Tough and rugged small form factor industrial panel
(by Kirk Linsky)

American Industrial Systems Inc. (AIS) is a designer and manufacturer of specialty industrial panel PCs, industrial displays, digital signages systems, and rugged tablet PC solutions for customers in the industrial automation, military/aerospace, medical, transportation and power, and energy markets.

In June 2010, AIS introduced a small 5.7-inch industrial Windows CE-based touchscreen computer intended for use as a operator panel PC and graphic operator interface terminal. The device was also designed to meet tough industrial requirements for performance, low power consumption, shock, vibration and temperature resistance in a low-cost, small form factor system. Deployment examples are automation, building management, and a large variety of operator HMI applications where space is at a premium.

The PM570M is built around mature, tried-and-true technology such as the 520MHz version of the Marvell PXA270 processor, Windows CE 5.0, and a standard resistive touch screen. The device comes with 128MB of SDRAM and 1GB of solid state flash memory, 1 1.5 watt speaker, two standard USB ports, a RS232/422/485 serial port, and two RJ45 Gigabit LAN jacks. There is also a single SD Card slot.

As is usually the case with surface-mounted industrial panels, the stated IP64 sealing applies to the front bezel only; protection of the backside of the device depends on the mounting enclosure. The PM570M can handle a very wide -4 to 140 degree Fahrenheit operating temperature range as well as non-condensing humidity from 5-95%.

The 5.7-inch diagonal display features 640 x 480 pixel VGA resolution and a bright 400 nits backlight (your average consumer notebook has a backlight of about 200 nits). Pricing for VARs starts at an exceptionally low US$399.