Industrial PCs have a form factor between a nettop and a server rack and are used to produce products and services. Industrial PCs are higher dependable and precise standards and are generally more expensive than consumer electronics. In addition, IPCs often use complex instruction sets, such as x86, where reduced instruction sets such as ARM would otherwise be used.
Industrial PCs are well built-in in nature and are more useful in an industrial environment, which protects them from dust, water, debris (spoilage), fire, shock, or vibration.
Application
Industrial PCs’ primary work is to process control or data acquisition. In some cases, an industrial PC is used as a front-end to another control computer in a distributed processing environment.
Industrial PCs offer multiple features in terms of reliability, compatibility, expansion options, and long-term supply.
Manufacturing
Sturdy Industrial PCs are the best hardware platform for large-scale manufacturing that exceeds the labor limitations of the average human workforce. Machine automation has done what the internet did for a large number of products for communication. Having had a shaky start in its infancy, many manufacturers heavily rely upon industrial PC systems, not just for machine vision and robot guidance but also for the ability to collect valuable and important data from machinery and equipment for preventive maintenance and service, keeping them running and prevent any costly unplanned downtime from unexpected equipment failure.
Packaging Inspection and Quality Control:
Another major application of IPC in manufacturing is the vision-controlled quality assurance that works much faster and with greater accuracy, which humans cannot do. Using machine vision and packaging inspection systems, manufacturers and food packaging plants automate the quality assurance of their products at a great speed.
Asset Tracking:
The industry has begun to rely heavily upon industrial PCs. Retail and healthcare sectors have also implemented industrial PC hardware into their everyday operations and functions due to their ability to track and monitor assets and processes for inconsistencies and anomalies. This tracking assets process can be done more precisely and efficiently both on-site and remotely.
Simulation and Control:
Powerful processors are used on Industrial PC platforms to imitate and create simulations of potential real-world scenarios. This enables enhanced insights for analyzing and detecting risks, predicting further possibilities, and testing systems within any organization.
Remote Data Collection:
Data is important in the era of computerization, automation, and the Internet of Things. For example, remote IoT sensors can send and receive data about the use of remote machinery, tools, hardware, and other connected devices, which allows operators that deploy them to receive actionable data about operational processes, equipment fatigue, and overall performance. This data allows and assists control systems in knowing when to regulate the power to equipment, trigger actuators, adjust the temperature or pressure controls, and perform other operational functions extremely precisely.