PICMG open-standards embedded computing organization sets sights on postage stamp-sized computer board
THE MIL & AERO COMMENTARY – A new generation of small-form-factorembedded computing may be coming together at the PICMG Open Modular Computing Standards organization in Wakefield, Mass. -- a computer board no larger than a postage stamp for wearable computing, smart factories, and the Internet of Things (IoT).
This project, just in its infancy, sees to develop an industry-backed open-systems standard for a tiny embedded computer with minimal processing and minimal I/O resources for lightweight applications that must operate in extremely tight spaces.
PICMG, formerly known as the PCI Industrial Computer Manufacturers Group, is likely to stand-up a Postage Stamp standards working group sometime this spring, and may have its first draft standard ready for balloting by 2019, says PICMG President Jessica Isquith.
Postage Stamp likely will describe extremely small embedded computing mezzanine cards ranging in size from a postage stamp to a business card for operating close to assets on a factory floor and similar applications.
Related: The new frontier of small-form-factor embedded computing
Isquith made her comments this week at the Embedded Tech Trends conference in Austin, Texas.
This potential future standard probably won't be for anything like high-performance embedded computing -- only for extreme size- and weight-sensitive applications operating near antennas and sensors, in robotic arms, in data analytics uses, and the like It may operate together on a carrier card for handling several separate tasks.
It's far too early to speculate on specific characteristics for the Postage Stamp embedded computing form factor. PICMG members have shown interest, and developments later this year will be the first indications of the directions this standard will take.
Anyone in the embedded computing industry interested in influencing and working with the future Postage Stamp standard should contact Isquith by email at [email protected].
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