Product category: Embedded Computing and Control
News Release from: Blue Chip Technology | Subject: ETX embedded boards
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial Team on 16 February 2004
Embedded board brings new
dimension to POP display
The computer system required to drive the latest generation of point of purchase multimedia displays has very exacting requirements for performance, functionality, footprint and cost
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Anyone who has seen the sci-fi films "Blade Runner" or "Minority Report" will have seen the future of point of purchase (POP) media - tailored, dynamic messages employing electronic digital image content. The company Screenplay is part of this evolution, offering screen-based communications for the retail sector that change by time and location to maximise retail profit via sales/margin growth, media income and brand-driven visit frequency.
But the vision needs an engine: enter Blue Chip Technology, leading UK provider of industrial computer systems, boards and solutions.
The computer system required to drive these POP media has very exacting requirements for performance, functionality, footprint and cost - this system is gondolaPlay, a Screenplay product developed in partnership with Blue Chip Technology.
Blue Chip Technology already has an enviable track record in custom developments across a spectrum of industries.
Screenplay came to Blue Chip with a brief for an "edge-of-shelf" solution, with a sleek low-profile facia, which didn't muscle in on product shelf space, which could listen and react to ambient noise and give maximum impact at the shelf edge.
Image quality was paramount, needing to be as clear as it was flexible in getting a promotional message to customers - even as they are reaching out to select their choice from the array of shelved goods in front of them.
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"We found Blue Chip Technology really listened, they understood our requirements and were flexible and innovative in their response", commented Chris Savage, Managing Partner at Screenplay.
"They really share Screenplay's commitment in bringing a best in class POP display solution to the market", he added.
Blue Chip Technology's solution fended off rival bids to provide the computing power behind Screenplay's suite of POP screen media.
Screenplay is currently running pilots across the UK.
Initial trial feedback is generating compelling evidence that digital point of purchase media has a significant influence on buying behaviour.
In terms of space, Blue Chip had little room for manoeuvre in designing a system with Pentium 4 performance, Flash memory, video port, USB, power over Ethernet, 32bit colour capability and nonstandard native resolutions including 800 x 480.
"Working with a small footprint always raises thermal management issues", recalled Barry Husbands, Blue Chip MD, "but the Blue Chip solution achieved a 25% reduction in power consumption over the nearest rival bid".
The gondolaPlay unit consists of a computer system powering a slim, high-resolution, 7in TFT screen which sits neatly into existing "edge-of-shelf" displays.
The computer smarts tuck under the shelf below, housed in a compact aluminium box measuring 160 x 40 x 225mm.
A 1GHz CPU, ETX single-board computer lies at the heart of the gondolaPlay solution.
The ETX computer card is feature rich, system-on-module, designed to surface connect onto a cheaper host board, which can incorporate bespoke layouts.
"The ETX solution was perfect for Screenplay's product", said Husbands.
"It addressed the need for specialised, high performance multimedia capabilities, space constraints and the commercial pressures of 'time to market'.
This sort of solution combined a very attractive package of benefits in terms of pricing, performance and development costs".
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