[Wylug-discuss] motherboard for embedded application

[James Holden]

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA1

Mischa Oliver Altmann wrote:
> Hi,
> 
> I'm developing a rail tunnel disaster robot(?) -- or a working prototype
> thereof.
> 
> I am looking for a suitable motherboard for the robot itself.
> 
> Processing requirements are small (mostly relaying sensor data but
> optionally also a webcam/video stream and a basic (half-duplex?) audio
> stream.
>  - sensor data will most likely come from I2C sensors. Either connected
>    to an onboad I2C bus or via serial to an external microcontroller.
>  - optional webcam is imagined to be connected via USB.
>  - a large CF/MMC/... drive should suffice for temporary data storage.
>  - communications to the outside world will rely mostly on a customised
>    2.4GHz WiFi link with external antennae.
>  - A basic 12V car battery will have to do as power source for the moment.
>    Power requirements shouldn't be a key problem as the motor and
>    lighting required are expected to dwarf anz comms equipment consumption.
> 
> Some people have recommended the VIA EPIA range[1] but they almost look
> like an overkill. An e.g ARM board would probably work too, but I've had
> some rather bad experiences. We'd prefer an x86 compatible architecture
> for ease of code development but are open to abusing other platforms.

Hi Mischa,

I think an EPIA board would give you a good amount of flexibility.
They're easy to use and have low power consumption for x86.

- From the application you're using it for I'd imagine vibration might be
a problem though.

Regards,

James
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
Version: GnuPG v1.2.5 (GNU/Linux)

iD8DBQFDcMtYmHdHQoNYhjoRAjwsAKDEceY261GZdFm3oC0ouj9RcVWOkgCfbejm
hksFM/5puzLeFDCQpZCQ8/8=
=QRSa
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----