The Antimicrobial Screen Advantage

Michelle

Any surface can be a breeding ground for bacteria and germs, and that is a particularly troubling fact when it comes to health compromised patients in hospitals. The CDC’s website states that about one in 31 hospital patients has at least one healthcare-associated infection.  Devices that are touched by both patients and doctors, like medical equipment and computers, can pose a significant risk of spreading contagions. Unlike a doorknob or a handrail, consumer computers and devices are sensitive to harsh cleaning and being exposed to liquids and abrasive cleaners.

 

Your standard LCD monitor is not protected against liquid ingress and will malfunction upon contact with it.  Luckily, antimicrobial surface treatment technology has become quite advanced and companies like Tangent are producing medical grade LCD monitors that are not only treated with antimicrobial coatings, they are also protected against water damage so that they may be appropriately cleaned in line with hospital regulations.

 

Antimicrobial surfaces mainly work to suppress the growth of bacteria and harmful microorganisms, and stop the spread of microbes. In addition to deterring bacteria, germs and molds, the coating also minimizes stains and degradation of plastic on the surfaces they are applied to. Antimicrobial agents come in a variety of types like chlorhexidine, ammonium compounds, and silver.  

Medical-Monitor

Tangent’s flagship 22 inch medical LCD monitor has a cast aluminum chassis, is factory treated with an antimicrobial additive to battle surface contamination, and is rated an an IP65 protection level against dust, cleaning liquids and water. Because of big initiatives to improve in sanitation, prevention, care quality, and overall awareness, data from CDC’s hospital healthcare-associated infection prevalence surveys show significant reductions in overall healthcare-associated infection prevalence and central line prevalence between 2011 and 2015. And speaking of the CDC, Tangent’s medical LCD monitor is EN60601-1 certified to be compliant with CDC guidelines for environmental infection control and isolation precautions.

 

This 22″ LED backlit medical LCD monitor features a 16:9 aspect ratio widescreen display, a PCAP 2-point touchscreen, and on screen display buttons for power, brightness, and auto tune. A variety of mounting options like point of care carts, movable arms, or desktop stands are possible with the VESA 75 mounting bracket. The Tangent medical LCD monitor also comes with integrated speakers, a feature not often seen on a monitor. With the success of antimicrobial agents on medical devices to help prevent the spread of pathogens in clinical settings, the technology is now being sought for use in a wider setting like businesses and homes. Wherever the demand may be, Tangent’s medical grade LCD monitor is up to the task.

Why the HIMSS Conference Matters

Michelle

Medical practitioners have always sought to employ the best technology available to enhance their care and treatment of patients, but how do they go about learning what technology is available and specific to their field? From the development and testing of vaccines and drugs to ever-advancing medical equipment, information technology and healthcare go hand in hand, and that notion is especially promoted by a non-profit organization called HIMSS.

 

HIMSS aims to optimize healthcare through information technology by way of leadership, community building, information disbursement, driving public policy, professional and workforce development, and large events where members can learn and share ideas. HIMSS’ biggest event is their annual global conference and exhibition. For 2019, it is being held on February 11th through the 15th in Orlando, Florida. It is touted as the leading health information and technology conference, and will host around 45,000 professionals from over 90 countries to join in seminars, education, innovation and collaboration.

 

Topics at this year’s conference will include cybersecurity and privacy, patient engagement and digital health, health informatics education, interoperability, and innovation and venture investment. Outside of the conferences and seminars, the event will have over 1,300 health IT vendors in the exhibit hall.

 

Conferences and events of this nature are excellent sources of information regarding the importance of using top quality medical computer equipment and partnering with the right vendor to provide the best solutions. Tangent prides itself on being an award-winner solutions expert on medical equipment and services needs, both small and large.

 

Tangent representatives will be in attendance at the 2019 HIMSS Global Conference, and will be stationed in the exhibit hall at booth 3909, next to the Allscripts exhibit. The knowledgeable Tangent team will field questions pertaining to medical grade computing needs, cloud solutions, storage, and so much more. They can host demonstrations with sample products and provide guidance for general or customized needs. Visitors are encouraged to share their business’ challenges and requirements and see where Tangent can help them excel.

