With the in-depth digital and intelligent transformation of the healthcare industry, OCR identification and detection technology has become increasingly critical in medical production processes. Not a single minor defect or key set of data can tolerate the slightest error. APQ having been deeply engaged in industrial computing for many years. Relying on the outstanding performance of PCxxxCQ series industrial panel PCs, APQ has assisted a leading equipment manufacturer in the healthcare industry to successfully tackle the challenges of OCR visual inspection, achieving an ideal balance between cost reduction and operational stability.
Case Background: Seeking a Stable and Reliable Computing Foundation
This client is a leading enterprise in China’s healthcare testing equipment sector, with business covering three major segments: ophthalmic optics, biopharmaceuticals, and medical devices.With the launch of its OCR visual inspection project, the client planned to introduce edge computing devices with higher precision, reliability, and integration into its new production lines. These devices are used to address issues such as missing printing, wrong codes, incorrect code information, and unclear code information on product packaging boxes, inkjet cartons, and three-date labels.Leveraging APQ’s strong product capabilities, this project has been entered the small-batch testing phase.
Customer Requirements: Striking the Optimal Balance Between Cost and Stability
1. Pursuit of ultimate cost performance
Being price-sensitive, the client hopes to replace the original assembled computers with a more cost-effective solution, on the premise that industrial-grade stability is fully satisfied.
2. High stability requirements
The assembled computers used in the original production line suffered from insufficient stability. The client explicitly requires the new product to support 7×24 hours of continuous and stable operation.
3. Technical adaptation and compatibility
The new equipment must enable seamless connection and be highly integrated into the existing OCR visual inspection modules, placing higher demands on interface richness and system compatibility.
APQ Solution: Iterate Steadily with Stability as Priority
To address the client’s needs, APQ provided the PC series industrial panel PCs based on the ADLN platform for matching, and designed a redundant solution for the client, which can be upgraded to the more powerful ADLP platform according to computing power requirements. This solution precisely meets all demands of the OCR visual inspection scenario.
01 Cost-Effective Vision Processing Platform
Equipped with Intel® Alder Lake N platform CPU and integrated Intel® UHD Graphics, it delivers efficient graphics processing power for OCR recognition algorithms, ensuring fast and accurate character recognition.
02 Rich I/O Interfaces and Flexible Expansion
Integrated dual Intel® Gigabit Ethernet ports enable stable connection of GigE industrial cameras, light source controllers, and high-speed data exchange with host computers.
4*front-facing USB 3.2 ports and 2 COM ports enable real-time communication with PLC, facilitating connection to various vision cameras, hardware security dongles, barcode scanners, sensors, and actuators for centralized processing of production line data.
Standard 8-channel GPIO module supports connection to input/output (I/O) devices such as photoelectric switches, fiber optic sensors, encoders, alarm lights, and solenoid valves.
Reserved M.2 Key-B/E slots support WiFi, 4G/5G wireless expansion, leaving sufficient room for future digital and networked upgrades of the production line.
03 High Reliability and Stable Supply Guarantee
All-aluminum die-cast chassis with IP65-rated front panel and fanless dust-proof cooling design, suitable for harsh industrial site environments and ensuring long-term stable operation.
Wide voltage input and wide temperature adaptation: Supports 12~28V wide voltage input, operating temperature of 0~50℃, and storage temperature of -20~60℃, fully meeting production environment requirements.
Long-term supply guarantee: APQ has a robust product lifecycle management (PLM) system, which can meet customers' stringent requirements for configuration continuity and change notification.
04 Easy Maintenance & Cost Reduction
Featuring an access window on the chassis cover, it enables easy and rapid upgrade and maintenance of core components including memory and SSD, drastically cutting operation and maintenance (O&M) costs and time.
Solution Results: From "Replacement" to "Trust"
Up to now, APQ's PC Series has been steadily delivered to the customer's site and successfully integrated into the core link of their OCR visual inspection.
Smooth replacement of original assembled PCs: Leveraging stable operation performance, APQ’s products are gradually replacing the original assembled PC equipment at the customer's site.
Achievement of cost reduction goals: By providing optimized performance configurations and streamlined BOM costs, we helped the customer achieve a smooth upgrade from assembled PCs to branded industrial panel PCs while ensuring inspection accuracy.
Passed technical verification: In continuous operation tests, APQ’s devices demonstrated extremely high anti-interference capability and system compatibility, meeting the customer's stringent requirements for product inspection.
APQ’s PC Series Selection Guide
APQ's PC Series offers multiple configurations to meet the needs of different scenarios:
PCxxxCQ (Alder Lake-N) focuses on basic vision tasks, compact deployment and high cost-effectiveness. Equipped with Intel® N95/N97/i3-N305 processors, it supports single-channel DDR4 memory (up to 16GB), features dual Intel® Gigabit Ethernet ports, multiple USB 3.0 ports and a fanless design, making it suitable for scenarios such as lightweight inspection and production line monitoring.
PCxxxCQ (Alder Lake-P) is designed for mid-to-high computing power, multi-tasking and memory-intensive visual inspection scenarios. Equipped with Intel® Core™ i3-1215U/i5-12450H processors and integrated Iris® Xe Graphics, it supports dual-channel DDR5 memory (up to 64GB) and PCIe x4 Gen4 high-speed SSDs, making it ideal for industrial applications such as complex visual inspection and data fusion.
In the healthcare industry, OCR visual inspection is not only an application of technology, but also a commitment to life and health. With its high cost-effectiveness, industrial-grade stability and flexible, scalable hardware architecture, APQ's PCxxxCQ Series industrial panel PCs have become a solid partner for leading enterprises in the industry in their digital transformation.
Looking ahead, as the customer's OCR project transitions from the testing phase to mass deployment, APQ will continue to uphold the service tenets of "stable supply, continuous cost reduction and rapid response", helping more healthcare enterprises safeguard quality standards and reach new heights in intelligent manufacturing.
Post time: Apr-17-2026