By Evan Ackerman
When I hear something called “explosion proof,” I can’t wait for somebody to violently disprove the claim. The Ruffneck computer seems to take things pretty seriously, though: it’s approved for ATEX Zone 1 applications and HAZLOC environments, which means that (basically) it won’t spontaneously blow up or cause any other stuff to spontaneously blow up, even if it’s around things that are likely to do so. This is a bit disappointing, since it seems as though when they say “explosion proof,” what they really mean is that the computer itself won’t cause explosions. Well, that makes it a lot less fun, but here are the specs anyway:
“Based on a single board computer with an Intel® Pentium® M 1.6 GHz processor, the Ruffneck Zone 1 features a 15” diagonal LCD flat [touch]screen and can be configured with up to 2 GBytes of DDRAM and a 40 GBytes hard drive (CompactFlash-based solid state storage is optionally available). The unit offers two network options including wireless Ethernet, and features a watchdog timer and software dimming. It supports Microsoft’s Windows XP operating system.”
It’ll operate from -40 to 140 degrees Fahrenheit, weighs in at 45 pounds, and should survive “careless or abusive operation.” What about if I’m careless and abusive enough to leave it next to something that’s exploding, hmm?
[ Military Embedded Systems ] VIA [ Engadget ]
