<s>
A	O
rugged	B-Device
computer	I-Device
or	O
ruggedized	B-Device
computer	I-Device
is	O
a	O
computer	O
specifically	O
designed	O
to	O
operate	O
reliably	O
in	O
harsh	O
usage	O
environments	O
and	O
conditions	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
strong	O
vibrations	O
,	O
extreme	O
temperatures	O
and	O
wet	O
or	O
dusty	O
conditions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Typical	O
environments	O
for	O
rugged	B-Device
laptops	I-Device
,	O
tablet	B-Device
PCs	I-Device
and	O
PDAs	B-Application
are	O
public	O
safety	O
,	O
field	O
sales	O
,	O
field	O
service	O
,	O
manufacturing	O
,	O
retail	O
,	O
healthcare	O
,	O
construction	O
,	O
transportation/distribution	O
and	O
the	O
military	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Virtually	O
all	O
rugged	B-Device
computers	I-Device
share	O
an	O
underlying	O
design	O
philosophy	O
of	O
providing	O
a	O
controlled	O
environment	O
for	O
the	O
installed	O
electronics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Rugged	B-Device
computers	I-Device
are	O
engineered	O
to	O
operate	O
in	O
the	O
face	O
of	O
multiple	O
challenges	O
including	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
one	O
research	O
study	O
found	O
that	O
in	O
environments	O
where	O
rugged	B-Device
computers	I-Device
are	O
commonly	O
used	O
,	O
total	O
cost	O
of	O
ownership	O
was	O
36%	O
lower	O
for	O
rugged	O
notebooks	B-Device
and	O
33%	O
less	O
for	O
handhelds	B-Application
and	O
PDAs	B-Application
,	O
compared	O
to	O
conventional	O
non-rugged	O
versions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
ruggedized	B-Device
laptop	I-Device
is	O
built	O
to	O
operate	O
reliably	O
in	O
dusty	O
or	O
wet	O
environments	O
and	O
conditions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
computers	O
have	O
a	O
thicker	O
and	O
stronger	O
housing	O
than	O
a	O
regular	O
laptop	B-Device
,	O
and	O
are	O
mainly	O
used	O
for	O
industrial	O
,	O
construction	O
and	O
military	O
purposes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
are	O
equipped	O
with	O
both	O
current	O
and	O
legacy	O
I/O	B-Architecture
ports	I-Architecture
including	O
serial	B-Protocol
,	O
ExpressCard	B-Device
,	O
PCMCIA	B-Architecture
,	O
VGA	O
,	O
and	O
others	O
that	O
are	O
commonly	O
used	O
in	O
outdoor	O
environments	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
levels	O
of	O
ruggedization	B-Device
are	O
not	O
standardized	O
,	O
but	O
they	O
are	O
measured	O
by	O
various	O
certifications	O
such	O
as	O
MIL-STD-810	O
,	O
IP	O
,	O
or	O
ATEX	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
rugged	O
tablet	B-Device
may	O
be	O
semi-rugged	O
or	O
fully	O
rugged	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Fully	O
rugged	O
tablets	B-Device
are	O
engineered	O
from	O
the	O
inside-out	O
to	O
work	O
in	O
extreme	O
temperatures	O
and	O
other	O
harsh	O
conditions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
tablet	B-Device
has	O
internally	O
a	O
solid	B-Device
state	I-Device
drive	I-Device
and	O
no	O
moving	O
parts	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Unlike	O
many	O
laptops	B-Device
,	O
most	O
tablets	B-Device
do	O
not	O
require	O
a	O
fan	B-Application
,	O
improving	O
their	O
dust	O
and	O
water	O
resistance	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
rugged	O
ones	O
have	O
options	O
such	O
as	O
a	O
barcode	B-Device
scanner	I-Device
because	O
they	O
serve	O
in	O
the	O
logistics	O
and	O
transport	O
sector	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Levels	O
of	O
ruggedization	B-Device
are	O
measured	O
by	O
various	O
certifications	O
such	O
as	O
IP	O
,	O
MIL-STD-810	O
or	O
ATEX	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
Rugged	B-Application
