Kontron ETXexpress-AI computer-on-module

Coinciding with the launch of the COM Express 2.0 specification by the PCI Industrial Manufacturers’ Group (PICMG), Kontron has released an additional version of the computer-on-module ETXexpress-AI, based on the COM Express Type 6 pinout definition.

Compared with the type 2 pinout definition for COM Express Basic modules, the type 6 has configurable digital display interfaces, DisplayPort and HDMI/DVI, along with 23 PCI Express Gen 2 lanes. This provides more native display options and higher serial bandwidth than previously possible.

The native support for all the display interfaces simplifies carrier board designs for graphics-intensive applications.

The device offers three additional DDIs. The DDIs are now separated from the PCI Express Graphics port, which allows for the parallel use of the integrated HD graphics and an external graphics card. The card can be used either for connecting additional displays or as a general purpose computation on graphics processing unit for high-performance data processing used in applications such as image processing, data encoding and situational awareness.

Both the type 2 and type 6 SKUs integrate up to 8 GB of secure ECC DDR3 system memory and an optional trusted platform module.

The performance of the computer-on-module ETXexpress-AI is scalable using four Core i7 and Core i5 processors: from the 1.06 GHz Core i7 620UE, the 2.0 GHz Core i7-620LE and 2.4 GHz Core i5 520E up to the 2.53 GHz Core i7 processor 610E.

All versions support up to 2 x 4 GB dual channel DDR3 ECC SODIMM memory modules and offer a set of interfaces via the COM Express type 6 connector: 1x PCI Express Gen 2 graphics also configurable as 2x PCIe x8, 7x PCI Express x1, 4x serial ATA, 8x USB 2.0, gigabit ethernet and high-definition audio.

All graphic interfaces can also be used in parallel.