Industrial box PC for industrial control

In order to meet individual requirements, the Kontron KBox IPCs can be fitted with industrial I/Os, fieldbuses and/or Industrial Ethernet interfaces. There are four systems in the new Kontron KBox IPC family: the Kontron KBox C-101, the Kontron KBox C-100, the Kontron KBox B-101, and the Kontron KBox A-101.

Norbert Hauser, Head of Business Line Industrial Automation, comments: “Industrial box PCs in automation applications carry out a wide range of tasks. In the majority of cases, however, they are installed in control cabinets and in machine and plant components. Kontron has always supplied a wide range of products for these installation scenarios. Under the KBox brand, we are now bundling our control cabinet IPC product portfolio in order to achieve a uniform industrial box PC identity and look & feel. We are also extending the family to specifically target automation applications. This will further strengthen our position as one of the world’s leading industrial PC manufacturers.”

The performance flagship for industrial control cabinet, the new KBox C-101 booksize class IPC already features latest 4th generation Intel Core i5 and i7 processors. Featuring a fanless and maintenance-free design, the KBox C-101 is scalable by deploying COM Express modules. It features 3x Gbit Ethernet ports each supporting IEEE1588, 2x USB 3.0 ports, 2x USB 2.0 ports, DisplayPort and RS232 interfaces, 2x SATA slots for HDD/SSD, and 2x PCIe x4 and 2x MiniPCIe slots are provided to allow fast and flexible connection of individual standard components.

A control computer with integrated 128kB NVRAM, the KBox C-100 offers easily accessible interfaces on the top (or front) as well as on the bottom (or rear) of the chassis, optimising the available space compared to other control cabinet devices. Tested to support Soft-PLCs and hypervisor technologies, it features 4x IEEE1588 supporting Gbit Ethernet, 7x USB2.0, 1x RS232, 1 x DVI and PCIe x1extension options for fieldbus and Industrial Ethernet interfaces. With the performance scaled to match the requirements profile provided by third generation Intel Celeron and Intel Core i3 and i7 processors, the KBox C-100 is ideal for deployment in real-time control and visualization computers on the process level of the automation pyramid.

Designed for general purpose automation applications, the new Kontron KBox B-101 can be extended with a low-profile PCIe x16 as well as with a MiniPCIe slot. Featuring Mini-ITX motherboards, the standard I/O interfaces are determined by the features of the motherboard. OEMs can utilise a built-in 2.5“ hard disk and a replaceable hard drive at the front for data-intensive applications. Featuring 2x DisplayPort interfaces, the KBox B-101 is ideal for multi-screen applications.

The fourth member of the new Kontron KBox IPC family is the KBox A-101, which offers an exceptional price/performance ratio for cost-sensitive automation and industrial computing applications. A fanless Box PC with the dual-core Intel Atom processor D2550, this system features a maintenance-free design including a robust and fast SSD and a compact footprint. I/O interfaces include DisplayPort, 2x Gbit Ethernet, 2x USB 3.0, 2x USB 2.0, RS232 and options for CAN bus and 2x rear WLAN antenna connectors. Individual interface layouts are possible via the integrated MiniPCIe slot, despite the compact size.