Industrial computers have been around almost as long as the desktop PC. Arguably the first mainstream computer designed for industrial use was the IBM 5531 released in 1985 and since then industrial PCs have become commonplace and are used throughout industry controlling processes and/or data acquisition.

Industrial PCs are designed to be rugged and withstand many of the harmful elements found in industrial locations. Many industrial PCs are solid state, meaning they have no moving parts and often are known as industrial panel PCs as they have a display incorporated into the computer making it a single device.

Touch screens are commonplace amongst industrial PCs too as they implement both an input and output device in one unit and are far more robust than standard display devices.

There are however, drawbacks in using industrial PC’s one of the problem with industrial PC is that they are often solid state can cannot be repaired or upgraded by users. If the device goes down often whatever process the computer was controlling has to be stopped until a service engineer arrives to fix the problem.

For this reason, industrial PCs are built to be as reliable as possible. One way the manufacturers do this is to uses tried and tested components. Often the components in an industrial PC are selected for their reliability rather than performance and while this means there is less chance of a break down in the industrial computer, it does mean that most industrial PC’s are using technology that was surpassed nearly a decade ago by conventional PC’s.

Obviously some processes require more computing power than others and often industrial PC’s are not up to the task they have been built for. A solution to these problems is to use conventional PC equipment such as a standard desktop. These can be encased in an industrial computer enclosure. These enclosures protect the standard PC from the harmful elements in the industrial environment including dust, water, heavy impacts and extreme temperatures meaning that these PC enclosures can be used anywhere where a conventional industrial PC is used.

Not only does this means you can select what technology you want the computer to run with if there are any problems the computer enclosure can be opened and the internal PC repaired or replaced without having to wait for a service engineer.

The industrial computer, industrial PC, panel PC or rugged PC are all names for computers designed to work in conditions not really suitable for sensitive electronics such as factories, warehouses and production plants. All industrial computer systems have to be tough to resist many of the hostile elements that persist in such environments.

Industrial PC’s has to operate in extreme conditions and has to be resilient to them all which could include:

Dust – will block filters and drives of a conventional computer, over-insulate which causes over-heating and even short circuit conventional equipment. In some areas dust can form potentially explosive clouds meaning any electrical device not only has to be protected from the dust but the dust has to be protected from any potential sparks from the device.

Water – used in many industrial processes, particularly in food production, where all equipment has to be able to cope with being washed down (often with a high pressure hose/jet wash).

Extreme temperatures – some industrial PCs have to operate in freezers or chillers where they are expected to function at minus 30 centigrade. Whilst some computers are tasked to operate near furnaces or other processes where temperatures can rise extremely high.

Heavy impacts/vibrations – industrial areas can be physically hazardous too with fork-lifts zipping about and heavy machinery moving around. Any computer operating in these needs to cope with heavy impacts or the vibrations caused by industrial processes.

Conventional computers are now frequently being used in industrial areas thanks mainly to the protection offered by industrial computer enclosures. These computer cabinets offer all the protection of an industrial PC, defending against dust, water, temperatures and heavy impacts etc but with the added flexibility of a standard Pc allowing the device to be upgraded/repaired at will.

Factory floors can be hostile areas. Dust, dirt, heavy machinery and liquids such as water liberally used to wash down equipment makes the factory the last place digital signage would be expected be implemented.

However, more and more industrial sectors are seeing the advantage of using LCD and plasma screens to relay important information to production staff. Digital signage is perfect for this role as the screens are more visible than printed signs and the information can be changed at will.

The only problem with using digital signage in factory conditions is that most of these areas are just not suitable for LCDs and plasmas to function in. The dust and dirt prominent in many factory areas will clog up the LCD and cause it to overheat, shortening the life and risking potential short circuit or even fire.

In factories like food production facilities the problem is made worse by the prevalence of water that is used to wash down equipment and surfaces. Any water that even splashes on a conventional LCD or plasma can instantly cause the device to short circuit and permanently disable it. Obviously complete wash down is absolutely out of the question which could prevent digital signage from being used as it is often a prerequisite of food manufacturing plants that all equipment has to be washed down.

Fortunately, waterproof factory plasma and LCD enclosures are designed to allow conventional TV screens to be used in factory conditions. The LCD enclosure completely protects the digital signage and allows it to be washed down. LCD enclosures not only prevent water from penetrating into the LCD but also will prevent any dust from getting in too making them ideal for allowing digital signage in industrial areas.

How the food distribution industry was revolutionised by heated printer enclosures:

Printers and barcode labels for stock control in the food industry does not only make things easier, in an age of traceability and sell by dates  they are crucial in monitoring food products as they are stored. Barcode printers especially have taken the headache out of monitoring perishable goods as a simple scan will input all he information a computer needs.

Barcodes are printed from conventional or industrial printers and placed on food items to allow large amounts of information to be stored simply and without fuss, ensuring products are distributed with complete traceability and confidence.

