expertise for integration than standard products for consumer markets. Therefore, you have more players and more specialists, not only in terms of hardware but also in terms of software and services. Those third-party customers are always looking to offer innovative solutions and they need specialized hardware and integration that's often simply not available in consumer boards and systems. Providing innovative hardware integration is exciting to us, as is supporting exciting new products offered by the third-party solution providers.
For example, Lanner recently developed an in-vehicle video security platform for installation in buses, trains, police cars, etc. This system combines 3G connectivity and video compression so that video from a vehicle can be recorded, compressed and delivered via 3G wireless to a control center, and fleet controllers can now receive real-time video from their vehicles on the road.
This kind of integration is not available from commercial off-the-shelf parts, it has to be designed by a specialist IPC supplier that can provide all of the features in a small form factor, fanless chassis with special power inputs
and temperature range specs for installation in a vehicle. You could theoretically build a system with the same features out of commercial parts, but it would lack the reliability as well as some of the crucial features. Also it would have to be a lot bigger, and therefore impractical for this application.
Q: What kind of buyers do you expect to be visiting Computex this year and what should they be looking for in their partners.
A: We expect many Computex visitors this year will be solution providers. Usually they are looking to integrate some innovative software applications with a hardware platform and that's where we come in. They come to use because we have the ability to work closely with them to develop systems that deliver their solutions reliably, with acceptable performance and at a reasonable price.
Lanner's ODM design service is very customer-centric. Sure, we'll have standard products on display at Computex, but a big proportion of our business focuses on collaborative development. So, to answer your question, customers should look for a partner that can work closely with them to develop application-specific platforms that fit their requirements, as opposed to finding suppliers with hardware that might work or require the solution to be modified. Customers should not need to tweak their solutions to fit with the hardware platform.
Q: While the Intel Atom has received a lot of media attention for expanding the netbook market, it is my understanding that the Atom is also very popular in the IPC industry. Is this true?
A: That's correct. While the Intel Atom CPU was originally designed for use in netbooks and mobile internet devices, we are seeing that it is increasingly turning up in industrial computer applications. IPC companies are increasingly relying on the Atom's small size and low power requirements to build embedded computers.
The Intel Atom platform provides some good features for embedded computing. IPC companies can create smaller, more energy efficient platforms using Atom. If you are focusing on relatively undemanding tasks, the low cost, small size and reduced power consumption of the Atom makes it an attractive solution.
In addition, the Atom has a price advantage. The IPC industry is extremely price sensitive, and when the Intel Atom CPU became available for embedded systems, IPC companies were quick to design embedded systems that could take advantage of it for industrial uses.
Another thing about the Atom is power-consumption, which is a consideration for low-power and small form factor solutions for applications such as retail automation, in-vehicle infotainment, digital signage and many more. Atom has a low thermal design power (~2W) and manufacturers like the fact they can build systems that consume about half the power than similar ULV Celeron M systems. And the performance is comparable.
Eliminating the need for active cooling fans on the CPU or in the system chassis is another attraction for Atom-based solutions.
Q: Speaking of fanless designs, how important is that for the IPC industry?
A: Actually, fanless designs are extremely important for IPC players. Removing active cooling allows for smaller overall system designs, and IPCs are expected to be small and unobtrusive. Removing the fans also reduces power consumption, leading to more savings for the end customer. And listen, any IPC maker would tell you that less is more when it comes to moving parts. Fanless systems also generate less noise, which may not be important in a factory but is extremely important for commercial applications such as in-vehicle systems.
Q: But the Atom is not the only way to produce fanless computers. There are many different kinds of ASIC processors available that can achieve the same results.
A: There's a lot to be said for having the ease of developing applications on x86 architecture. In terms of time and cost, an industry standard makes sense on a number of applications. Makers can spend more time differentiating their product through integration or hardware design, areas where they can introduce more value..
One of the biggest advantages of Atom is extensive support for software. Linux is well-suited for low-cost IPCs with Atom processors, as is XP Embedded, or any other stripped-down operating system where cost is the primary consideration and range of functionality can be sacrificed to keep costs low. Atom-based embedded systems can be designed for any industrial or commercial application with a very low-cost OS and very little software reworking required..
Q: What kind of embedded computers are you working on now, and what types of features will you add in the future?
A: We've already released several small form factor machines with video out, gigabit networking and internal storage that can be used for a wide range of embedded applications, such as networked digital signage computers, digital information kiosks or mobile computing platforms.
The Lanner EM-F345 is a tiny little box that can be fitted to the back of an LCD screen for a quick and easy digital signage solution with both DVI and VGA outputs. Its small size, light weight and fanless design - in addition to low cost - make the Atom system ideal for simple network connected signage systems in places such as airports, train stations and retail stores.
Lanner's latest embedded system based on the Atom CPU is the LEC-7500, which marks a breakthrough for Atom-based IPCs because it is the first to offer discrete graphics and true high definition playback. The LEC-7500 was designed for digital signage software that can take advantage of HD screens and the HDMI
output interface. By combining an independent graphics chip with the Atom CPU, customers can design advanced digital signage applications with 1080p resolution video while still gaining the benefits of the Atom's low power and low heat.
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