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2.3
ETX® Benefits
Embedded technology extended (ETX®) modules are very compact (~100mm square, 12mm thick),
highly integrated computers. All ETX® modules feature a standardized form factor and a standardized
connector layout that carry a specified set of signals. This standardization allows designers to create a
single-system baseboard that can accept present and future ETX® modules.
ETX® modules include common personal computer (PC) peripheral functions such as:
Graphics
®
Parallel, Serial, and USB ports
®
Keyboard/mouse
®
Ethernet
®
Sound
®
IDE
®
The baseboard designer can optimize exactly how each of these functions implements physically.
Designers can place connectors precisely where needed for the application on a baseboard designed to
optimally fit a system's packaging.
Peripheral PCI or ISA buses can be implemented directly on the 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 component simplifies packaging, eliminates cabling, and significantly reduces system-level cost.
A single baseboard design can use a range of ETX® modules. This flexibility can differentiate products at
various price/performance points, or to design future proof systems that have a built-in upgrade path.
The modularity of an ETX® solution also ensures against obsolescence as computer technology evolves.
A properly designed ETX® baseboard can work with several successive generations of ETX® modules.
An ETX® baseboard design has many advantages of a custom, computer-board design but delivers better
obsolescence protection, greatly reduced engineering effort, and faster time to market.
Kontron User's Guide ETX®-CN8
9
2 Introduction
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