Review

Due to an application-rich environment, single-board computers (SBCs) actually outline a bit of computing history. Unlike the business and consumer markets where processing power and memory density are the biggest selling points, SBCs can be found with processors operating from 25 MHz to 2 GHz and higher and RAM densities from 32 MB to 1 GB. Operating systems range from DOS to any one of the high-level RTOSs, and some SBCs provide interfaces long gone from commercial systems. Here are a few examples.

For embedded systems on a tight budget, the Flashlite 186 SBC from JK Microsystems (jkmicro.com). pairs a 33-MHz, 186-compatible processor with royalty-free DOS for building data acquisition, industrial control, and communications systems. It packs 44 configurable digital I/O lines, 512 KB of DRAM and flash, two serial ports, and a console/debug port that leaves both serial ports free for user applications.

Providing a cost-effective solution for wireless networks, the SBC1390 from Micro/Sys (embeddedsys.com) exploits a 386EX processor operating at either 25 MHz or 33 MHz and performs as a controller capable of communicating with all computers in a wireless network. Offered in a PC/104 format measuring 3.55" x 3.775", the SBC includes four serial ports, three timer/counters, two cascaded interrupt controllers, PC Card interface, up to 32 MB of SDRAM, and a compact flash interface.

With a foot in the present and another in the past, Cyberresearch's (cyberresearch.com) MXIB P4 supports Pentium 4 processors up to 3.06 GHz, a 533 MHz front side bus, and up to 2 GB of RAM while providing three ISA slots for users with a commitment to legacy cards. It also includes a video port with an 845GE chip-set, an AGP4X slot, and three PCI slots.

In terms of specific applications, the PCM-6892 from Aaeon Electronics (aaeon.com) vies for position in the home automation, POS, and networking markets. The board employs a VIA Ezra/Eden EBGA mobile CPU with Level 1 and 2 caches and includes a PCMCIA socket, four USB ports, dual 10/100Base-Tx Ethernet controllers, and large-display and audio support.

Going tropical, Octagon Systems' (octagonsystems.com) 5070 CPU card sought chores in high-heat environments with an operating temperature from −40° to +85°C. Employing a low-power 5x86 class processor, the card features what is said to be a unique BIOS that boots up in less than six seconds.

Compute-intensive applications got some help from Winsystems' (winsystems.com) 5.75" x 8.0" EBC-BX. In addition to a low-power, 700-MHz Pentium III CPU with core logic functions and 256 KB of L2 cache, the SBC includes a video controller with both CRT and flat panel support, 10/100 Ethernet controller, four serial channels, 48 bi-directional digital I/O lines, plus complete support for solid-state disks.

There was certainly no shortage of power-packed SBCs this year. Introduced as one of the fastest SBCs available, Arista's (aristaipc.com) SBC-F9000V2G exploits a Xeon processor with operating speeds from 1.8 GHz to 2.8 Ghz and either the E7500 or E7501 chipset with hyper-threading technology. Bus speed is 400 MHz or 533 MHz, depending on the chipset. Taking things one step further, Trenton Technology's (trentonprocessors.com) XPT came armed with dual 2-GHz Xeon processors, an E7501 chipset, up to 8 GB of DDR RAM, 400 MHz and 533 MHz system buses, and dual 10/100/1,000 Base-T Ethernet ports. The Xeon processors include an L2 cache memory of 512 KB with an eight-way set associative cache running at full processor core speed.

Best-in-class performance claims were made in reference to the PowerEngine7 SBCs from Thales Computers (thalescomputers.com). Employing single or dual 733-MHz IBM PowerPC 750FX processors, the boards deliver more than 1,600 Dhrystone 2.1 MIPS of performance while drawing 14W. This was said to represent 50% greater performance and 25% less power dissipation than comparable boards of the day.

—Mat Dirjish

Outlook

SBCs Face A Rewarding Future
Finding SBCs in a wide range of performance levels is a trend that will most definitely continue. Of course, the lower ranges may come up a bit to meet emerging applications, but SBC makers are quite frugal. They won't design a board with a 4-GHz processor to control a mechanical process that requires hours or days to complete or max out the memory for simple ATM and kiosk tasks. After all, why hunt mosquito with a bazooka?

—MD