The power input for the Mini-PC – Part 3: The control cabinet

20.01.2022

The control cabinet poses other challenges for a power input, as not every PC is suitable for a control cabinet from the outset, so a few points need to be taken into account. So we continue with our current blog series “Power inputs for mini PCs”. Here, too, we explain the necessary features, special features and differences!

Control cabinet - Focus: DIN-RAIL PC

What is an electrical enclosure anyway? A control cabinet houses the electrical and electronic components of a machine tool or production facility that are not located directly in the machine.

In principle, a wide variety of PCs can be installed in an enclosure. In this article, we will focus on the top-hat rail PC, equipped with top-hat rails (Din rails). And what is a DIN Rail PC? It is a PC like any other, but with one small addition: it has terminal strips (DIN rails) with which it can be mounted in the control cabinet.

The DIN Rail PC is equipped with a 3-pin terminal strip, which is also partially installed on the Vehicle PC. Thanks to its power input, which accepts 9-36 VDC (direct voltage), the top-hat rail PC can also handle unusual voltages. This is important so that it can function in different control cabinet configurations with different power supply solutions. A Mini PC of this type does not require an external power supply unit, as it is assumed that there is one in the control cabinet in which the PC is used, which generates the voltage acceptable by the PC. The terminal strip is screwed to the PC and therefore sits firmly in the housing, the wires from the customer power supply are screwed into the plug as with normal screw terminals. In contrast to our NOVA Q170, the DIN-RAIL PC only has the terminal strip socket and no additional DC IN socket.

DIN-RAIL PC vs. standard: differences

The current input on the DIN-RAIL PC differs from the standard on the one hand by the socket and on the other hand by the voltage that is accepted. While the standard power input consists of a DC IN socket and is supplied with an external 19V power supply unit, the PC for a control cabinet is supplied with a 3-pin, screwable terminal strip that accepts a voltage between 9 and 36 volts.

Other power inputs: Standard and Vehicle PC

In addition to this power input, we have described two others in more detail in our blog series, the standard and the Vehicle PC. You can read about the features these two power inputs need to have and the challenges they both have to face in the other articles in our blog series "Power inputs for Mini PCs".

spo-comm Mini-PCs with Din-Rail bracket:

spo-comm Mini-PCs that can be attached to the top-hat rails are the PCs in the BRICK series and the WINDBOX series. However, a DIN rail mount does not automatically mean that a PC also has a wide range power input and vice versa. A RUGGED , for example, is equipped with both a wide range power input and a terminal strip socket, but has no top-hat rails and is therefore not suitable for control cabinets. .

Discover the BRICK series

Discover the WINDBOX range

Discover the RUGGED range