WHITE PAPER�

MEDICAL MOTHERBOARDS:PRESCRIBING FOR THE FUTURE

// 2

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY // 3

INTRODUCTION: A DYNAMIC MARKET // 4

MOTHERBOARDS: REQUIREMENTS // 4

DIAGNOSTICS AND DIGITIZATION APPLICATIONS // 4

KONTRON MOTHERBOARDS: // 5 MEDICAL AND HEALTHCARE

MADE IN GERMANY: QUALITY ASSURED // 7

SUMMARY // 7

WHITE PAPER // www.kontron.com

CONTENTS�

// 3WHITE PAPER // www.kontron.com

Embedded motherboard controllers are the lifeblood of critical medical equipment and healthcare systems. With the continuing impact of the IoT on the medical sector and the latest demands of increasingly complex diagnostic and laboratory applications, what more can motherboard manufacturers offer solutions developers designing with the future in mind?

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The healthcare and medical equipment market is growing and changing rapidly. The connectivity and scalability of the Internet of Things (IoT) is harnessing new techno­logies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Augmented Reality (AR) bringing unprecedented opportunities. Medical diagnoses can be made faster and more preci­sely and positively contribute to the treatment and healing of patients. The many possibilities have already progressed to enabling real­time, intelligent applications, adding practical value to patient care while also reducing costs. At the same time, in the laboratory there is a strong requirement for automation and digitalization in the field of analysis, diagnostics and research.

In order to deliver the right solutions at the right time, medical systems designers and developers are placing increasing demands on embedded computing providers. These must offer not only embedded products of the highest quality, but also provide added value including specific knowledge and expertise in the medical sector, global technical support, and extended product life­cycles.

This whitepaper considers the implications of the rapidly advancing IoT on the medical equipment market and embedded systems designers and developers before discussing how latest motherboard and processor developments can help in bringing to market their next generation medical solutions. Here, key factors include time to market, performance, reliability, and product lifetime.

Kontron, as a leading embedded computing technology manufacturer, is committed to helping major medical OEMs develop equipment that is simpler to operate, costs less, and enables connected healthcare using IoT. As part of the company’s response to customer require­ments are its latest ‘Designed by Fujitsu’ motherboards.

// Kontron offers a broad range of motherboards „Designed by

Fujitsu“ that are ideal for different medical applications

// 4WHITE PAPER // www.kontron.com

MOTHERBOARDS: REQUIREMENTS

DIAGNOSTICS AND DIGITIZATION APPLICATIONS

Performance and flexibility Motherboards specified for embedded PCs used in medical imaging and automated laboratory and digitization equipment must more than ever before enable real­time processing, low power consumption and usually strong graphics capability. For these types of medical imaging and laboratory automation/digitization applications embedded PCs using the latest x86 based processors are very well­suited, enabling very flexible solutions when combined with the varied choice of form factors available. Offering a balance of processing performance, graphics capability, and low energy consumption, there is a multitude of processor options available. Leading embedded motherboard manufacturers such as Kontron now include the Intel® Xeon® E­21xx/E­22xx series, Intel® Core™ i9/i7/i5/i3 (8th/9th Gen) series and the Intel® Pentium®/Intel® Celeron® series. In addition, there are Intel® Celeron® Processors J4005/J4105 options as well as the Intel® Pentium® Processor J5005. For very demanding applications the Intel® Core­X­Processors Series is also supported.

INTRODUCTION: A DYNAMIC MARKET Non­invasive medical imaging solutions with powerful computer­aided diagnostics are in growing demand: for tomography (MRT, CRT) systems, ultrasound, endos­copy and other diagnostic devices including mobile solutions. Many other areas of medicine including radiology, cardiology and orthopedics can also poten­tially benefit. In radiology, for example, X­ray images can be stored in ways that aid more precise and rapid diagnoses. With the help of AI, the error rate of diagnoses can also be significantly reduced, for example, in identifying skin and breast cancer.

In addition to patient care requirements, there is a growing trend towards increased automation and digitalization in the laboratory, for diagnostics appli­cations and research. For example, computer­controlled pipetting robots now provide support in a large number of laboratories to increase the efficiency in handling reagents. Furthermore, the IoT is revolutionizing health­care infrastructure for capturing, analyzing, storing and sharing data. The more medical data becomes available for analysis and unification, the better AI will become at supporting medical professionals when undertaking complex analytical tasks.

Therefore, as the market for IoT­enabled medical systems continues its rapid ascent, OEM medical equip­ment builders and Systems Integrators are facing many new design challenges. In turn, this puts even further emphasis on the capabilities of the embedded mother­board controllers at the heart of medical solutions.

