High-performance rack PC for complex automation tasks

Like all industrial PCs from Siemens, the new rack PC is also designed for long-term availability and offers high interface continuity. The PC is available with either eight or eleven PCI/PCI-Express slots, offers extensive expansion options and features excellent Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) with high resistance to shock and vibration. It is designed for industrial use and works without power loss in ambient temperatures up to 50 degrees Celsius. The housing is extremely resistant to dirt and is protected against the ingress of dust by a pressurised cooling system with temperature-controlled fans and exchangeable filters. The new rack PC has double the computing power of its predecessor. The version with a 2.16 gigahertz (GHz) Intel Core 2 Duo T7400 processor and a 4 megabyte (MB) second-level cache as well as the version with a 1.66 GHz Intel Core2 Duo T5500 processor and a 2 MB second-level cache have a 677 megahertz (MHz) front side bus (FSB).

The device with a 1.86 GHz Intel Celeron M-440 processor has a 533 MHz FSB. The Intel 945GM Express chip set with a serial ATA II, USB 2.0, PCI-Express-x16 interface for graphics expansion and a PCI Express x4 interface for faster access to I/O units enhance the overall performance. To enhance system reactions further, the DDR2 main memory with dual-channel support can be increased to a size of up to 4 gigabytes (GB).

For faster data transmission and higher drive reliability, hard disks with Native Command Queuing (NCT) technology are used. A high level of system availability and data security is provided by the hot-swap replaceable rack and the RAID1 mirror disk configuration, which allows the hard disk to be replaced without interrupting operations. The RAID controller is already included and does not occupy any additional PCI slot. System availability is enhanced by integrated diagnostic and alarm functions for temperature, fan and program execution (watchdog), supplemented by a front LED system for efficient self-diagnosis, such as monitoring the hard disks in RAID1 configurations or for indicating the status for Ethernet or Profibus communication.

The Simatic Rack PC 847B equipment includes six USB 2.0 ports, two located on the front (one of which can be used when the door is closed), seven PCI slots as well as two 10/100/1000 megabits-per-second Ethernet connections. Additional interfaces are 2x COM, 1x LPT, 2x PS/2, 1x VGA and an audio interface as well as 1x Profibus/MPI with 12 Mbps and 1x DVI as options. For dual monitoring purposes, a PCI Express x16 graphics card is available. A DVD-ROM or DVD±R/RW, in addition to Microsoft Windows 2000, XP Professional or Server 2003 preinstalled as the operating system, are the additional options. The new 19-inch rack PC can be mounted horizontally or vertically in cabinets and it has an optional tower kit for use as an industrial workstation or server in control rooms, within the manufacturing and process industries.

More information is available at: www.siemens.com/simatic-pc