Diamond Systems GEMINI PCI/104-Express Carrier Boards and SBCs for COM Express Compact Type 6 Modules

Small rugged systems built on PC/104 stacks often need a newer processor than traditional PC/104 SBCs offer, without giving up existing PCI-104 modules. The Diamond Systems GEMINI series answers that with a COM Express carrier on a PCI/104-Express board that combines a Compact Type 6 module with full PCI/104-Express expansion, and a choice of module from many manufacturers.

Each GEMINI takes any COM Express Compact Type 6 module, and Diamond lists modules from Apollo Lake to Core i7, Xeon and Ryzen. The module mounts on the underside, with a heat spreader below it serving as mounting base and cooling surface. The carrier provides two HDMI outputs and dual-channel 24-bit LVDS for up to three independent displays, two Gigabit ports (one from the module and one on an Intel I210), four USB 2.0 and two USB 3.0 ports, four RS-232/422/485 ports, HDA audio, eight digital I/O lines and an Infineon TPM 2.0. Storage is an M.2 2242 SATA socket for up to 512 GB and a SATA connector.

The GEM-BB01 is the carrier board without a module, in a Core / Xeon PCIe configuration. It suits teams that choose and fit their own COM, and it keeps the design open to later module upgrades. Choosing the COM separately also gives early access to new processor generations and a longer product lifecycle. The datasheet also lists complete GEMINI SBCs with an 8th Gen Intel Core i7-8665UE module and 16 to 64 GB of RAM.

Expansion covers PCI-104 for up to four modules and PCIe/104 Type 1 with four PCIe x1 links and one x16 link where the module supports it, plus a full-size PCIe/USB MiniCard socket. Input is 16 to 34 V DC, and the carrier alone draws 2.4 W at 28 V. The carrier is rated -40 to 85 °C, with the final system range set by the installed COM. Latching I/O connectors add resistance to shock and vibration, and the board uses its full edge length for I/O connectors in the smallest size Diamond considers practical for this feature set.