The GRiD range of portable, man-worn rugged hardware is designed for use in the deployed environment to run Situational Awareness, Reconnaissance, Surveillance, Targeting and Force Protection applications. All GRiD portable rugged Laptops, Tablets and Servers contain Hot-swap Batteries to ensure a constant power source during mission-critical times, whilst also being able to maintain an extremely low EMC profile.
GRiD light-weight Laptops and Tablets were created specifically to be worn/carried on the man. Whilst reducing the overall size and weight of the product range, GRiD continue to implement the same sealing and design principals that ensure products remain rugged and able to meet necessary Defence and Military Environmental and EMC Standards.
All GRiD products are designed to run from either an internal Hot-swap Battery or from an external DC Power Source. Hot-swap Battery capability allows products to be continuously operated without the need for downtime as the application is maintained for a period whilst the Battery is swapped. Equally, products can be powered from one main power source, with the internal Battery being removed to save weight.
We sought advice from those who would be using the Hardware and designed products based on this input from end-users. Details such as the small (5.6”) size of the GRiDCASE 1510 Rugged Laptop, specifically manufactured to fit within standard uniform webbing and the full IP68 sealing of the unit were borne from detailed discussions with those on the front line.
GRiD deployable products have been rigorously tested and developed for use on the man. Each product is fully sealed to IP67, with some of the smallest products such as the GRiDCASE 1510 Laptop qualified to IP68 to allow Soldiers to move from dry to wet terrains with ease without having to consider whether their portable computer is in a waterproof case.
Every GRiD Rugged Laptop, Tablet and Server is built using our own electronics and filtering to maintain extremely quiet EMC profiles. The entire product range is machined from solid aluminium tool plate to block electromagnetic fields and all associated cabling is fully shielded to prevent noise. Furthermore, GRiD Rugged Display Panels contain an EMC Window to avoid both Radiated Emissions and Radiated Susceptibility. GRiD products have been extensively tested and qualified to both UK (DEF STAN 59-411) and US (MIL-STD 461) EMC Standards to ensure that they do not interfere with Radios or other equipment in the immediate vicinity.
A number of our products are also fully qualified to TEMPEST SDIP-27, preventing unintentional emission of data from any GRiD system. All GRiD products use the same design concepts and although they may not be fully aligned, TEMPEST capability is supported by the EMC performance of the product range.
Don’t be fooled by the compact size of the GRiD handheld product range. Although smaller than your average PC, every GRiDCASE Laptop, Tablet or Server runs full versions of Windows and Linux to keep up with the demands of military applications. We are not restricted by the mobile operating systems being run on some of the other small form factor computers on the market and support full Computer Windows and Linux Operating Systems.
GRiD use Resistive Touchscreens which rely on pressure rather than capacitance to detect a touch. This means that a gloved hand can be used (reliably) to interact with the Hardware as well as a stylus, human finger, pen or literally any type of item to register a touch. Resistive Touchscreens are also fully operational in the rain and do not emit any EMI radiation.
Capacitive Touchscreens are reliant on a finger to disrupt the constant charge running across the Display and by their very nature, emit EMI noise which can interfere with other equipment such as radios. They also do not work reliably in the wet or in dusty environments.
Our products are designed to withstand the very harshest environments for the life of the programme. Where commercial products become obsolete within a couple of years, GRiD products have a 15-year life. We achieve this by being the OEM and carrying out all of the design of our computers in-house here in the UK, using Intel® Embedded Processors. By taking control of the configuration of our products, we avoid the potential shock faced by our commercial competitors of a connector change or firmware upgrade that may make your system redundant without warning.
Have you ever purchased rugged computer, integrated the hardware into your system, qualified the system and then come to buy the production quantity of computers two years later only to find that the product has changed? Avoid this frustration, wasted time and cost with GRiD.
GRiD manufacture a range of rugged military hardware which is configured to suit the needs of individual project demands.
