ATHENA IV  COM Express PC/104 SBC with integrated Data Acquisition

Athena IV baseboard with COM installed; heat sink removed for illustration purposes Athena IV with heat sink installed A COM-based SBC consists of 3 elements: carrier board, COM, and thermal solution	FEATURES COM-based architecture for long product life and performance scalability Integrated professional quality data acquisition circuit saves space Downward stacking PC/104 ISA bus connector supports a wide range of I/O modules for easy system I/O expansion M.2 2230 SATA socket supports up to 128GB flashdisk Form factor and most connectors backwards compatible with previous generations of Athena for easy product migration Heat sink cooling 5VDC input voltage 4.175 x 4.475" / 106 x 114mm W x H -40/+85°C operation fanless Windows 10 and Ubuntu Linux OS support SBC features: Choice of E3845, E3940, or E3950 Atom CPU 4-8GB RAM soldered on COM 2 gigabit Ethernet ports VGA + Single-channel 24-bit LVDS 1 USB 3.0 port + 4 USB 2.0 ports 4 RS-232/422/485 serial ports with dual software/jumper configuration control HDA audio (ALC262) 7-pin SATA connector plus M.2 2230 socket On-board RTC backup battery plus external battery connector Data acquisition subsystem features: 16 single-ended / 8 differential analog inputs 16-bit A/D resolution Unipolar and bipolar analog inputs Single-ended and differential input configuration Programmable gain 1/2/4/8 providing input ranges +/-10V / 0-10V down to +/- 1.25V / 0-1.25V 150KHz maximum A/D sample rate, single-channel and multi-channel mode Internal clock / external clock / software A/D triggering Single-channel and multi-channel-scan A/D operation Interrupts with FIFO to support reliable high-speed sampling 4 12-bit single-ended analog outputs +/-10V, +/-5V, 0-10V and 0-5V output ranges Autocalibration with Universal Driver software maintains accuracy over time and temperature 24 digital I/O, 3.3V logic / 5V tolerant inputs 2 programmable counter/timers for A/D timing and general counting purposes Up to 128GB eMMC Flash integrated onto COM

Athena IV is the fourth generation in the Athena family of rugged, wide-temperature PC/104 SBCs with Integrated data acquisition, extending back to the original Athena in 2004. Athena IV is an excellent choice for:

• Customers using previous generations of Athena seeking to extend the lifetime of their existing product;
• Customers seeking to replace an obsolete PC/104 SBC with a newer generation one to extend their existing product's lifetime; or
• Customers seeking to build a PC/104 system expected to have a long lifetime.

Maintaining a legacy for long life applications

Each generation of Athena maintained the same physical shape and most of the I/O connectors and features of the previous generations, while updating key features to stay current with the state of the art. In this way the Athena platform has maintained a low-impact migration path for customers with extended product lifecycles that outstrip the lifetimes of the CPU. Many customers have been able to maintain their products for up to 16 years as a result.

Click here to view a comparison chart of the features and differences between Athena II, Athena III, and Athena IV.

Mass storage

Athena IV offers two methods for mass storage:

• An M.2 2230 size SATA socket is provided for onboard mass storage. Modules up to 128GB are available. This is the most common choice.
• A standard 7-pin SATA connector is available for connecting a standard 2.5" or other form factor hard drive. This connector can be used when higher capacity storage is needed. Diamond offers accessory board ACC-HDDMOUNT which allows a 2.5 drive to be mounted on the PC/104 stack.

PC/104 expansion

Athena IV uses the rugged and widely supported PC/104 ISA bus for I/O expansion. Choose from hundreds of I/O modules from vendors all over the world, including our own extensive selection using the links below. Although the board has both top side and bottom side PC/104 connectors, bottom side mounting of I/O modules is preferred to avoid blocking airflow over the top-side heat sink on Athena.

PC/104 specifications are available here.Learn more about PC/104 here.

Analog I/O expansion modules

Digital I/O expansion modules

Serial port expansion modules

Development Kit

Development kits are available to support quick project startup. Each kit includes the Athena SBC, a cable kit, and a programmed 64GB flashdisk with your choice of Windows 10 or Linux operating system, ready to run. Simply plug in the flashdisk, attach the cables, add your keyboard, mouse, and display, and you're ready to boot into a fully functional OS. Configuration files and instructions are provided to rebuild the OS with your application. The Linux kit includes all the tools needed to rebuild the OS. The Windows 10 kit includes a runtime license.

