Industrial PCs

Influenced by the high penetration of PC-based systems centered around the CPU and buses and with the option to upgrade, the growth of industrial PCs (IPC) appears to be moving in tandem with traditional PCs. Although IPC closely mimics the workings of the PC, it still remains a closed platform as it is embedded in other electronics systems. It is targeted specifically at industrial manufacturing processes, automation and medical systems, point of sales (POS), among many others. IPC is also widely used in manufacturing processes such as machine control and a wide array of medical equipment.



One of the key features of IPC is that it can be easily customized to suit various needs with a high degree of stability. Generally, the IPC has a life cycle of three to five years and gets updated only when a new application or product emerges.



According to figures released by Electronic Trend Publications, the worldwide revenue of industrial PCs is estimated to grow at the rate of 11 percent, which is the lowest point since 2003. The market of IPC board card is predicted to have a 5.7 percent CAGR from year 2003 to 2008. IPC makers face the common problem of a flat market unless new standards or new applications emerge.



Due to limited local demand, Taiwan makers target global markets to boost sales of their IPCs, and seek different application fields to increase revenue. Two such potential markets appear to be telematics and LCD manufacturing, which are also believed to offer good revenues and healthy margins. Jordan Jiang, general manager of ICP Electronics, says, “As LCD TV replaces CRT TV, the demand for manufacturing LCD is emerging, especially the machine control system.” Automobile manufacturing and the production of car accessories are also emerging as big businesses in most Asian countries. A case in point is China, which produced 4.37 million vehicles in 2003, making it one of the top three auto markets in the world, according to Chung Hua Institution for Economic Research in Taiwan.

“The characteristics of IPC applied in automobile and automobile manufacturing are robust design and a high tolerance to vibration, temperature and humidity,” says Ming-Chin Wu, president of eAutomation of Advantech. He adds that IPC makers are greatly enthused by the profits brought about by the automobile industry.



Currently, controlling machines using embedded IPC systems is big business in Asia, especially in China and India. “System integrators in Europe, Japan and the US tend to develop machine control systems together and ship these to China,” says Wu of Advantech. Wu says that his company generates almost 30 percent of its revenue from China. To increase its market share, Wu says his company will focus on dealing with system integrators to enhance machine control of their product line.



New applications for IPC occur not only within manufacturing processes, but also in embedded systems used in video devices such as digital surveillance, digital recording, graphics terminals and traffic monitoring systems. “Besides the use of IPC in POS equipment, the future uses of IPC will take place in music, video, and surveillance,” says Jiang of IPC Electronics. But the use of IPC in these applications will take time to pick up, he adds.