Case Study: Transportable Control Centre

Introduction

An international company specialising in autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) required a transportable control centre for a new application: the remote operation of vehicles used for harbour and coastal surveillance. While the client had in-house engineering resources, these were fully committed to ongoing AUV product developments.

BVM was commissioned to design, manufacture, and certify a control centre solution suitable for marine environments. After consultation, an industrial PC integrated with an HMI within a Pelicase enclosure was selected to provide both portability and a robust, rugged platform capable of withstanding challenging operational conditions.

Delivery of the first prototype was required in a relatively short timescale (10 -12 weeks).

The Design

The transportable control centre was built into a custom-machined Pelicase, optimised internally for all components while maintaining ruggedness and portability. Key design elements included:

• 18.5” High-Brightness TFT Display: Full HD 1920 × 1080 resolution, 1,000 Nit LED backlight, projective capacitive touchscreen for sunlight readability and wide viewing angles.
• Computing Engine: 3.5” SBC with Intel i7-8665UE CPU, mounted directly on a custom copper and aluminium heatsink to manage thermal output efficiently.
• Memory & Storage: 16GB SODIMM PC2666 DDR4 wide-temperature memory and 1TB mSATA3 SSD (MLC) with power and data guard for secure storage.
• Embedded Power Supply: 150W 12V DC unit designed for reliable operation under varying field conditions.
• Custom Cooling Solution: Heatsink fins exposed through the base of the Pelicase for optimal heat dissipation.
• Connectivity: Network and fibre interfaces, plus all client-specified connections, engineered for waterproof and dust-proof operation.
• Operating System: Bespoke Windows 10 IoT image optimised for reliable, mission-critical performance.

Additional design considerations included:

• Sealed Aluminium Bezel: Display and connectors were mounted in a water-tight bezel, maintaining IP67 integrity when the Pelicase lid was opened.
• Embedded EMC Protection: SBC enclosed in an aluminium housing to ensure electromagnetic compatibility while directly mounted to the heatsink.
• Minimal Penetrations: All necessary fittings penetrating the Pelicase structure were fully sealed against water and dust ingress.

The Result

The production-ready transportable control centre successfully:

• Achieved IP67 and EN 60529 certification, meeting all environmental and ingress protection standards.
• Passed conducted and radiated emissions and susceptibility testing for regulatory compliance.
• Delivered excellent sunlight readability with high-brightness display and wide viewing angles.
• Operated reliably across a temperature range of -20°C to +50°C, verified through extensive thermal chamber testing.
• Incorporated all client-specified external connectivity, including HDMI output and waterproof I/O, providing a rugged, fully operational solution for coastal and harbour surveillance.

The result is a highly portable, rugged control centre capable of delivering reliable performance in demanding maritime environments, combining industrial computing power, advanced thermal management, and fully waterproof design.