EMBEDDED CONTROLLER DESIGN REQUIREMENTS

� Real­time processing� Powerful graphics � Flexibility – choice of form factors � Reliability 24/7 systems availability� Security� Durability� Long term availability� Cross platform flexibility and stability

// Schematic representation of a CT

produced in Germany. This followed Kontron taking on all future responsibility in 2019 for Fujitsu’s predo­minantly EMEA based motherboard customers, many of which provide medical systems as well those for casino gaming, thin clients and industrial PCs.

The "Designed by Fujitsu" range offers cross­platform stability in layout design and thus easier integration. This is complemented by their design which enables a family approach for optimized quality and reliability in operation. Many of these products have a lifecycle of at least six years plus an option for XLC extended lifecycle. This offers an additional year life cycle to facilitate, for example, transition to successor devices.

All Kontron motherboard products provide extensive documentation and ensure compliance to worldwide medical regulatory standards.

KONTRON ‘DESIGNED BY FUJITSU’ MOTHERBOARDS Kontron offers a comprehensive range of motherboards to fit a wide range of medical equipment and laboratory analysis applications including medical imaging, robotic sample analysis and automated diagnostics, emergency room information displays, and patient infotainment solutions. These products are available with a wide

Reliability plus stability However, performance is not the only requirement. Of equal importance is product design which must offer inherent reliability bearing in mind medical systems are often subjected to 24/7 operation. Longevity, reliability and stability are other key factors because of the lengthy development times and long lifetime expect­ations of embedded medical systems and devices.

In order to ensure a smooth transition, there must be an overlap period between the old devices and the successors. This usually means the design process for new replacement designs will commence within three to four years of the current product’s market introduction. The embedded PCs are often purposely designed as swappable replacements. For example, a complete recording unit may not be replaced after five or 10 years, but only after much longer use. However, the interface, the PC, will probably need replacing or upgrading due to new developments in the environment, or newer technology requirements. Therefore, it is always advantageous if housing dimensions, cable lengths and other integration components can be retained.

However, it is crucial that changes to motherboards are only made when absolutely necessary, thus ensuring the highest possible revision stability. If changes are necessary they should always be communicated to designers and developers at an early stage via a strict lifecycle management process.

KONTRON MOTHERBOARDS: MEDICAL ANDHEALTHCARE SECTOR Kontron offers a broad range of high quality longevity motherboards from Mini­STX to full size ATX. They are based on the latest processors and chipset platforms, and utilize advanced technology components. For longe­vity, all motherboards follow international industry size standards with well­defined mounting holes and stand­ard I/O bracket areas.

Recently Kontron has extended and enhanced its motherboard portfolio with a range of “Designed by Fujitsu" products which have also been developed and

// 5WHITE PAPER // www.kontron.com

TYPICAL MEDICAL MOTHERBOARD LIFE CYCLE

� Design­in phase of 6­16 months including final regulatory approval

� A sales period of 5 years � Useful life of up to 10 years

Timeline

Board Series

Timeline

Board Series

// 2013: D3231­S

// 2018: D3641­S

// 2016: D3441­S

Kontron offers a range of purpose­designed mother­boards to meet these requirements: The D3544­S mSTX, for example, combines a small footprint and low power consumption with strong graphics performance ­ using DP connectors for up to 4K displays. It can support Intel® Celeron® J4005, J4105 processors as well as the Intel® Pentium® J5005.

The D3543­S mITX also supports these processors and is equipped with extension slots for PCIe and M.2 and connectors like USB 3.1 Gen1, 2x DP V1.2 and 4x COM. Another option is the Kontron D3634­S mITX which features the cost­optimized Intel® H310 Express Chipset and supports Intel® Core™ i9/i7/i5/i3 (8th/9th Gen) processors or the Intel® Pentium®/Intel® Celeron® series up to 95 W TDP.

Reliable 24/7 operation and an enhanced operating temperature range are common to all.

Endoscopy Performance plus small footprint are absolute perqui­sites in Endoscopy applications ­ for allowing easy integration into portable devices. Motherboards must be able to combine compute performance with strong graphics functionality for allowing camera images to be grabbed and freeze­framed while real­time image analysis takes place. Connectivity is also important, providing the flexibility of connecting wirelessly or over fixed Ethernet into the hospital network.

choice of x86 processors and form factors, from Mini­STX, ideally suited for use in small, energy­saving, and powerful computer systems; Mini­ITX which is mechani­cally compatible with ATX motherboards; Micro­ATX or µATX offering easy backward­compatibility with ATX as the mounting points are in the same places and come with a full range of integrated peripherals; and ATX, the well­accepted PC standard for all types of PC systems.

Imaging – X-ray / CT scanning In digital imaging­based applications, such as X­ray and CT scanning, power rather than physical size is the priority. High processing performance is a must along with the flexibility to add powerful graphics cards for image grabbing and processing.

