Kontron COMe-cTH6 - Manual (Page 11)

5
COMe-cTH6 User’s Guide
www.kontron.com
2.4 COM Express® Documentation
This product manual serves as one of three principal references for this COM Express® module design. It documents
the specifications and features of the COMe-cTH6 module. The other two references, which are available from your
Kontron support representative or from PICMG, include:
» The PICMG COM.0 COM Express® Module Base Specification , Revision 2.0, which defines the COM Express® module
form factors, pin-outs, and signals. This document can be obtained by filling out the order form on the PIGMG
website at
http://www.picmg.com .
» The PICMG COM Express® Design Guide , which serves as a general guide for baseboard design, with a focus on
maximum flexibility to accommodate a wide range of COM Express® modules. This guide is on the PICMG website
at
http://www.picmg.com .
2.5 COM Express® Module Benefits
Compact form factor (95 x 95 mm) Computer-on-Module Express (COM Express) modules are very compact, highly
integrated computers that use either the Type 2 or Type 6 COM Express® connector pin-outs. All compact COM Express
modules feature a standardized form factor and a standardized connector layout for a specified set of signals, as
defined in the PICMG COM Express® specification (PICMG COM.0.R2). This standardization lets designers create a
single-system baseboard that can accept present and future COM Express modules.
Kontron COM Express® modules include common personal computer (PC) peripheral functions such as:
» Graphics
» USB ports
» Ethernet
» Audio
» SATA hard disk drive format
Baseboard designers can optimize exactly how each of these functions is implemented physically for the intended
application by placing connectors precisely where they are needed on a baseboard that is designed for an optimal fit
in the system packaging.
A peripheral PCI Express bus can be implemented directly on the application-specific baseboard rather than on
mechanically unwieldy expansion cards. The ability to build a system on a single baseboard using the computer as
one plug-in super-component simplifies packaging, eliminates cabling, and significantly reduces system-level total
cost of ownership.
A single baseboard design can use a range of COM Express modules. This flexibility enables product differentiation at
various price/performance points, and the design of future-proof systems with a built-in upgrade path. The
modularity of a COM Express solution also ensures against obsolescence as computer technology evolves. A properly
designed COM Express baseboard can work with several successive generations of COM Express modules.
A COM Express baseboard design has many of the advantages of a custom, computer-board design, but delivers better
obsolescence protection, greatly reduced engineering effort, and faster time to market.
DRAFT COPY FOR REVIEW ONLY
DRAFT COPY FOR REVIEW ONLY