Cable Kit

Athena IV is designed to use most of the same cables as previous generations of Athena, along with upgrades for the latest technology. New with Athena IV is a second gigabit Ethernet port which is backwards compatible with the original board's 10/100 connector along with a USB 3.0 cable.

Cables are normally sold as complete kits. Individual cables may be available in some cases or may be ordered with minimum order quantities; contact us for details.

CK-ATH4-01 includes the following cables:

COM Advantage

Advantages of a COM-based architecture

Athena IV uses a COM Express Type 10 "mini" Computer-on-Module (COM) to provide the core CPU functionality, mounted on a carrier board that provides the PC/104 expansion and the remaining I/O circuitry.

The use of a COM instead of a directly soldered CPU circuit provides several key advantages and benefits:

• Higher feature density: A 2-board solution provides twice the PCB area in the given footprint, allowing more circuitry and more features to be included.
• Longer lifetime: Since all COMs in a given form factor support essentially the same features, if the COM becomes obsolete or unavailable, a newer one can be used in its place, usually with minimal re-engineering.
• Performance scalability: COM Express modules are available from a number of suppliers around the world with multiple processor and memory options, allowing a single design to be used for a range of applications. For a lower-end application, choose a low-power, low-performance COM. For a higher end application, choose a higher performance COM. In both cases the rest of the system remains identical, allowing your investment in engineering and product design to be reused multiple times.
• Earlier access to newest generation CPUs: Most processors enter the market initially in the form of COMs. By using a COM-based SBC, you can gain access to the latest generation of CPU sooner than waiting for a true SBC with that processor to be available. Again, upgrading is simple since the rest of the system remains unchanged.

Data Acquisition

Integrated Data Acquisition

Athena IV is a member of Diamond's 2-in-1 series of SBCs with integrated data acquisition. For applications requiring precision analog I/O, a 2-in-1 SBC is an ideal choice because it reduces the number of boards in the system, resulting in a system that is smaller, lighter, lower cost, and easier to assemble and maintain.

The data acquisition circuit on Athena IV includes 16 channels of 16-bit A/D, 4 channels of 12-bit D/A, and 24 channels of digital I/O. The analog inputs feature single-ended and differential configuration, programmable input ranges, and fault-protected channel multiplexors to protect against overvoltages. The D/A channels feature programmable output ranges and simultaneous update capability. Both A/D and D/A circuits include Diamond's advanced autocalibration technology, enabling the board to be quickly calibrated in software without the use of trimpots that are subject to tampering, mis-adjustment, or shock and vibration. The A/D and D/A circuits feature lower noise, higher bandwidth, and more configuration flexibility than competing analog I/O circuits.

All Diamond's analog and digital I/O circuits are supported by our Universal Driver programming library for Windows and Linux. This software package includes a suite of demo programs in source and executable form. A convenient GUI program supports quick and convenient operation of all I/O features and can be used for rapid prototyping as well as system debugging.