Virtual Machine Hardware: Mini PC

Michelle

When it comes to virtual machines a hot topic is “power.” Power usage VS CPU Power to be exact. Whether you are running 100 VMs at 128 MB RAM each or 5 VMs at 5GB RAM each, the critical issue comes down to power consumption and CPU availability.

It’s no surprise the Rugged E3 Mini PC is designed with a passive CPU heatsink that connects to the thermal transfer housing, helping move heat away from the CPU with the presence of cooler ambient air. It’s a Mini PC with a big mission.

This Mini PC enables your virtual environment to be ran on a dedicated physical host that’s engineered to be reliable under industrial applications and harsh conditions, (perhaps Tesla can use this on their new bumpy tunnel in LA).

 

Linux, Windows Hyper-V, XSi, VMware, choose your weapon, configure your platform and load your VMs. Step into the digital arena with up to 32GB of ECC ram -this ant of computer can carry much more than its own weight. Don’t forget to pair it with a solid state drive and multiple power inputs, your computational powers will be unstoppable.  

A bridge between virtual and reality: The built-in 4 USB 3.0 ports can communicate directly with your virtual machines. This gives them access to external resources. Now things start to get interesting. Imagine loading DDWRT (open source router software) to a VM, then forward some USB WiFi devices VIA the USB 3.0 ports and Hyper-v, you just created hardware that can support a cloud router with a physical antenna array.

Live Monitoring, Remote or Physical with 3 monitor ports (2 HDMI, 1 DVI) you can view as many VMs that can be cascaded across your displays, with as many as 10 per screen on a 1080p monitor. No monitor? No problem. The Rugged E3 Mini PC is equipped with two 1000Mbps (1GBe). Remoting into windows or linux is an almost real-time experience when combined with the built-in i7CPU and DDR4 RAM, expect no delays.

RAID 0, 1, 5, 10 equal availability and power, It’s Monday at 10am and 5 of your VMs just got hit with 400 users, your hard drives deliver data without a glitch  or a single 404 page because you have 2 hard drives working on the same job for you, if one fails, the other picks up the slack. Read more on RAID at PCWORLD.com

 

Read full specs for the Tangent Mini PC: Rugged E3

rugged-mini-e3-banner

SPECIFICATIONS

System

Processor

Intel 6th Gen. Core i7/i5/i3, Pentium or Celeron Processors

System Chipset

Intel Q170 Express Chipset

Graphics Controller

Intel HD Graphics 530 (Core CPU)

Intel HD Graphics 510 (Pentium & Celeron)

LAN Chipset

1x GbE: Intel I210-AT

1x GbE: Intel I219-LM

Audio

Realtek ALC888S

System Memory

Up to 32GB DDR4 2133 (2x SO_DIMM)

BIOS

AMI 128Mbit

TPM

TPM 1.2 (Infineon)

vPro

Yes (Processor Dependent)

Watchdog

Software Programmable Supports 1~255 sec. System Reset

Storage

SSD/HDD

2x 2.5” SATA Bay (Internal)

2x 2.5” SATA Bay (Removable)

mSATA

2x mSATA (shared with 2x Mini PCIe)

RAID Support

RAID 0, 1, 5, 10

Expansion

Mini PCI Express

2x MiniPCIe (Full Size)

SIM Socket

2x External SIM Sockets

2x Internal SIM Sockets

Other

Cooling Method

Fanless

I/O

Video

1x DVI-I

2x DP (Display Port)

COM

2x DB9 Serial RS232/422/485, COM1 & COM2

2x Internal headers RS232/422/485, COM3 & COM4

USB

6x USB 3.0 (4x Rear, 2x Front)

2x USB 2.0 (Front)

LAN

2x GbE RJ45

WLAN

Intel Wireless AC-7260 + BT (Optional)