smartphone	I-Application
has	O
a	O
thicker	O
and	O
completely	O
sealed	O
housing	O
which	O
protects	O
it	O
against	O
all	O
kinds	O
of	O
elements	O
such	O
as	O
water	O
,	O
dust	O
,	O
shock	O
and	O
vibration	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
true	O
fully	O
rugged	B-Application
smartphone	I-Application
is	O
substantially	O
less	O
susceptible	O
to	O
damage	O
than	O
a	O
non-rugged	O
smartphone	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Like	O
a	O
rugged	O
tablet	B-Device
,	O
it	O
typically	O
meets	O
IP	O
certification	O
and	O
military	O
standard	O
specifications	O
for	O
dust	O
,	O
shock	O
,	O
vibration	O
,	O
rain	O
,	O
humidity	O
,	O
solar	O
radiation	O
,	O
altitude	O
and	O
temperature	O
extremes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Only	O
a	O
few	O
manufacturers	O
make	O
a	O
rugged	B-Application
smartphone	I-Application
due	O
to	O
its	O
complicated	O
structure	O
,	O
different	O
use	O
of	O
material	O
and	O
high	O
level	O
of	O
quality	O
expectation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
rugged	B-Application
smartphones	I-Application
have	O
Push-to-Talk	O
(	O
PTT	O
)	O
capabilities	O
,	O
NFC	O
and	O
barcode	B-Device
reader	I-Device
functions	O
which	O
suit	O
their	O
use	O
for	O
industrial	O
and	O
construction	O
logistics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Often	O
used	O
as	O
a	O
reference	O
in	O
the	O
commercial	O
laptop	B-Device
industry	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Qualification	O
testing	O
is	O
performed	O
on	O
a	O
barge	O
floating	O
in	O
a	O
pond	O
where	O
TNT	B-Protocol
is	O
detonated	O
at	O
various	O
distances	O
and	O
depths	O
in	O
the	O
pond	O
to	O
impart	O
shock	O
to	O
the	O
barges	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Wireless	O
capability	O
is	O
a	O
key	O
requirement	O
for	O
most	O
enterprise	O
mobility	O
applications	O
,	O
and	O
it	O
has	O
been	O
reported	O
that	O
wireless-transmission	O
failure	O
rates	O
are	O
three	O
times	O
higher	O
for	O
non-rugged	O
notebooks	B-Device
compared	O
to	O
rugged	O
units	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
difference	O
is	O
attributed	O
to	O
the	O
greater	O
experience	O
of	O
rugged-notebook	O
vendors	O
at	O
integrating	O
multiple	O
radios	O
into	O
their	O
products	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Each	O
transmission	O
failure	O
leads	O
to	O
five	O
to	O
ten	O
minutes	O
in	O
lost	O
productivity	O
as	O
the	O
user	O
has	O
to	O
re-login	O
to	O
the	O
company	O
network	O
through	O
a	O
VPN	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Since	O
enterprises	O
are	O
turning	O
to	O
cellular	O
networks	O
to	O
enable	O
full-time	O
connectivity	O
for	O
their	O
users	O
,	O
major	O
vendors	O
of	O
rugged	B-Device
computers	I-Device
offer	O
both	O
built-in	O
wireless	B-Architecture
LAN	I-Architecture
and	O
wireless	B-General_Concept
WAN	I-General_Concept
capabilities	O
,	O
and	O
partner	O
with	O
cellular	O
carriers	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Verizon	B-Application
and	O
AT&T	O
,	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
their	O
offerings	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
During	O
the	O
handoff	O
between	O
the	O
various	O
wireless	B-Architecture
LAN	I-Architecture
and	O
wireless	B-General_Concept
WAN	I-General_Concept
connections	O
,	O
a	O
mobile	B-Application
VPN	I-Application
allows	O
the	O
connection	O
to	O
persist	O
,	O
creating	O
an	O
always-connected	O
infrastructure	O
that	O
is	O
simpler	O
for	O
the	O
user	O
and	O
eliminates	O
application	B-General_Concept
crashes	I-General_Concept
and	O
data	B-General_Concept
loss	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
