3 Best Industrial Raspberry Pi Solutions in 2021
The Raspberry Pi is a small single-board computer that was developed in the UK. The Raspberry Pi Foundation, founded in 2009, created the devices. The foundation’s goal was to promote computer science study on a global scale and, to this day, the Raspberry Pi remains the UK’s best-selling PC of all time. In fact, over 30 million have been sold. It remains the most popular single-board computer in the world.
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The Raspberry Pi is largely praised for the fact that it was an inexpensive computer that got into the hands of millions of kids, which helped them learn about coding, computer science, and more. However, there have been questions regarding how Raspberry Pi can help in terms of industrial solutions. However, Raspberry Pi still remains relatively easy to use and is still quite capable and versatile. In fact, the Raspberry Pi has seen an increase in demand since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Many have wondered about whether the Raspberry Pi has any actual practical applications regarding larger businesses and organizations. There are three popular industrial Raspberry Pi-based solutions: including the Strato-Pi, Kunbus, and IOT-gate. Here, we examine those three applications.
What Is Strato-Pi?
Strato-Pi is an industrial server and certainly one of the most popular Raspberry Pi industrial solutions. It’s often used for applications that require a specific amount of reliability and compliance. One of the most notable features of the Strato-Pi is that it accepts a wide power supply range. The power supply is also protected from reverse polarity thanks to resettable fuses.
Strato-Pi is also compliant concerning low voltage and EMC CE directives. For a refresher, the EMC directive is an acronym for the Electromagnetic Compatibility Directive. The directive was passed in order to reduce any electromagnetic interference. Strato-Pi also boasts RS-485 serial ports that can connect to other industrial devices and an uninterrupted power supply (UPS).
The battery also features a battery-backed real-time clock, and it is connected to the Raspberry Pi’s I2C Bus. Even when you aren’t connected to the Internet, the real-time clock will still be available. A replaceable battery can also serve as an alternative power source.
The Strato Pi is also a common industrial solution because all components are packed into standard industrial modules. The Strato Pi watchdog, an electronic circuit that could reset the processor, helps in situations where there are unexpected malfunctions, as well. It’s important to note that this watchdog is completely independent from the Raspberry Pi’s watchdog.
What is Kunbus Revolution Pi?
Kunbus developed Revolution Pi as a Raspberry Pi-based industrial solution. Revolution Pi is known for its open platform concept for maximum freedom. The Revpi Connect, developed by Kunbus, is based on the Raspberry Pi 3 Compute Module. Kunbus GmbH is a Germany-based company that is famous for developing customized industrial solutions. Kunbus is dedicated to creating open-source solutions for businesses to build their own tools.
The Revolution Pi is an industrial PC that is open-source and modular, and it features a 1.2 GHz quad-core processor. It also boasts 1 GB RAM and up to 32 gigabytes of eMMC flash memory. An eMMC refers to an embedded MultiMediaCard, which was the precursor to Secure Digital (SD) storage. The operating system of the Revolution Pi is a customized version of Raspbian, which also includes a real-time patch. The goal here is to offer a system that is as close to the Raspberry Pi operating system as possible for ease of use.
The Revolution Pi also offers a configurable watchdog that monitors IIOT gateways. The RevPi Connect is also known for the fact that it features a range of interfaces, and in fact, the Revolution Pi’s two ethernet ports mean that the Revolution Pi can be simultaneously integrated within two separate networks. This setup has been engineered for flexibility.
What Is IOT-Gate?
The beauty of IOT-Gate is that it has an industrial and rugged aluminum design, which is vital once you consider that it can handle temperatures ranging from -40 to 80 degrees Celsius. This device is considered ideal for industrial control and monitoring and is powered by a Raspberry Pi 3 Compute Module.
While being able to handle extreme temperatures is impressive, IOT-Gate also offers a lot more protection. Specifically, it is resistant to shock, vibration, humidity, and dust. It doesn’t get much better in terms of industrial protection than that! The plug design prevents any unintentional pull-outs, as well, and the IOT-Gate works for both DIN-Rail and VESA mounting. It can also be configured to order for custom industrial solutions.
It’s compatible with the Raspbian Linux and Ubuntu Core and is known for its industrial build and reliability. It boasts 1 GB of LPDDR (low-power double data rate) and 64 GB of eMMC.
Conclusion
There are significant differences between these industrial solutions, and they meet unique needs regarding strength, power, and flexibility. It is important to note that some industries might require certain features more than others. For example, one business might be more focused on the uninterrupted power supply (UPS) while other companies might be more interested in how the hardware is constructed.
Some companies might be more focused on power supply protection, while other industries might hope for an additional amount of customization for whatever reason. Also, there is the fact that the hardware might need to adhere to specific regulations or use it according to its connectivity capabilities. Another business might also want the strongest watchdog to help identify and monitor any situations that involve malfunctions.
The decision to choose a particular Raspberry Pi industrial solution can be tough. Your business might require more technical support than others, which is another factor to take into consideration. Your business should also take into account the scalability of a particular industrial solution, as well. Ultimately, it will take some time and effort to figure out which industrial solution makes the most sense for your organization or industry, and why.
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