Most large retailers such as the big supermarkets distribute most food stuffs from large regional distribution centres which include chilled and frozen sections where deliveries can be loaded and unloaded directly into the chillers and freezers.

However, this does pose a problem for the stock control of food items as no printer, including industrial printers, can work in sub-zero temperatures. This is because print heads are extremely sensitive to heat and any temperature falling close to zero degrees will fail permanently, meaning any printing of food labels in these large distribution centres has to be done in a warm office location. Now, when you consider the size of many of these regional Freezer or chilled distribution centres (FDC.CDC) can often mean a thirty minute walk from some unfortunate employee.

But it is not just workers shoe leather that gets affected. The turn around for transport in these centres is also impinged upon which too has a knock on effect throughout the distribution chain causing:
•    Disruption to the transport schedules as drivers have to wait for labels before they are unloaded/loaded
•    Take  up the time of staff members who have to regularly walk to the printer and back which could often be in excess of thirty minutes
•    Hinders labelling and cause problems in stock control and the potential for products to be labelled incorrectly
•    The delayed transport effects the stock levels in the supermarkets, deterring customers who couldn’t buy the products they wanted

Many of the larger food retailers managed to find a solution by using a heated printer enclosure. These allow standard printers to be used in temperatures that fall to below -30 degrees. The enclosures keep the printer and more specifically print head warm allowing the device to be used in the middle of the freezer section.
Once installed these heated printer enclosures drastically reduce the turnaround time of transport to these centres, improves operations and logistics and prevents the possibility of incorrect labelling.

Whilst digital signage hasn’t been with us very long the concept of putting plasma and LCD screens outside was inevitable considering the rapid growth of the new media. Outdoor digital signage does of course pose challenges as any display has to be protected from the elements.

IP65 and IP66 are often used to describe the outdoor capabilities of a digital advertising system such as an LCD or plasma but the rating system is much misunderstood, so exactly what is IP65.

The IP rating system is a European guideline that stands for ‘Ingress Protection’. The IP rating is used to denote all electrical equipment enclosures and the protection they offer against any foreign body. There are two digits after the letters IP, the first number denotes the protection from solid objects, such as dust, dirt and even fingers; the higher the number the better the protection.

The second number demonstrates the protection the enclosure offers against liquids, again the higher the number the better protection. In our outdoor digital signage example, IP65 is most commonly used. This is because it offers excellent protection against solid objects (6 suggests the enclosure is dust-tight and impossible for anyone to make contact with internal parts using fingers or appliances). Whilst the second digit, 5, suggests that while the LCD enclosure cannot be submerged in water it is completely resistant to splashing and pressure washing.

Sometimes IP66 is used to describe the protection of outdoor digital signage, offering slightly better waterproofing than an IP65 although the difference is marginal and denotes the strength of water jets it could resist. Obviously for outdoor signage any LCD enclosure would need to be protected form the rain rather than high pressure water jets.

There is a common misunderstanding about the IP rating system. It is often assumed that IP is a quality mark – it is not. The IP standard is a self-certified system meaning anyone can build an LCD enclosure and claim it is IP65 rated, however, this is no guarantee that the device will operate effectively outdoors although it does mean the product has been sold with that intent. For any outdoor digital signage application it is better to speak to the manufacturers and ask how there enclosures offer protection and what engineering is used in their assembly.

LCD enclosures have helped in the expansion of DOOH (digital out of home) advertising outdoors with all-weather protection that has increased the number of applications that outdoor digital signage has been used for.

Whilst still a new media, digital signage has traditionally been an indoor method of advertising and information, however, thanks to LCD enclosures the expansion seems to have no ends with LCD enclosures protecting plasmas and LCDs in a myriad of locations from petrol stations, theme parks, shopping malls and even car parks.

Advertising is just one application for digital signage, the uses of this new media are almost endless and can include:
• Public information, news, maps, fire doors etc.
• Corporate messages, employee information, health and safety information, work loads.
• Advertising, right up to point of sale
• Building brand image
• Influencing customer behaviour by targeting information
• Reduce customer anxiety, keeping people entertained or informed in queues
• Create good company image, digital signage looks far better than conventional print advertising

The expansion of outdoor digital signage has opened the door for many of these applications to find their way outside. LCD enclosures not only offer waterproof protection but due to their robust designs and solid steel casings make them vandal and theft proof too allowing piece of mind when the outdoor digital signage device is left unattended.

Its not just outdoor digital signage that benefits from these enclosures either, many LCD enclosures are installed in factories and other hostile areas where high levels of dust, water and other harsh elements would damage an unprotected LCD or plasma.

The growing use of LCD and plasma screens for digital out of home advertising (DOOH) shows no sign of letting up. One of the main areas where this growth is expanding is in the use of outdoor digital signage, helped largely to the development of LCD enclosures that allows display use in outdoor and hostile locations.

