Thermals, Enclosures, and Dust: Designing Rugged Edge Nodes
Deploying AI at the edge means running compute in the harshest conditions: vibration, heat, and airborne particulates. A successful design starts with thermal engineering and ingress protection, not software.
Thermal Design Basics
- Maintain junction temperatures below 85 °C for sustained performance.
- Prefer passive cooling with finned heatsinks for reliability.
- Use heat pipes or vapor chambers when airflow is restricted.
Enclosure Protection
- Minimum IP54 for dust and splashes; IP65+ for washdown zones.
- Corrosion-resistant materials (aluminum, powder-coated steel).
- EMI shielding to avoid interference with PLCs and RF sensors.
Dust and Debris Control
Fanless designs prevent ingress but trap heat; filtered fans require maintenance. Many integrators adopt positive-pressure cooling — pushing filtered air outward to block dust intake.
Example Configuration
A Jetson Orin-based vision node in a stamping plant was enclosed in an IP65 box with heat pipe cooling. Operating temperature dropped by 22 °C compared to open mounting.
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- Lifecycle and Spares: Designing for 5-Year Support
Conclusion
Edge AI systems live in hostile environments. A well-designed thermal and enclosure strategy ensures that intelligence at the edge stays reliable — even under industrial stress.
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