Front Panel Description
Front panels are attached to the face of the circuit card and used as face plates so
the CCA can be attached to a chassis card cage. Front Panels may be blank or contain
cut-outs for components, mezzanine cards or connector pins.
Refer to the
Filler Panel page to cover empty chassis slots.
Front Panel Manufacturers
Gompf Brackets
{CompactPCI front panels and PMC bezels, Face-plates}
Keystone Electronics Corp.
{PC Card Computer Brackets, EISA/ISA, PCI}
Phillips Components,Inc
{cPCI Front Panel, VME Front Panels, PMC Bezel Panels, PCI Brackets}
Pixus Technologies
{AdvancedTCA Faceplates, cPCI Front Panel, VME Front Panels}
Design Guideline; If required specify that the card cage is recessed back
from the front of the chassis. A recessed card cage or subrack will tend to keep
operators from bumping into any controls or cables located on the front panels of the
cards installed in the chassis.
Design Comment; If a Flush vertical subrack is ordered there will be no room for
the installation of a front door to the chassis and a Flush vertical subrack will also
expose front mounted components or cables to damage.
Design Recommendation; Always request a recessed subrack when a front door is
used with an equipment chassis. If the subrack is not recessed there will be no room
for any cable bend radius for cables running from front panel to front panel. The
distance the card cage should be recessed off the front of the chassis depends on the
bend radius of the cables used.
Design Consideration; Requesting a recessed card cage may require the chassis to
grow in length. Normally making the chassis longer will have no effect because an
equipment rack is always much deeper than an equipment chassis. However; an over-sized
chassis my need to be special order, and my no longer be COTS equipment. Also, there
may be weight requirements that need to be considered when designing a chassis.
Panel Mount LED
Manufacturers of Card Cage Blank Panels
How To Specify a Equipment Chassis; Index page
