Siemens (Germany) - Siemens has expanded its industry-standard 19-inch rack PC lines to include the Simatic IPC347E entry level version. There are five configurations of the new Simatic IPC347E rack PC that differ in their main memory structure, processor type, drives and optionally pre-installed operating system. It is especially suitable for production applications requiring a PC with greater ruggedness and a higher availability than office PCs. These include visualization and Scada tasks, data collection and management, testing and measuring tasks in discrete production and process automation, as well as logistics and laboratory automation applications.

The new Simatic IPC347E rack PCs have seven PCI(e) expansion slots for easy expansion and integration into existing systems, and a 500 gigabyte hard disk, and 2 or 4 GB RAM, which can be expanded to 16 GB. Users can select the process performance with either an Intel Pentium or fourth generation Core i5 processor; other options include an ± R/RW DVD drive, and pre-installed 64 bit Windows 7 Ultimate operating system. The rugged, industry-standard rack PCs have a dust protection filter and overpressure ventilation. They are especially easy to service because of their front USB (Universal Serial Bus) port and the externally accessible fan.

Like the more powerful rack PCs in the Simatic family of industrial PCs, the new entry level Simatic IPC347E model is designed for reliable continuous 24-hour use in industrial environments – even those that have higher temperature, vibration, shock and EMC requirements. Reliable continuous operation of all devices without power loss at an ambient temperature of up to 40 degrees Celsius is ensured by run-in tests and confirmed by industrial certificates.

The portfolio of Simatic industrial PCs comprises scalable product lines of box, panel and rack PCs, supplemented by additional versions for special applications.