Ordering Information

Models and Accessories

Athena IV Available Models: ATH4-E3845-4GA Athena IV SBC, E3845 1.91GHz CPU, 4GB RAM, With DAQ Min Order Quantity ATH4-E3845-4GN Athena IV SBC, E3845 1.91GHz CPU, 4GB RAM, No DAQ (minimum order quantity applies) Min Order Quantity ATH4-E3940-8G064A Athena IV SBC, E3940 1.6GHz Quad Core CPU, 4GB RAM, With DAQ Available Buy Now ATH4-E3940-8G064N Athena IV SBC, E3940 CPU, 8GB RAM, 64GB eMMC, With DIO Available ATH4-E3950-8G128A Athena IV SBC, E3950 CPU, 8GB RAM, 128GB eMMC, With DAQ Available Buy Now ATH4-E3950-8G128N Athena IV SBC, E3950 CPU, 8GB RAM, 128GB eMMC, With DIO Available ATH4-BB01A Athena IV Baseboard, with DAQ Available ATH4-BB01N Athena IV Baseboard, without DAQ Min Order Quantity DK-ATH4-E3845A-LNX64 Development Kit, Athena IV SBC, E3845 CPU, with DAQ, Linux 64-Bit BSP Available DK-ATH4-E3845A-WE1064 Development Kit, Athena IV SBC, E3845 CPU, with DAQ, Windows 10 64-Bit BSP Available DK-ATH4-E3940-8G064A-LNX64 Dev Kit, Athena IV SBC, E3940 CPU, 64GB eMMC, Linux 64-bit OS Available DK-ATH4-E3940-8G064A-WE1064 Dev Kit, Athena IV SBC, E3940 CPU, 64GB eMMC, Windows 10 64-bit OS Available DK-ATH4-E3950-8G128A-LNX64 Dev Kit, Athena IV SBC, E3950 CPU, 64GB eMMC, Linux 64-bit OS Available DK-ATH4-E3950-8G128A-WE1064 Dev Kit, Athena IV SBC, E3950 CPU, 64GB eMMC, Windows 10 64-bit OS Available SDK-ATH4-E3845A-LNX64 Software Development Kit, Athena IV SBC with DAQ, Linux 64-bit OS Available SDK-ATH4-E3845A-WE1064 Software Development Kit, Athena IV SBC with DAQ, Windows 10 64-bit OS Available SDK-ATH4-E3940-8G064A-LNX64 Software Dev Kit, Athena IV SBC, E3940 CPU, 64GB eMMC, Linux 64-bit OS Available Buy Now SDK-ATH4-E3940-8G064A-WE1064 Software Dev Kit, Athena IV SBC, E3940 CPU, 64GB eMMC, Windows 10 64-bit OS Available SDK-ATH4-E3950-8G128A-LNX64 Software Dev Kit, Athena IV SBC, E3950 CPU, 64GB eMMC, Linux 64-bit OS Available Buy Now SDK-ATH4-E3950-8G128A-WE1064 Software Dev Kit, Athena IV SBC, E3950 CPU, 64GB eMMC, Windows 10 64-bit OS Available Please login or signup for an online quote request.

Available:	This model is generally available from stock. It is a mainstream or focus product in active promotion.
Coming soon:	This is a preview of an upcoming product or model. Contact Sales for an expected availability date.
EOL:	End of life. This product is no longer in production, but it may still be available in stock or manufacturable. Contact Sales if you are interested in buying this product. If there is no stock on hand, then a minimum order quantity will apply.
MOQ or Minimum Order Quantity:	This model is not generally stocked but is buildable on demand. If we have it in stock you may purchase up to the available quantity. If it is out of stock then a minimum order quantity is required to meet the factory minimum lot size. This designation usually applies to less popular models of a current product or older products that have low customer demand. Contact Sales for further information.

Cables and accessories Available Models: CK-ATH4-01 CK-ATH4-01 cable kit 6981009 Cable, Power I/O, Stranded x9 to Trim wires x9, 12"L 6981006 Cable, Power Out, 4 pos Female to 22013047 4 pos and 22013067 IDC Skt 4 pos 6981011 Cable, Panel Input / External Battery, 770602-2 2 pos to stranded wire 2 pos, 6"L 6981080 Gigabit Ethernet cable, RJ-45 socket, 10 pin board connector 6981086 Gigabit Ethernet cable, RJ-45 socket, 12 pin board connector 6980603 Cable, FCI 2x5 2mm latching to USB 3.0 type A panel mount 6981012 Cable, USB, 10-Pin Hdr to Dual USB skt w/ pnl mt inserts, 12"L 6981014 Cable Assy, 80 Pin Socket, 2x20 to 4x Serial DB9M 6981030 Cable, VGA, 2x4 .1" to DB15F HD, 12"L Ribbon 6981031 Cable, Audio, 2x5 .1" IDC F to x3 3.5mm Jack, 12"L Ribbon 6989101 SATA Cable, 7-Pin Data, Straight to Right Angle, 500mm C-50-18 50-conductor .1" pitch 18" ribbon cable Please login or signup for an online quote request.

Available:	This model is generally available from stock. It is a mainstream or focus product in active promotion.
Coming soon:	This is a preview of an upcoming product or model. Contact Sales for an expected availability date.
EOL:	End of life. This product is no longer in production, but it may still be available in stock or manufacturable. Contact Sales if you are interested in buying this product. If there is no stock on hand, then a minimum order quantity will apply.
MOQ or Minimum Order Quantity:	This model is not generally stocked but is buildable on demand. If we have it in stock you may purchase up to the available quantity. If it is out of stock then a minimum order quantity is required to meet the factory minimum lot size. This designation usually applies to less popular models of a current product or older products that have low customer demand. Contact Sales for further information.