The Kontron D3646­S ATX and D3641­S µATX (Micro­ATX) are both well­equipped for such applications by combining power with high functionality. The D3646­S also includes 5x PCI Express® and 2x PCI sockets for allowing powerful graphics capabilities in workstations applications. Both products support a wide choice of processors such as the Intel® Xeon® E­21xx/E­22xx processor series, as well as Intel® Core™ i9/i7/i5/i3 (8th/9th Gen) and the Intel® Pentium®/Intel® Celeron® processor series. Both offer extended manageability with the latest Intel® AMT 12.0 and vPro. Furthermore, the D3641­S µATX is equipped with the highly performant Intel® C246 Express Chipset.

These motherboards are designed and approved for 24/7 continuous operation with an enhanced tempe­rature range up to 60 °C.

Laboratory Analysis In laboratory applications, motherboard design requirements typically revolve around one or all of the following: processing power, low energy consumption, and physical size. Such demands are necessary for efficiently managing a wide cross­section of automated lab diagnostics and analysis applications. These will include, for example, controlling robots that collect reagents from probes, and enabling sample and data visualization on small screen displays.

// 6WHITE PAPER // www.kontron.com

// D3646­S ATX

// D3544­S mSTX

// D3633­S mITX

The company’s design excellence is a result of over 35 years of experience in the development of motherboards ­ largely automated on CAD systems to ensure optimized functionality, testability and manufacturability. Exten­sive simulations, product validation and release tests guarantee reliability under all operating conditions. For materials, only qualified and audited suppliers are utilized with all new components having to pass exten­sive qualification process before they are released into series production. The company’s full­automated produc tion facility follows stringent quality assurance procedures and includes automatic optical inspection (AOI), electrical in­circuit tests with needle adapters, final function tests, and final visual inspection.

SUMMARY As the demands for IoT­enabled embedded medical computer systems become increasingly demanding and complex, the right choice of motherboard solution and supplier is more mission critical than ever. An embedded manufacturer experienced in the specific needs of OEM medical equipment and systems providers will greatly reduce project risk with purpose­designed products, optimized lifecycle and support, and flexible, state­of­the­art manufacturing facilities. With the recent integration of Fujitsu’s EMEA motherboards business, Kontron has further consolidated its leading position as a global embedded boards and systems provider to world­leading medical systems OEMs, enabling exten­sive product choice, flexibility and stability.

With these requirements in mind, the Kontron D3633­S mITX offers a convenient right­sized solution. Suppor­ting the Intel® Core™ i9/i7/i5/i3 (8th/9th Gen) and Intel® Pentium®/Intel® Celeron® processors, it is also equipped with the highly performant Intel® Q370 Express Chipset. The highest functionality on a small­sized surface is guaranteed with Intel® AMT 12.0 and vPro support, 2x Intel® GbE LAN and a BIOS configurable PCI Express® Slot (Bi­Furcation) It is designed and approved for enhanced operating temperature range up to 60 °C and for 24/7 continuous operation.

MADE IN GERMANY: QUALITY ASSURED Kontron closely combines the very best medical systems design and production talents with state­of­the­art manufacturing from its Technology Campus in Augsburg, Germany. With many of the world’s leading medical equipment OE manufacturers being based in Germany, Kontron therefore offers the added value and peace of mind of short delivery times, low transport costs, and competent direct from manufacturer support.

Company sales and technical support personnel are based on­site and have direct access to Kontron’s Medical Competence Center where experts specialized in all aspects of medical embedded systems design are available. They can offer immediate advice on regulatory compliance issues, hardware, BIOS development, custo­mi zation and production needs.

// 7WHITE PAPER // www.kontron.com

For more information about Kontron embedded motherboard solutions for medical systems visit: https://www.kontron.com/industries/medical/products/motherboards

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GLOBAL HEADQUARTERS

KONTRON S&T AG

Lise­Meitner­Str. 3­5 86156 Augsburg, GermanyTel.: + 49 821 4086­0 Fax: + 49 821 4086­111info@kontron.com

www.kontron.com

About Kontron – Member of the S&T Group

Kontron is a global leader in IoT/Embedded Computing Technology (ECT). As a part of technology group S&T, Kontron offers a combined portfolio of secure hardware, middleware and services for Internet of Things (IoT) and Industry 4.0 applications. With its standard products and tailor­made solutions based on highly reliable state­of­the­art embedded technologies, Kontron provides secure and innovative applications for a variety of industries. As a result, customers benefit from accelerated time­to­market, reduced total cost of ownership, product longevity and the best fully integrated applications overall.

For more information, please visit: www.kontron.com