Audio

1x Mic-in, 1x Line-out

DIO

8 IN / 8 OUT (Isolated)

Other

1 x Power Switch

1x AT/ATX Switch

1x Remote Power Switch (2 pin Phoenix Connector)

Operating System

Windows

Windows 7 Pro 32/64bit

Windows 10 Pro 64bit

Power

Power Mode

AT/ATX

Power Input Voltage

9-48 VDC

Power Ignition Sensing

Yes

Power Connector

3-pin Phoenix Connector

Power Protection

OVP (Over Voltage Protection)

OCP (Over Current Protection)

RPP (Reverse Polarity Protection)

Power Adapter

External Power Adapter, 12V @ 5A

Environment

Operating Temp.

-13°F – 158°F (-25°C – 70°C)

Storage Temp.

-22°F – 185°F (-30°C – 85°C)

Relative Humidity

10% – 95% non-condensing

Shock

With SSD: 50 G, half sine, 11 ms

Vibration

With SSD: 5 Grms, 5 – 500 Hz, 0.5 hr/axis

With HDD: 1 Grms, 5 – 500 Hz, 0.5 hr/axis

Certification

CE, FCC Class A

Physical

Enclosure Materials

Extruded Aluminum with Heavy Duty Metal

Dimension (WxHxD)

9.45″ x 10.27″ x 3.11″ (240 x 261 x 79 mm)

Weight

9.61 lb (4.37 kg)

Mounting

Wall Mount Only

Warranty

Warranty

1-Year Standard

A Powerful Yet Unassuming Panel PC

Michelle

A Powerful Yet Unassuming Panel PC

At a glance, the Tangent VITA 474 19” panel PC looks just like a nice monitor. Sure, it’s very slim, sleek and unassuming. One could very easily pass it by on a wall or desk and never imagine that it is a powerful, fully featured all-in-one touchscreen panel PC. It even goes beyond just PC features and incorporates popular tablet computer components like a front-facing camera, integrated HD audio, wifi connectivity and Bluetooth wireless. With the Windows 10 app store and android emulators, you can take advantage of the highly responsive touchscreen while running mobile apps. But that’s not to say the Vita is just an oversized tablet. This panel PC is an industrial grade workhorse that can operate 24/7, at extreme temperatures, and has no fan or other moving parts. The front panel is rated at an IP64 level of protection against dust, water on contaminant intrusion.

This panel PC’s hardware setup is customizable to suit the needs of business, be it as an infotainment station for customers and patients, an electronic medical records keeping computer, or as an in-room patient care system. It is offered with an Intel 6th Gen Core i5 or an Intel Celeron processor, an Intel Skylake chipset, up to 32GB of memory, an optional RFID module for easy login, and hard drive/SATA drive options with storage of up to 2TB. The VESA 75/100 mounting bracket and optional stand allows for versatile placement of the panel PC for nearly any desired place: walls, arms, desks, or in-vehicle. The touchscreen is a sensitive, but durable PCAP 10 point multi-touch with a non-glare LED backlit LCD. All these features are packaged up in a flat panel that is only 16lbs.

If 19” isn’t quite the size you’re looking for, Tangent offers industrial panel PCs that range from 15” to 24”. Tangent also has lines of panel PCs that are more rugged and sealed for use in harsh or highly sanitized environments. The S-series panel PC has an enclosure that is rated at an incredibly secure IP69k, meaning that it can withstand being washed with jets of high heat water. The F15 panel PC has a cast aluminum chassis that is ruggedized for use outdoors or on vehicles, and has function buttons on the front for one-handed operation. Even with specialized features like these, the panel PCs all still retain the same functionality as all-in-one computers and tablets as to be truly versatile systems.

Toss the Mouse and Keyboard, the Future is Touchscreen

Michelle

Toss the Mouse and Keyboard, the Future is Touchscreen

We are truly living in the age of touchscreen technology. According to eMarketer, 2.4 billion people were using smartphones worldwide in 2017, and 1.2 billion people were using tablet devices. The adoption figures are projected to increase even more over the coming years. An entire generation of children have now grown up using touchscreen tablets and telephones. So considering that most of the world is comfortable with touchscreen computing, it makes perfect sense that touchscreen panel PCs are gaining a lot of traction in businesses.

