Congatec has showcased its new modular airborne computing platforms for connected aircrafts, passenger infotainment, and augmented reality applications at Aeromart Toulouse.
The vendor of standardised and customised embedded computer boards and modules, presented its COM Express Type 7 Server-on-Modules, designed for converged edge servers in aircrafts, working with content delivery applications to seatback screens and passengers’ mobile devices, as well as for predictive maintenance and other big data applications, video surveillance, and cloud based flight data recordings.
The platforms are also designed for augmented reality applications in aviation to optimize the navigational capabilities in low visibility areas, and are further applicable in AI-based virtual assistants for improving pilot productivity and efficiency as well as enhancing passengers’ flight experience.
“New technology trends such as the IIoT and 5G over satellite are disrupting or will in the near future disrupt many IT setups in aircrafts. Aircraft edge servers will play a major role in this scenario, both in linefit and retrofit applications, and will afford airlines, crews and passengers with a great variety of new services,” said Christian Eder, director of marketing at Congatec.
“With Server-on-Modules, engineers can tailor the performance of their virtualized aircraft edge servers perfectly to the given needs, and simply as well as efficiently scale the core performance in closed loop engineering cycles by swapping modules.”
Server-on-Modules are designed to solve obsolescence issues, with the standardized modules in the design able to be upgraded. Additionally, the densely packed modules are designed to optimize the SWaP-C demands of modern airborne applications with a compact, lightweight, efficient and cost optimized footprint.
The new edge server platforms for aircrafts are based on the COM Express Type 7 Server-on-Module standard specified by the PICMG and are equipped with Intel Atom, Pentium and Xeon processors.
They are designed to operate in harsh airborne environments, including extended temperature ranges, and feature high shock and vibration resistance. Providing optional coating for humidity resistance, they are qualified to meet extended environmental standards.