DFI EC900-8MM NXP i.MX 8M Mini DIN Rail PCs with Dual GbE, 2x or 4x COM and Extended Temperature Options

A control cabinet rarely needs a full x86 PC to bridge serial devices onto Ethernet, but it does need something that runs Linux reliably, draws little power and fits on the rail beside the PLC. The DFI EC900-8MM series is a family of small DIN rail PCs built for that job, on the NXP i.MX 8M Mini, in two fanless sheet metal cases: the slimmer EC900 and the taller EC910. Both cases share the same processor, software image and DIN rail mounting, so one design can cover cabinets with different serial needs.

Every EC900-8MM build shares the same core. The quad-core Arm Cortex-A53 runs at up to 1.8 GHz with a video engine, memory is LPDDR4 on board, and storage is 8 GB of eMMC with a microSD socket, running Yocto 3.3 Linux on kernel 5.10. I/O covers two GbE ports, two USB 2.0 ports, HDMI at up to 1080p, RS-485 and RS-422 on terminal blocks and 4-bit DIO. An M.2 E key slot takes optional Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, and an M.2 B key slot with a Nano SIM takes an optional LTE module. Power is 9 to 36 V DC at 6.4 W maximum.

The EC900 case keeps two RS-232 ports on internal headers: the EC900-8MM-1GB carries 1 GB, the EC900-8MM-4GB 4 GB, and the EC900-8MM-4GB-WT 4 GB with a -40 °C to 70 °C rating. The EC910 case brings those RS-232 ports out on DB9 for four serial ports in total: the EC910-8MM-1GB and EC910-8MM-4GB are the -5 °C to 60 °C builds, the EC910-8MM-2GB-WT and EC910-8MM-4GB-WT the wide temperature builds, and the EC910-8MM-4GB-WT-TPM adds TPM 2.0 and TrustZone for gateways that hold keys and certificates in hardware.

In practice the EC900-8MM series suits protocol conversion, MQTT and OPC UA gateways, energy metering, building services and telemetry outstations, plus small HMI screens over HDMI. Standard builds are rated from -5 °C to 60 °C and the WT builds from -40 °C to 70 °C, with vibration testing to IEC 60068-2-64, and DFI lists CE, FCC Class A, UKCA and RoHS compliance across the EC900-8MM range. We typically see the standard builds in indoor control panels and plant rooms, and the WT builds in roadside, utility and rooftop enclosures without heating. Where a project needs a different memory or temperature combination, we can advise on the closest build in DFI’s ordering table.