Advantech announced a compact PC designed for mobile video recording applications. The ARK-VH200 includes four BNC inputs that capture video at up to 704 x 480 pixels, an eSATA port, four USB 2.0 ports, a GPS receiver, multiple Ethernet ports, and both VGA and LVDS video outputs, the company says.

Much like the similarly Atom-powered Lanner LEC-5520 we covered in June, Advantech's ARK-VH200 is designed to be installed in a car, bus, truck, or train, enabling a variety of fleet management and security applications. The PC again includes a GPS receiver, while Wi-Fi or cellular connectivity may be added via the device's two Mini PCI slots, Advantech says.

Advantech's ARK-VH200

The ARK-VH200 differs from the Lanner device in that the former was built around a 1.6GHz, single-core Atom N270 processor. Advantech has instead chosen the dual-core Atom D510, with onboard graphics, teaming this with the ICH8-M I/O controller. Overall power consumption, presumably lower than it might have been without a "Pineview" CPU, is claimed to be 36 Watts.

According to Advantech, the ARK-VH200 performs H.264 video compression via hardware, though no details of the encoding circuitry employed were provided. Regardless, the device is said to perform video capture at up to D1 (704 x 480 pixel) resolution.

Frame rate, divided up among the four BNC inputs, is said to total a maximum of 120fps for NTSC, or 100fps for PAL. Per-camera audio inputs are optional, the company adds.

Advantech says the ARK-VH200 offers two gigabit Ethernet ports as standard, plus an optional third that supports IP-based cameras that require Power over Ethernet. The device's front panel, illustrated below left, includes two USB 2.0 ports, a CompactFlash slot, a serial port, and VGA output.

The front (left) and rear (right) panels on Advantech's ARK-VH200
(Click either to enlarge)

The ARK-VH200's rear panel (above right), offers a microphone input, line output, two additional USB ports, and two more serial ports. Also included is 4-bit GPIO, an eSATA port, and an 18-bit LVDS connector, according to Advantech.

It's said the ARK-VH200 accepts up to 2GB of RAM via a single SODIMM slot. Mass storage opportunities are provided not only by CompactFlash but also by a bay for a 2.5-inch hard disk drive, as well as by the eSATA port mentioned above, Advantech says.

Specifications listed by Advantech for the ARK-VH200 include:

• Processor — Intel Atom D510 clocked at 1.66GHz
• Chipset — ICH8-M I/O controller
• Memory — up to 2GB of DDR2 RAM
• Expansion:
  • 1 x Type I/II CompactFlash
  • 2 x Mini PCI
• Storage — 1 x 2.5-inch HDD bay
• Networking:
  • 2 x gigabit Ethernet
  • 1 x gigabit Ethernet with PoE (optional)
• Wireless
  • 3G and Wi-Fi optional via Mini PCI slots
  • GPS
• Video compression/display:
  • H.264/AVC codec chip for 4-channel full D1
  • resolution up to 704 x 480
  • 120/100fps (NTSC/PAL)
• Other I/O:
  • 4-port BNC connectors for analog video input
  • 1 x eSATA
  • audio — mic in and line out
  • 1 x VGA
  • 1 x LVDS
  • 4 x USB 2.0
  • 3 x serial
• Power — 9 to 32VDC; 36 Watts
• Operating temperature — 32 to 140 deg. F (0 to 60 deg. C) with CompactFlash; 32 to 113 deg. F (0 to 45 deg. C) with extended-temperature hard disk
• Operating system — Linux (Fedora 9.0), Windows XP Embedded, Windows Vista, Windows XP Professional

Further information

Advantech did not cite pricing or availability for the ARK-VH200, but the device appears to be available now. More information may be found on the company's website, here.

This article was originally published on LinuxDevices.com and has been donated to the open source community by QuinStreet Inc. Please visit LinuxToday.com for up-to-date news and articles about Linux and open source.