Lanner is shipping a rugged vehicle computer designed for video recording and wireless communications. Built around an Intel Atom N270, the fanless “LEC-5520” computer offers four-channel, real-time H.264 video capture and hardware compression, and is equipped with 3G, 802.11b/g/n, and GPS wireless communications, says the company.

The LEC-5520 is suitable for intelligent transport applications in fleet management, entertainment, and security, says Lanner. For example, vehicle tracking is enabled via the GPS module, and the video subsystem supports video surveillance from up to four cameras, says the company. Other touted capabilities include the ability to display updated information to a fleet driver, provide entertainment to car, bus, and train passengers, and send back information to headquarters via 3G.

LEC-5520

The LEC-5520 includes an onboard H.264 codec chip for video capture and compression. Video is captured through four BNC analog inputs, "allowing the use of cheaper and more reliable analog video cameras," says Lanner. HDMI and VGA video outputs are said to be supplied, as well as an RCA audio input, and microphone and line-out ports.

Lanner chose the 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 for the LEC-5520 instead of one of the newer, more power efficient "Pineview" Atom processors. However, power consumption is still low enough to enable a fanless system, says Lanner.

The computer ships with 1GB of DDR2 SDRAM, expandable to 2GB, and a CompactFlash slot is available for memory card expansion, says the company. A 2.5-inch hard disk drive (HDD) bay and a SATA port are supplied for more substantial video storage needs.

3G, WiFi, and GPS

The LEC-5520 is equipped with a gigabit Ethernet port, as well as 3G, 802.11b/g/n, and GPS wireless communications, says the company. Four USB 2.0 ports, two high speed serial UARTs, an RS-485 serial port, and alarm/relay I/O are also said to be provided.

Offering a wide power input range (10-36V), the computers runs on dual power inputs via DC jack and Phoenix contact. The computer supplies a 12V DC, one-Amp power output to drive peripherals such as cameras and sensors, says Lanner. The system is said to support temperatures of 32 to 113 deg. F (0 to 45 deg. C).

An SDK and reference software are supplied for Linux and Windows, including features for alarm I/O, streaming, RS-485 control, and display, says the company. Windows users can call upon the included EyeShot 2000 Control Panel software for camera control, PTZ, file storage and streaming, says Lanner.

Specifications listed for the LEC-5520 include:

• Processor — Intel Atom N270 @ 1.6GHz; 945GSE + ICH7M chipset
• Memory — Up to 1GB DDR2 400/533 SDRAM
• Flash expansion — 1 x CompactFlash slot
• Storage — 1 x 2.5-inch HDD bay; 1 x SATA port
• Video compression/display:
  • H.264/AVC codec chip for 4-channel full D1
  • 720 x 480 NTSC resolution
  • 720 x 576 PAL resolution
  • 120/100fps (NTSC/PAL)
• Wireless
  • 3G (HSPA, WCDMA, E-GPRS, GSM)
  • 802.11b/g/n with 3-dBi SMA antenna
  • GPS (NMEA-0183 V2.2 with 3 meters SMA antenna)
• Networking — 1 x gigabit Ethernet port
• Other I/O:
  • 4-port BNC connectors for analog video input
  • 1-port RCA connector for audio input
  • 1 x D-Sub 15 pin VGA port (2048 x 1536)
  • 1 x HDMI port (1920 x 1080)
  • Mic in and line out audio ports
  • 4 x USB 2.0
  • 2 x high-speed serial UARTs
  • 1 x RS-485 serial port for PTZ
  • 4 x alarm-input and 2 relay-output
• Other features:
  • Temperature monitoring
  • LAN, HDD, and power LEDs
  • Reset and power switches
  • FCC Class A, CE, and RoHS approvals
• Power — DC 10~36V, up to 5 Amps; 2-pin Phoenix connector, DC in jack input
• Operating temperature — 32 to 113 deg. F (0 to 45 deg. C)
• Operating system — SDKs for Linux, Windows; EyeShot 2000 Control Panel software (Windows XP only)

Stated Eric Chiu, Lanner Embedded Computing Director, "The LEC-5520 is carefully designed to incorporate industrial electrical and mechanical features that make this box as rugged as possible. The addition of FCC CE certification helps assure our customers of Lanner's manufacturing and QA processes."

Availability

The Lanner LEC-5520 is available in limited supply for sample orders, says the company. More information may be found here.

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