How to Mount an Industrial Computer (IPC)

How do I Mount an Industrial Computer (IPC)?

There are several options available to mount an industrial computer (IPC) to keep it safe, cool, and out of the way including wall mounting, VESA mounting, DIN rail and rackmount. When validating computer hardware it’s important to look not just at the internals such as CPU, RAM, and storage. You also need to consider how it will interact with the environment around it, including how to mount the PC. The deployment spaces for your IPC vary greatly from the basic on or below the desk of your home PC. Typically, our customers will mount PCs directly on equipment, in enclosures, or in specialty areas where it would greatly benefit from securing the PC. Whatever your requirement is for securing your PC, we’ve got you covered. What are the different types of mounting hardware available?

Can you spot the mounted industrial computer?

Wall Mount your Industrial Computer

Wall Mounting is one of the most common ways to mount your PCs. These mounts are designed to use two mounting ears extending from the system in order to secure your system to any flat surface.. It offers a flexible way to use your PC, and safely secure your hardware where it is needed.

VESA Mounting for your Industrial Computer:

Developed by the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA), this type of mounting was designed to mount televisions, monitors, and panel displays to matching mounting equipment. You may be familiar with this from the TV mounted on your wall or you could be reading this on a system with dual monitors that are held up by a VESA arm mount. This type of mounting is commonly used to attach our Panel PCs to flexible arms that allow equipment operators to move them around.

Alternatively, most monitors come with VESA holes already, so if you are using the desk stand that comes with your monitor you can mount an OnLogic PC directly to the back of your monitor. This is common in workstation applications where space is at a premium. It is important to know the mounting hole size of your device vs. the mounting hardware. Common sizes for OnLogic systems that support VESA mounting are 75mm x 75mm or 100mm x 100mm.

Mount your Industrial PC on a DIN Rail

A DIN Rail is a common piece of mounting hardware for industrial equipment that uses a fixed size metal bar to hang equipment off of. This is common in the industrial space as it allows you to put multiple devices close together such as PLCs, Protocol Converters, and power supplies next to each other in your enclosure. The two ways a system can mount are either flat on the bottom or turned 90 degrees on their Edge. The best orientation  will depend on your application and available surface area, but if space is at a premium Edge is usually best.  Consider the total amount of space you have available vs. the devices you’ve selected for your system to optimize the benefits of DIN Rail mounting.

Rackmount your Industrial PC

Most commonly used for servers, rackmount mountable systems allow you to use your existing rackmount cages. Our line of rackmount PCs is ready to be mounted into your enclosure. Note that the height of a rackmount is referred to as a “U” which is ~1.5”. This is a standardized measurement so that you know how much space you have available for different devices. If you just prefer the form factor and would just like a fanless PC in a rackmount chassis we can mount many of our low profile IPCs into our rackmount adapter.

Choosing How and Where to Mount your Industrial Computer is a Key Specification

Choosing how and where to mount your computer is just as important as looking at your CPU, storage, or power needs. Depending on where you mount could greatly change your specifications. Consider the difference between mounting next to or directly against a chemical mixer that is subject to vibration. 

If you mount directly to the machinery you may need to consider a system with shock and vibration rating and flat mounting hardware vs. a VESA mountable PC on the operator station next to the tank. Whatever your application, OnLogic can help find the right PC for you paired with the right mounting options to maximize the function of your system. Get started today on our online store or speak with one of our solutions specialists.