 

For a very long time, keyboards and mouse devices were cumbersome requisite peripherals to the computing experience. The roller balls in computer mice were like magnets for dust and lint and that would foul up the device very quickly. Optical and wireless mice were an an improvement, but contaminants could still block the sensors and running out of battery was a major inconvenience to one’s work day. The amount of gross things a keyboard can collect over its lifetime is a whole topic on its own. And at the end of the day, if either device failed, one had to pray that they had a backup on hand lest they lose valuable work time.

 

An industrial grade panel PC with a touchscreen that is built to work with gloved hands is perfect for medical settings where contamination or infection control is a critical factor for health and compliance. The Vita KW series of panel PCs from Tangent offers a wide range of sizes from
15 inches to 24 inches and many mounting options to suit a variety of uses, for example, a patient information kiosk, a medical cart panel PC, an in-room computer, a medical records and billing panel PC, and so much more. For medical computers that don’t require the use of gloves, but do need to be kept clean, the KW series panel PC can be sprayed and wiped with disinfectants without any threat of harming the panel PC or worry that it won’t be completely cleaned. The  KW series panel PCs are rated at an IP65, meaning that they highly protected against dust and water ingress. That cannot be said of keyboards or mice for the most part. Unless a waterproof mouse and keyboard are used (which are also offered by Tangent), there’s a good chance that contaminants are lurking in the cracks and crevices of the device.

 

For harsher environments that are even tougher on a panel PC like industrial meat packing plants, food production facilities, and any other enterprise requiring high levels of sanitation and hygiene, the Tangent S Series panel PC is best suited to the job due to it’s IP69K rated, fully waterproof enclosure. The S series touchscreen panel PC can be sprayed with hot, high pressure jets and endure stringent wash downs without any damage to the unit. The S series is also offered in a variety of panel sizes and mounting options. Workers can used gloved or ungloved hands on the touchscreen equally well to conduct their business. It’s quite remarkable how a touchscreen panel can be both sensitive and very durable at the same time. This is the level of ingenuity and quality that Tangent offers.

Medical Tablets for Sanitation

Michelle

Medical Tablets: Handheld and Sanitary Computer Solutions    

 

People tend to forget that public computers and touchscreens are prime breeding grounds for bacteria and infection. Just this week, a study done by a British newspaper, Metro, announced that they found gut and fecal bacteria on the touchscreen computers in all eight of the McDonald’s chain restaurants that they checked. The main bacteria found was coliform but the dangerous listeria bacteria was also found on some of the screens. The restaurant chain responded that the touchscreens are regularly cleaned, but how much stewardship and regulation goes into a restaurant’s computers cleanliness? There didn’t appear to be much foresight into how easily communicable germs and bacteria are.

It’s no small surprise that infection control is one of the top priorities within medical facilities. Any reputable hospital system has written and publicly published policies and procedures related to infection control for everything including computer equipment. An industrial panel PC from Tangent is the optimal choice for tackling the threat of infection. For example, the KW series panel PC is rated with an IP65 level of protection which precludes any sort of dust or contaminant ingress into the panel PC, and can also withstand direct water jets and cleaning solutions. The panel PC can be sprayed and wiped down an innumerable amount of times and never get damaged from it.

The industrial grade metal enclosure offers a rugged, corrosive resistant surface that is also treated with an antimicrobial coating to further protect patients and staff from the spread of infection. The inside of the panel PC also plays a large part in promoting cleanliness and durability. The computer operates entirely without fans or moving parts. Failures within a computer are often attributed to components that wear out. The Tangent panel PC requires less maintenance, has more uptime, and doesn’t blow any dust particles around.

