Custom Compact Flash
Compact Flash—also written as CompactFlash or CF—is a widely used type of storage for consumer and industrial markets. Although consumer grade CF cards are easy to find and use, industrial CF cards are different. Consumer CF is a removable form of storage, while industrial CF is embedded storage specifically designed to meet the unique needs of industrial applications and operating environments. For industrial users, custom Compact Flash cards are essential for ensuring that their embedded storage works as efficiently as possible. If you are considering custom Compact Flash for your embedded storage, here is what you need to know.
Understanding Compact Flash
Compact Flash was one of the first flash storage devices available. It was first introduced to the market in 1994 as a flash storage solution for portable consumer devices. However, the benefits of flash storage made it of interest to the industrial market as well. Prior to the shift to flash memory, embedded memory consisted of HDDs, or hard disk drives. Though HDD storage has the advantage of offering very large capacities, it also has several downsides that are especially relevant to industrial users.
HDDs work by recording data on a spinning disk. For every read and write operation, the disk has to fire up and start spinning, which has two drawbacks for industrial users. One is that the process of starting up can be slow. The other is that the spinning disk is prone to mechanical failures that can impact data storage. The disk is even more prone to these kinds of errors in industrial conditions, where high levels of shock and vibration are common.
Flash memory has no moving parts. In addition, it is capable of tolerating the extreme temperatures that are common in industrial operating environments. Typically, industrial flash can withstand temperatures ranging from -40 degrees C to 85 degrees C.
Ordering Custom Compact Flash Cards
In terms of design, CF cards have significant potential for customization, but not every manufacturer offers custom options. Many Delkin customers initially find us because of our extensive customization offerings for all of our industrial embedded storage products. You could be a good candidate for CF customizations if you have a unique physical form factor requirement, have specialized testing or optimization needs, or need to consider changing the kind of flash used in your memory cards. We can also provide cosmetic, electrical, packaging, and environmental customizations.
When you work with Delkin, a customer applications specialist will work closely with you to determine which kinds of customizations can be the most useful for you. We provide custom and proprietary form factors, as well as manufacturing and testing optimizations for specific host and application needs. Content or image loading can be included, as can private labeling, packaging, and pad printing. We can add your chosen conformal coating or mechanical ruggedized customizations to increase tolerance of environmental conditions. Additionally, we can include your chosen serialization or other tracking system in your CF card design.
Delkin offers the most extensive range of industrial CF storage on the market, and pairs that selection with a wide range of customizations. Contact us today to get answers to your questions or to request an engineering sample.
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