Part of the problem in using TV screens for digital advertising and information is that while the technology has fallen dramatically in cost, the fragility of the systems has previously prevented its use in outdoor and hostile areas.

LCD enclosures protect standard LCD devices by keeping out many of the hostile elements that can damage or permanently disable a TV screen. They are particularly useful for the purposes of outdoor digital signage because they prevent rain and other weather elements from penetrating through the enclosure and damaging the LCD.

Many of these LCD cabinets are built and designed under European and international guidelines the most widespread of these for outdoor digital signage is the IP 65 (EU guidelines: ingress protection) and the NEMA 4 code (National Electrical Manufacturers Association). These codes stipulate the design requirements that the enclosures are built and the hostile elements they can protect against.

Outdoor digital signage is now springing up in many locations thanks to the expanded use of these enclosures allowing display screens to be left in any area included unprotected and unmanned location.

Despite the falling cost of LCD screens, theft and vandalism have also been a deterrent for installing digital signage outdoors. LCD enclosure are often built from extremely solid steel and offer plenty of vandal proof protection most of these units have sturdy anti-tamper locks too ensuring the  digital signage is protected from more than just the elements.

There is no getting away from technology they have altered our daily lives, changing the way we live and work. Traditionally devices like computers have only been sited in offices and homes but the advantage of using a processor to control industrial processes is obvious in that it will save money, reduce waste and improve efficiency.

However, computers are not designed to operate in dusty or wet conditions and neither do devices such as LCD displays or other digital signage devices like plasmas.

Industrial computers, touch screens and flat panel industrial TVs are on the market and while they are durable and reliable devices they are not very flexible. Industrial computers for instance are made from extremely reliable but older components with a typical industrial PC having less than a quarter of the processing power of a contemporary desktop.

There are alternative solutions though with standard devices such as computers, printers, LCD TV’s, touch screen monitors and other display devices able to withstand the potentially harmful elements of the factory floor by being protected by an industrial computer enclosure or LCD enclosure or printer enclosure etc.

By using standard devices you can decide on the equipment your factory requires rather than buy equipment on the basis that it is the only available that will survive. Industrial computer cabinets and lcd enclosures will protect any standard device from the harsh elements of the factory floor ensuring it will last just as long as an industrial device but with an enclosure that when the computer, printer or LCD does  finally fail (they all do eventually) – another off-the-shelf device can be slotted in within moments.

Digital signage is still a very new industry and as such it often draws a lot of confusion from people unaware as to exactly what it is and whether its implementation is worth it for their business. In short, digital signage is the use of  LED, plasma and LCD display screens in public areas for the purposes of informing and advertising.

There a re multitude of different names for this new media too: digital out of home advertising (DOOH), digital advertising, digital posters, electronic signage etc. but they amount to the same thing, using TV technology for the purposes of signage.

There are almost an infinite number of applications for its use too from banks, bars, cinemas, hotels, nightclubs, pubs, shops, airports, museums and shopping malls. There has also been a growing rise in the use of outdoor digital signage thanks largely to the increasing number of manufacturers that produce waterproof LC D enclosures allowing the signage to be left in all weathers.

Its uses range too from advertising to information although there is an increasing trend to combine the two with many suppliers of signage systems offering free equipment for information purposes on condition they can sell advertising space too.

However, not all return on investment is as obvious and many organisations, particularly small business are unsure of the potential ROI of any signage system. While there are clear benefits to using this new media such as grabbing customer’s attention and influence their decision even at the point of purchase. Digital signage is instant too and offers the ability to change promotions immediately targeting various products or customers. It can also be a lot cheaper and more flexible than print ad campaigns.

The winner of the UK’s 2009 Apprentice show winner is to work in Sir Alan Sugar’s new digital signage company. This year’s winner of the BBC TV show, Yasmina Siadatan will be teaming up with last year’s winner Lee McQueen at Amscreen.

The restaurant owner who last week beat fellow finalist Kate Walsh is to head the healthcare sector of Amscreen that installs LCD systems into clinics and doctor’s offices.

Sir Alan is the latest in a long line of established business entrepreneurs to have moved into the digital signage industry due to its increased expansion even in the current economic crisis.

Amscreen are involved in providing digital signage systems free of charge to doctor’s waiting rooms to allow the medical centres messages to be displayed to waiting patients. In return Amscreen sell accompanying advertisements that generate revenue.

Surgeries are the latest in a long line of new applications for this growing media. Another area where there has been a huge expansion of LCD technology is the outdoor digital signage market, where LCD and plasma screens are sited outside premises and in public areas.

For outdoor use many of these systems protect the LCD and plasmas using outdoor LCD Enclosures. These cabinets for LCDs protect the display device from the elements allowing them to function without risk of damage due to rain, sleet or snow.

LCD enclosures are also used in industrial or factory shopfloor areas, protecting the digital signage from damage caused by splashing water, dust, dirt, heavy impacts and extreme temepratures