COM HPC

What is COM-HPC?

COM-HPC® is a new Computer-on-Module standard designed specifically for High-Performance Computing. It does not replace the COM Express® standard, but extends the Computer-on-Module idea to very powerful client and server-class processors, providing an unmatched infrastructure of high-end interfaces. COM-HPC® is governed by the PICMG industrial group where it has recently been created by an international workgroup consisting of COM manufacturers including Avnet Embedded /MSC, semiconductor companies and infrastructure providers.

COM-HPC® Properties

Emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine vision, edge computing and 5G network infrastructure require new levels of system throughput and interconnect bandwidth. The new COM-HPC® standard is well equipped for addressing ever increasing work load demands. PCI Express connectivity at Gen 4 and 5 speed can scale up to 65 lanes. Multiple network options allow for Ethernet ports covering 1G to 100G bandwidth. A variety of module form factors ranging from small to tall provide the right mix of board flavors for different performance classes. The new form factors support high performance CPUs with the need for high power and sufficient cooling, large memory arrays and I/O rich feature set.

COM-HPC® Client
49x PCIe
2x MIPI-CSI
2x 25GbE KR
3x DDI
2x BaseT (up to 10 Gb)
2x SoundWire, I2S
4x USB4
4x USB 2.0
2x SATA
eSPI, 2x SPI, SMB
2x I2C, 2x UART
12x GPIO

COM-HPC® Server
65x PCIe
8x 25GbE KR
BaseT (up to 10 Gb)
2x USB 4
2x USB 3.2
4x USB 2.0
2x SATA
eSPI, 2x SPI, SMB
2x I2C, 2x UART
12x GPIO

For COM-HPC®, new mezzanine connectors are employed which warrant superior signal transmission characteristics for ultra-high-speed interfaces such as PCIe Gen 5, USB 3.2 and 100GbE.
Two types of COM-HPC® interface schemes are specified to serve different classes of applications. COM-HPC® Server enables an extended bulk of PCIe lanes and Ethernet ports and is well suited for server and communications applications requiring very high system throughput and extensive I/O connectivity. COM-HPC® Client focuses on graphics oriented tasks such as in gaming, medical or surveillance applications, and comes with a variety of graphics interface options, while still providing decent I/O connectivity on PCIe and network. To span a wide range of applications and meet different performance classes a variety of module form factors are available.

Three formats are primarily intended for COM-HPC® Client computer modules:
Size A: 95 x 120 mm
Size B: 120 x 120 mm
Size C: 160 x 120 mm

For COM-HPC® Server modules, two form factors have been defined:
Size D: 160 x 160 mm
Size E: 200 x 160 mm