MEN Micro unveiled the “CC10S,” a Linux-ready i.MX6 based multi-display controller board for touchscreens deployed in harsh, -40 to 85° C environments.

Imagine a humongous earth-moving rig prepping an oil shale site in North Dakota in the middle of January. You’re going to want a touchscreen with that, and it better be tough. The MEN Micro CC10S single board computer is designed for controlling 7- to 15-inch LCD touchscreens that must deal with the rough, tough stuff on a daily basis.

The multi-display controller has the same 95 x 95mm footprint, Linux support, industrial temperature support, and Freescale i.MX6 system-on-chip as MEN Micro’s CC10C COM Express Type 6 Compact form factor COM — minus the Altera Cyclone IV FPGA. In fact, as the photos below suggest, the CC10B SBC and CC10C COM appear to share a common PCB. (Perhaps this explains the “S” and “C” in the boards’ model numbers, which invites a brief moment to consider the fine line between SBCs and COMs.)

CC10S “SBC” compared to CC10C “COM”
(click images to enlarge)

The CC10S is designed for touchscreen-driven industrial gear used in harsh environments, and has a broader appeal for driver desk displays, in-seat infotainment in trains or public buses, medical devices, and HMIs in automotive applications, says MEN Micro. As usual with the Cortex-A9 based i.MX6, the main appeal is the low power draw (5W to 16.8W on the CC10S), as well as the choice of different core counts. You can choose i.MX6 Solo, DualLite, Dual (better graphics), or Quad SoC models.

Any of these i.MX6 options enables the SBC’s dual-channel LVDS interface to deliver up to 1920 x 1200 pixels, dual display support, 3D graphics, and 1080p video (30fps encode, 60fps decode). The rugged SBC is available with up to 4GB DDR3 SDRAM, and a soldered, 4GB eMMC is optional.

CC10S block diagram
(click image to enlarge)

The CC10S provides a gigabit Ethernet controller, support for two USB 2.0 ports, and support for two UARTs for RS232, RS422 or RS485 configuration supporting up to 4 Mbit/s. One or both of the UARTs can be swapped out for CANBus interfaces. For integration or software maintenance, the board can be connected as a terminal to the PC via a UART-to-USB port, says the company.

In addition to supporting -40 to 85°C temperatures (screened), the COM provides resistance to shock, vibration, altitude, humidity, and flammability. The device offers a wide-range power supply, and is said to support conformal coating.

Specifications listed for the CC10S include:

• Processor — Freescale i.MX6 Solo, DualLite, Dual, or Quad (1x, 2x, 2x, or 4x Cortex-A9 cores @ 800MHz to 1GHz) with 2D and 3D acceleration, OpenCL, [email protected] (encode) @60 (decode)
• Memory:
  • 1GB to 4GB soldered DDR3 RAM
  • Optional 4GB eMMC flash
  • Boot flash 4MB to 16MB
• Display:
  • Dual-channel LVDS at up to 1920 x 1200 via ZIF connector
  • Backlight control via separate connector
  • Supports dual independent displays
• Networking — gigabit Ethernet controller
• Other I/O (via connectors):
  • 2x USB 2.0 host
  • Up to 2x UARTs (RS232 or RS422/RS485 depending on controller) or swap out one or both for CAN 2.0B (10-pin connectors)
  • UART to USB interface
• Other features — Watchdog; RTC; temperature sensor; optional heat spreader; optional optically isolated serial adapters
• Ruggedization:
  • Operating temperature — -40 to 85°C (screened)
  • Shock resistance — 50 m/s², 30ms (EN 61373)
  • Vibration resistance — 1 m/s², 5Hz to 150Hz (EN 61373)
  • Flammability resistance — UL 94V-0
• Power:
  • +12 V (9 to 16 V)
  • Power input interface
  • 16.8W max. consumption on Solo @ 800MHz with dual LVDS displays, dual active USBs
  • 5W consumption with Solo @ 800MHz with active GbE and 1x USB
  • Power supervision features
• Weight — 48 g (model 15CC10S00)
• Dimensions — 95 x 95mm
• Operating system — Linux; VxWorks; U-Boot bootloader

 
Further information

No pricing or availability information was provided for the CC10S SBC. More information may be found on MEN Micro’s CC10S product page.