Kontron Supports COM Express COM.0 R 2.0

A requirements specification is the first formal description of a program. A software module may be described precisely and completely by a set of related documents: Interface specification of the module providing description of its behavior, internal design of the module containing its description, and the code itself.

Kontron has announced full support of the recently launched PCI Industrial Computer Manufacturers Group (PICMG (News - Alert)) COM Express COM.0 R 2.0 specification. As a member of PICMG, Kontron has been active in the development of the COM Express COM.0 R 2.0 specification. The new COM Express specification COM.0 Revision 2 further leverages the development of applications, improving time-to-market and TCO.

With the new revision of the COM Express specification, many innovations brought about by Kontron (News - Alert) are now officially part of this industry standard, such as the COM Express compact form factor, which Kontron introduced in 2005 under the brand name “microETXexpress”. This smaller footprint for COM Express modules already is widely accepted by the market. While maintaining maximum compatibility to the existent pin-outs, these new pin-out types offer dedicated interfaces for digital displays and other future-oriented features. The new revision defines, with EAPI, a uniform software interface for the board and module management.

Kontron customers who used the Kontron K-station software tool kit and library are already familiar with most of the functionality of EAPI. An additional feature of the COM Express COM.0 Revision 2 specification is the creation and adoption of a sister specification EeeP. 

Dirk Finstel, CTO of Kontron explained that with the new compact form factor and pin-outs defined in the COM Express COM.0 R 2.0 specification, customers can fully benefit from the enhanced graphics capabilities and on-board support for three dedicated digital display interfaces, plus the projected USB 3.0 interface, upgrade to PCI (News - Alert) Express Gen 2, as well as from new serial interfaces.

Kontron will soon launch new Computer-on-Modules with the newly defined pin-outs type 6 and 10. The upcoming type 6 modules Kontron ETXexpress-AI will feature three dedicated digital display interfaces configurable to SDVO, DisplayPort, and HDMI/DVI for flexible display connection and a total of 23 PCI Express Gen 2 lanes, providing more native display options and higher serial bandwidth.