The SECO SOM-COMe-CT6-Dragonwing-IQ-X presents embedded product engineers with one of the first computer-on-module (COM) solutions to feature Qualcomm’s latest Dragonwing IQ-X series processors. Industrial-grade options, Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN), and support for up to 4 high-resolution displays make the SOM-COMe-CT6-Dragonwing-IQ-X ideal for mission-critical applications like unmanned vehicle systems, where highly correlated data is best displayed to operators across multiple independent screens.
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) have redefined military reconnaissance through advanced, technology-driven insights that support sensitive campaigns while distancing intelligence and combat teams from potentially dangerous areas. Since these devices are remotely operated, system architects face a unique challenge in relaying high-bandwidth, correlated data streams back to operators—with minimal latency and in a way that is easy to understand.
Ground control stations (GCSs) often use multiple high-definition (HD) monitors to grant direct access to a vehicle’s multiple camera angles, lidar and thermal sensor insights, and general performance metrics. However, driving many independent displays typically requires bulky PC setups that are unsuitable for resource-constrained mobile command posts. In short, size, weight, power, and cost (SWaP-C) considerations directly impose limits on the practicality of unmanned vehicles in certain scenarios.
For wider deployment flexibility, UAVs and UGVs require highly efficient computing platforms that are tightly integrated so that GCSs are easier to set up, transport, and run. These platforms must also operate reliably in punishing environments, which makes finding a suitable edge computing system difficult.
COM-based design for SWaP-C optimization
To meet the required portability of multi-screen GCSs, system architects and engineers must first find a SWaP-C-aligned alternative to expensive custom PCs. Open computer-on-module (COM) standards offer compact, highly integrated computing platforms that are well aligned with strategies like the Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA), making them a good fit when designing military equipment.
Open COM-based design provides additional advantages through commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) solutions that offer:
- A solid platform for accelerated application development
- Supply chain resilience
- Interchangeability between COMs of the same standard and type—reducing the chance of vendor lock-in
Generally, COMs are mounted on a custom carrier board that houses the complete system. This allows the central computing core to be easily replaced with more powerful or efficient models for incremental improvement without costly carrier board or more extensive product redesigns, extending equipment lifecycle.
Dragonwing IQ-X drives mission-critical ground control stations
SECO’s SOM-COMe-CT6-Dragonwing-IQ-X provides the high performance needed to support multi-screen GCSs in a SWaP-C COM Express (Compact) form factor that measures just 95 x 95 mm. With 12 VDC power options and industrial-grade variants for operation from -40°C to +85°C, it is well-suited for field environments where portability and robustness are key.
The SOM-COMe-CT6-Dragonwing-IQ-X is built around a Qualcomm Dragonwing IQ-X processor, which offers a custom Oryon 12- or 8-core CPU based on the energy-efficient Armv8.7-A architecture. For low-latency data visualization on multiple monitors, the integrated Adreno GPU accelerates graphics performance by up to 3.8 TFLOPS. The complete processing pipeline is supported by up to 64 GB soldered LPDDR5X to reduce bottlenecks when handling multiple HD video feeds and high-bandwidth sensor data.
When mounted on an appropriately designed carrier board, the SOM-COMe-CT6-Dragonwing-IQ-X supports up to 4x independent displays, each running at 60 Hz with a maximum resolution budget of 5120×2880 + 4096×2160 + 4096×2160 across all outputs. A GCS built on the SOM-COMe-CT6-Dragonwing-IQ-X could use for example:
- The 5K display for primary intelligence where detail matters most, such as ground-facing camera feeds from a UAV.
- Two 4K displays for front and rear camera feeds, supporting 360° vision that provides a constant picture of the surrounding environment.
By lowering the resolution of these displays, a fourth display allows additional information—such as telemetry or satellite mapping data—to be shown separately for additional insights without obscuring visual feeds.
Alongside its video capabilities, the SOM-COMe-CT6-Dragonwing-IQ-X incorporates a wide range of interfaces, including PCI-e Gen 4 and USB4 to support GCS peripherals like controllers and removable storage. A single NBase-T Ethernet port (up to 2.5 Gbps) with Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) enables ultra-low latency communication with other equipment like man-portable radar. Correlated off-vehicle data can then be fed into the GCS for additional information that improves situational awareness.
Out of the box, the SOM-COMe-CT6-Dragonwing-IQ-X offers extensive security functions to protect the device from third-party tampering. The initial Windows 11 IoT Enterprise OS provides stability and ease of use for operators, with Linux support envisioned for more specialized application development.
Enhancing insights through edge AI and sensor fusion
For next-level analysis that surpasses raw data observation, the SOM-COMe-CT6-Dragonwing-IQ-X includes an additional artificial intelligence (AI) processing core—the Hexagon neural processing unit (NPU)—that provides up to 45 TOPS of edge-AI performance. This enables developers to build advanced GCSs that can, in real time, highlight important features in data—such as people, vehicles, and buildings—to support operators in identifying potential threats.
By also leveraging sensor fusion, the GCS can provide additional insights that would be difficult to gain from a single source. For example, by correlating thermal and optical camera feeds, a GCS could indicate the presence of camouflaged entities while allowing the operator to retain a full optical view of the scene. Tactical overlays of this nature ensure that potential threats are made visible without overloading operators with excessive feeds.
To integrate this functionality into GCS platforms, developers must first train AI models. The SECO App Hub provides examples of AI vision models for tasks like people counting, pose detection, and scene analysis. While direct support will become available for Dragonwing IQ-X, this resource is useful for accelerating AI model deployment using other SECO hardware.
A robust platform for advanced reconnaissance
As technological advancements enable more high-bandwidth sensors to be fitted onto unmanned military vehicles, displaying data for operators becomes increasingly challenging. To this end, developers are seeking SWaP-C-aligned computing platforms that increase GCS portability and allow UAVs and UGVs to operate using minimal resources.
The SECO SOM-COMe-CT6-Dragonwing-IQ-X offers an innovative platform which empowers mobile command centers to ditch bulky PCs in favor of streamlined but still rugged multi-screen GCS setups. With its support for up to 4x independent high-resolution monitors and TSN, the SOM-COMe-CT6-Dragonwing-IQ-X can provide full visualization of mission-critical data. And this makes additional insights possible through sensor fusion and edge-AI inference to increase tactical advantage.
Head to seco.com to explore SECO’s full range of edge computing solutions, from COMs to fully integrated human-machine interfaces (HMIs).