Sfera Labs boosts power of its Strato Pi CM family

Sfera Labs introduced Strato Pi CM, a powerful, compact, 2 DIN-Rail module Edge computing server, in 2018. In 2019, Strato Pi CM Duo – the first Raspberry Pi-based device supporting dual SD cards – was added to the Strato Pi CM product line. In 2023, Sfera Labs introduced the enhanced v3 version, adding support for the CM4S and a much more accurate on-board real-time clock. These products play a critical role where reliability and fault tolerance are essential, such as in distributed Edge computing solutions. In these scenarios, servers are often installed in remote locations and are expected to have a very long service life. Physical access to the devices is limited and expensive, making it crucial to allow safe in-field software and firmware upgrades and to implement specific features to recover from hardware and software issues.

The Iono Pi Max integrates the CM4S core with all of the digital and analog input and output lines, power relays, and support for standard interfaces expected of modern PLCs. Backward compatibility with the Raspberry Pi CM3+ core protects the investment in existing designs while allowing designers to improve performance and extend system functionality. Iono Pi Max incorporates digital and analog I/O, NO/NC relays, UPS support, RS-232, RS-485, CAN interfaces, dual µSD cards, a highly accurate on-board real-time clock, a hardware watchdog, and a secure element chip. Target applications include data acquisition, energy management, building automation, access control, and environmental monitoring.

Both the Strato Pi CM/CM Duo v3 and the Iono Pi Max v2 are fully compatible with the toolsets, programming languages, and development frameworks available for Raspberry Pi, allowing developers to make use of a vast array of third-party software resources to quickly develop advanced and robust automation solutions.

"Sfera Labs’s support of the new Raspberry Pi CM4S versions, with a fast, quad-core 1.5GHz ARM CPU and up to 8GB of RAM, combined with the renewed commitment by Raspberry to support the CM4S product line at least until 2034, delivers an incredibly robust, high-performance, and ultra-compact long-term solution to the most demanding needs of our industrial customers looking for no-compromise edge computing products based on the Raspberry Pi platform,” says Ulderico Arcidiaco, Sfera Labs CEO.

The Strato Pi CM/CM Duo v3 and the Iono Pi Max v2 with the CM4S 4GB and 8GB RAM versions can be ordered on the Sfera Labs online store or from Mouser and DigiKey.