Kontron offers full support of the recently launched PCI
Industrial Computer Manufacturers Group (PICMG) COM Express COM.0 R 2.0
specification. As a member of PICMG, Kontron has been active in the development
of the COM Express COM.0 R 2.0 specification. The new COM Express specification
COM.0 Revision 2 further leverages the development of applications, improving
time-to-market and TCO.
With the new revision of the COM Express specification, many
innovations brought about by Kontron are now officially part of this industry
standard, such as the COM Express compact form factor, which Kontron introduced
in 2005 under the brand name “microETXexpress.“ This smaller footprint for COM
Express modules already is widely accepted by the market. Furthermore, two new
pin-out types (type 6 and type 10) are detailed in the new revision. While
maintaining maximum compatibility to the existent pin-outs, these new pin-out
types offer dedicated interfaces for digital displays and other future-oriented
features. The new revision defines, with EAPI, a uniform software interface for
the board and module management. Kontron customers who used the Kontron
K-station software tool kit and library are already familiar with most of the
functionality of EAPI. An additional feature of the COM Express COM.0 Revision
2 specification is the creation and adoption of a sister specification EeeP
(Embedded EEPROM Specification). EeeP facilitates describing the carrier
functionality and embedding the system descriptor information (manufacturer,
serial number, PCIe configuration, etc) on the carrier, simplifying system
provisioning and maintenance in Multi Platform, Multi Vendor environments.