Another feature that’s making panel PCs the new norm in medical facilities is their compact size and all-inclusiveness. Having no separate PC box or cabling drastically cuts down on the space needed. Keyboards and mice are notoriously hard to keep clean, so the option to cut them out of the equation is very possible and attractive with a Tangent panel PC. They are offered with 4-wire resistive touch or PCAP multi-touch screen to provide a range of functionality based on the client’s needs. Optional Intel Wireless AC-7260 and Bluetooth functionality also adds to the cord-cutting versatility of Tangent’s panel PC line.

Tangent took the extra step of ensuring that their medical tablets and industrial panel PCs are validated to be fully compliant with both Epic and Cerner applications, two of the biggest providers of health information technology solutions and services in the world. A lot of effort was put into creating a line of purpose built industrial panel PCs that would give medical practices powerful computing capabilities, ease-of-use, reliability, and to help avoid infection scares like with the fast food touchscreen fiasco. It’s a big enough scandal for a big name restaurant, but it would be catastrophic for a small health facility.

 

Rugged Industrial PCs in Agriculture

Michelle

Rugged Industrial PCs in Agriculture

Not many industrial sectors look to technology for efficiency with as much fervor and adoption as agricultural industries. In 1793, the cotton gin machine was patented which immediately contributed to the success of cotton in Southern farms. The industrial revolution of the 1800s brought about many new inventions including the McCormick mechanical reaper that could harvest an acre of wheat in an hour, whereas it formerly took all day to gather the same amount using hand reapers. Automated feeding systems for livestock, computerized milk collection and milking machines have been around since the late 20th century and resulted in much faster and larger yields. In our modern times, industrial farmers and ranchers are no less inventive and mindful of progressive techniques and advanced computer applications and software.

 

An interesting example comes from a Canadian company who began using early versions of RFID (radio-frequency identification) on ostrich chicks in the 1990’s.These birds are highly valued, but unfortunately have a high mortality rate. Because of this, the company began tracking the birds in the field with RFID enabled leg bands to see how long they stayed at feeding troughs and how much they ate during each visit. That information gathered on computers enabled ostrich ranchers to identify which birds were at risk, and thus their lifespans began to lengthen with the help of  targeted treatment. Many ranches now use RFID to track cattle health, their behavior, and to also track their numbers and location. By pairing a cow’s tag RFID number with other sensor data, ranchers are able to see how an animal is acting and feeling, and can therefore determine which ones are thriving and what factors are leading to that. This is an amazing amount of insight into individuals amongst a herd which may number in the thousands.

Industrial Computer F15
F15 Industrial Computer

The computers best suited for field data collection will always be rugged industrial computer systems that can stand up to the elements and dusty environments endemic to agricultural and/or open grazing lands.  The Tangent F15 15” rugged tablet computer is not only completely sealed and protected against water and dirt intrusion, its sturdy case is designed to withstand falls, shock and vibration. The tablet has no internal fans, which equates to a long-lasting and reliable operation stemming from no moving parts to break and no ingestion of dirt and contaminants. It’s designed to be easily mounted on vehicles like forklifts or agriculture vehicles as to serve multiple purposes. The F15 tablet computer is equipped with an RFID module, a 3G module, and GPS so that farmers can easily pursue innovative livestock tracking solutions like the ostrich and cattle ranchers mentioned in the example above, or excel in crop and inventory management amongst many other efficiencies using the same technologies. This rugged industrial computer can operate at extreme temperatures ranging from -4  to 140°F, which many ranches and farms across America can easily put it through. Anything short of industrial grade and rugged construction on a work tablet would cause a loss of revenue on both the computer equipment but on essential data about livestock or crops.

