The main focus of MEN Mikro Elektronik is on mobile and safety-critical solutions. The MIPIOS® Ethernet switches are designed to withstand extreme environmental conditions.
The robust 220mm x 130mm x 70mm device conforms to EN 50155 and IP67 standards, allows solid wall-mounting and protects against violent impacts. This qualifies the switches for the use in harsh and critical environments. The entire switch is specified for an operating temperature of -40°C to +70°C, soldered to withstand shock and vibration, and prepared for conformal coating. In addition, the switches are certified according to E1 of the German federal motor transport authority. This makes them fit for the use in utility vehicles such as agricultural or construction machines, but also trains, buses or cable cars, and in industrial automation.
The new MIPIOS switches are available as managed and unmanaged versions. The eight fast Ethernet-channels at the front are accessible via robust M12 connectors and support full and half duplex, fast non-blocking store-and-forward switching and autonegotiation as well as layer-2 switching.
Further advantages make the Ethernet switches reliable components in the communication system: they are fault-tolerant and will work again after the disturbance without any restart or reset necessary. Integrated self-test mechanisms complete their functionality.
In addition to its eight ethernet connectors, the managed RS3 switch is also equipped with a service and a power port at the front, which are also accessible via M12. The service port provides an easy way to configure all channels individually. An external dongle, a command line interface (via RS232, Telnet or SSH) or SNMP (version 3) makes maintenance very easy, too, for example when the switch is used in a vehicle or in automation applications. RS4 is the corresponding unmanaged variety with a fixed management configuration, which can be exactly tailored to each application’s requirements using a configuration EEPROM.
What is MIPIOS?
MIPIOS is a family of extremely rugged modular computer components such as box computers, Ethernet switches, PSUs and I/O devices. The units were designed for wall mounting or DIN-rail mounting, even in extreme and mobile applications, and communicate with each other using Ethernet. The stainless aluminum enclosure, which all MIPIOS products have in common, is dust and water-proof according to IP67 and protects against violent impacts. With a maximum power dissipation of 10W, MIPIOS products are always fanless; conduction cooling takes the heat to the outside of the housing. All electronic components are soldered to withstand shock and vibration and are prepared for conformal coating. MIPIOS complies with the EN 50155, class Tx railway standard, and runs in a -40°C to +70°C operating temperature environment.