Medical Computers Explained

Michelle

Medical Computers Explained

 

Medical computers are constructed and tested to go above and beyond the capabilities, usage, and expected lifespan of standard consumer grade computer systems and components. They are purpose built for use in clinical environments where infection control, patient safety, durability, and uptime are of the utmost importance. Infection control is achieved and supported in a number of ways. Depending on the specific component, the plastics of a true medical computer will either be embedded with antimicrobial additives or treated with an antimicrobial coating on the exterior. This ensures many years of use and cleaning without any degradation of the computer’s antimicrobial properties. Thorough and frequent cleaning and disinfection is required for infection control in medical facilities, so medical computers must be protected from liquid and spray ingress. For that reason they are rated in accordance with the IEC standard 60529 for IP (or “Ingress Protection”). Medical computers are usually rated IP54 or higher, indicating that the enclosure is dust tight and rated to withstand water pressure to varying degrees. Another important measure for patient safety that is a required standard for medical computers is electric shock protection. The IEC 60601-1 is an international technical standard for the safety and required performance of medical electrical equipment. A medical device with this certification indicates that it is protected from electrical frequency leakage making it safe to be used in close proximity to a patient, and it is shielded as to not interfere with other sensitive medical equipment.

 

Medical Computer Variations

 

Medical Computers tend to fall into two main categories: all-in-one panel formats that are typically used on medical carts, arms or on a desk stand, and handheld tablets for lightweight, portable computing.

All-In-One-Medical-Computer
All-in-one medical computer
Medical Tablets
Medical Computer Tablets

All-in-one medical panel PCs come in a variety of screen sizes and features to suit the needs of a medical practice. Fanless operation, PCAP multi-touch touchscreens, hot-swappable batteries, smart card readers, and VESA standard mounting are popular features on such medical computers. Hot-swap batteries allow the workstation to run on batteries uninterrupted throughout the work day, and PCAP multi-touch provides a highly responsive touchscreen experience. Smart-card readers provide a fast and secure method for user identification and login. Medical panel computers are often offered with a fanless option which means lower power consumption, no buildup of dust in the computer, no dust particles being circulated, and no moving parts within the PC.

Medical grade tablets are built with very durable, rugged exteriors to protect against drops, and they are protected from damage resulting from shock and vibration.  They can range from very compact to relatively large, but are built with being lightweight in mind. Medical tablets can be equipped with many of the same features of the larger all-in-one panel PCs like barcode scanners, hot-swap batteries, and RFID, but offer a greater mobility for tasks that involve traveling amongst several locations. Many tablets can be fitted with hand straps or set into a docking station.

 

Methods for Selecting a Medical Computer Manufacturer

 

Once the decision to invest in medical computers is made, the next task is to select a manufacturer that not only can provide an appropriately catered and certified solution package, but will also partner to provide efficient and expert support along with excellent product warranties. Tangent’s innovative products have received numerous industry awards including Network Products’ Product Innovation Award, and has had Windows Magazine recommend their products. Tangent’s medical computers are validated by Cerner and are Epic compliant.

 Cerner

The demands of patient care and strict quality assurance regulations require medical computer systems to maintain continued uptimes far over anything consumer devices can offer, and they also require a computer vendor to be equally available. Tangent has service and sales offices located throughout the United States, Canada, Europe and China to provide support when and where they are needed.

One-Stop Patient Billing and Scheduling

Michelle

One-Stop Patient Billing and Scheduling

 

A big part of a medical office’s interaction with patients involves scheduling and billing for their services. It’s not the most glamourous position to have and largely goes unnoticed, but it’s an extremely important role since medical schedulers and billers are the ones that ensure patients and insurance companies are charged accurately, are scheduled for important services, and that patients are reminded about their upcoming appointments. They keep medical practices in business and patients on time. For smaller practices, this role tends to fall on a small number of people running the front office doing intake for arriving patients, taking phone calls, receiving direction from doctors and nurse staff, and running around to provide medical records to staff as well. It can be a hectic set of expectations to fulfill, so organization and efficiency is key for a practice to run smoothly and on schedule. On the top of the list for maintaining an organized, successful business is having the right tools that not only meet it’s required functionality, but are also reliable, fast, and easy to use.

A medical tablet is a great way to integrate all of a medical front office’s needs into one convenient, flexible and cost efficient package. The Tangent M7 7” touchscreen is an excellent entry level medical tablet that allows staff to schedule and check in patients, scan barcodes on files or wrist bands, readily accept card payments and retrieve information from the internet all while being completely mobile. The tablet device can connect to wifi and bluetooth so that staff can actively work anywhere in the facility, especially with the handy strap on the back. An optional docking station is also available for stationary use and charging.

For a larger and more robust industrial grade tablet, the R10 10” tablet makes all-in-one computing seem effortless. With many of the same features as the M7, the R10 kicks it all up a notch with an Intel 3rd Gen Core i7 processor, a 480GB SSD hard drive, and 8GB of memory. The noticeably sturdy and rugged casing has been tested and proven to safeguard the medical tablet from falls, vibration and shaking. The optional combo data input accessory offers smart card, MSR (magnetic stripe reader), and fingerprint readers for easy access to the system and easy check out for patients. A fast check in and check out is so essential for keeping a patient flow in and out of the office steady and happy. My dentist’s office is staffed by some wonderful people but their payment machine is embarrassingly slow, they have paper files for each patient still, and a few computer systems that don’t appear to be linked to each other. I can’t imagine what a pain it must be to track all of that, and to do it largely manually. With the variety of medical tablets offered by Tangent, a patient-centric practice can be transformed into a streamlined workflow dream. They offer tablets from seven to thirteen inches to suit any desktop space, and have a wide variety of options amongst them to meet the unique business requirements of demanding medical operations, including billing and scheduling.

Secure Encryption with TPM

Michelle

 

Secure Encryption with TPM

Today we’re going to delve into a feature that’s often mentioned on Tagent’s medical computers and tablets spec sheets, but not often expanded on: TPM Support. The Trusted Platform Module (TPM) is an international standard for a secure cryptoprocessor.  A cryptoprocessor is a dedicated microcontroller built into computers that is designed to secure its hardware. This is achieved through the use of integrated cryptographic keys. That sounds like pretty high tech stuff, but put simply, a cryptographic key is a string of bits used by an algorithm to change plain text into cipher text or vice versa. The key is private and ensures secure encryption and decryption of data on the computer. With that knowledge, it’s fairly simple to see why it would be a useful feature on a medical computer containing patient health information.  The TPM helps support the integrity of the computer platform and boot process, device identification, authentication, disk encryption, password protection, and more. That’s a pretty good resume for one small microcontroller. It’s such a significant component that the United States Department of Defense specifies that “new computer assets procured to support DoD will include a TPM version 1.2 or higher.”

Most all of Tangent’s medical grade computers and tablets come standard with TPM 1.2 or 2.0.  The new Tangent M10i medical tablet PC has the TPM 1.2 support standard, as well as a rugged casing to prevent damage from being dropped, and is tested to strict military standards for shock and vibration resistance. The medical tablet also has a top of the line high brightness multi-touch surface with Gorilla Glass panel and digitizer. Gorilla Glass is known for its high quality touch device screens and is found on most of the leading smartphones, tablets, and watches. The M10i tablet comes standard with dual cameras: a two megapixel front facing camera, and a five megapixel rear camera with flash. One of its more impressive features include a hot-swap battery function that allows for eleven hours of uninterrupted operation. The 10” medical PC boasts a 4th Generation Intel® Haswell Core™ i processor, up to 8GB of memory and can be mounted on a number of surfaces including vehicles and medical arms.

The 13 inch T13 medical tablet PC from Tangent comes with TPM 2.0 support. The 2.0 standard supports a few more encryption algorithms and different kinds of structural hierarchies amongst other things. This is very handy for the T13 medical computer since it comes equipped with full slot smart card and SD card readers that allows for accepting credit card payments or using smart cards for authentication. This versatile machine can be used with a hand strap for users on the go, with an integrated stand, a desktop charging cradle, or can be mounted walls and vehicles with its VESA 100 mounting bracket. The T13 medical tablet is ruggedized and perfect for daily work in hospitals because of its ABS plastic enclosure w/ rubber corners, IP54 rated front panel, and antimicrobial treatment. Tangent’s medical computers are truly secure both inside and out!