Charging an iPad with PoE

[syntax1269]

iPad charging is one thing that would be cool to do using a POE port.
another thing could be for any other device you need 5V or USB power. i can thing of many uses where the ability to switch on and off 5v devices could be useful and not just iPad. if we are talking about remote locations where all you have is the one outlet from a generator lets say. getting a cheap 100 cisco 24port POE switch to power up 24 devices through cat5 cable instead of 24 120v extension cords is jsut one specialized application where it could be used.

just need to think outside the box a bit and see what else you could use a switched 5v power feed for and then possibilities are pretty much endless.

 

[BiggAW]

iPad charging is one thing that would be cool to do using a POE port.
another thing could be for any other device you need 5V or USB power. i can thing of many uses where the ability to switch on and off 5v devices could be useful and not just iPad. if we are talking about remote locations where all you have is the one outlet from a generator lets say. getting a cheap 100 cisco 24port POE switch to power up 24 devices through cat5 cable instead of 24 120v extension cords is jsut one specialized application where it could be used.

just need to think outside the box a bit and see what else you could use a switched 5v power feed for and then possibilities are pretty much endless.

Or you could get a power strip and some power adapters for a whole lot less money. PoE on a device that doesn't even have Ethernet just doesn't make any sense.

 

[kustardking]

Not with PoE. And that also is the APPLE store, so obviously they are going to use show-offy, overpriced systems as kiosks.

If you want a non-Apple example, which perhaps I should have provided first, try the coffee shops at various JFK terminals - they have iPads bolted down behind plexi. They look rather unglamorous, that is rather unlike the Apple store, but of course also required installation.

Now in thinking about it, how would a PoE iPad be managed? WiFi? I think it's fair to say that WiFi management of the iPads in a public setting is a bad idea. With PoE would probably have to come wired network management of the iPad. Is that possible?

 

[geolchris]

iPad powered using PoE

I was in the same boat as the original poster, I have a wall-mounted iPad that isn't anywhere near an outlet, and running an extension cord to it is out of the question. However, it already had a cat5 cable running to it...so I devised a simple PoE charging system for it.

You need to buy three things:

Trendnet TPE-114GS. 30ish bucks on Amazon, or Newegg.
A short, cheap USB extension cable. 5 bucks on Amazon.
RavPower RP-UA01 iPad USB charge/sync adapter.. 10 bucks at Amazon.

The Trendnet TPE-114GS converts PoE to data out (we don't care) and power out (we do care). The power out is switchable between 5v(2A), 7.5v(2A), 9v(1.7A), and 12v(1.5A). We want to use 5v(2A) for the iPad, as the iPad charger runs at 5.1v(2.1A) stock.

The RavPower tells the iPad that it's connected to an approved charging accessory. I've been told you can do this for free by splicing the white and green data lines inside the USB cable together, but I didn't have success with that method and I already had one of these lying around. Your mileage may vary.

You will need to cut the head off of the USB extension cable to use as the receiver for the iPad charging cable. I initially tried cutting and splicing the iPad cable, but apple uses non-standard cables inside that make it more difficult to work with. This also means that you're not destroying a $20 cable.
Strip off about an inch and a half of the jacket, notice inside there are two layers of shielding that you can discard along with four wires - red, black, green, and white. The red and black are power (pos/neg respectively) and the green and the white are data which we don't need to worry about. Strip off enough of the insulation from the red and black cables to make a bell splice with the next piece.

Next, take one of the power cables from the trendnet, and cut off the head close to it. Strip an inch and a half again, inside there's a white and a black white (pos/neg respective). Strip enough for a bell splice.

Next, splice the white wire from the power to the red wire of the USB. Then splice the black to the black. You should solder them if you're able - it'll be much more permanent. Wrap each exposed wire with a little electrical tape and then wrap the bundle.

Now, set the Trendnet to 5v, plug in your PoE source, plug in your power plug - plug the RavPower into the USB, and plug the iPad into the RavPower and it will begin charging. Yay!

The whole setup was less than 50 bucks.

Chris

 

[sl33pyhead]

Geolchris this is awesome! Thx for the thoroughness, saved.

Had given up on this thread because so many deemed it too radically unapple. Leave those afraid of innovation with their ignorance.

 

[geolchris]

Geolchris this is awesome! Thx for the thoroughness, saved.

Had given up on this thread because so many deemed it too radically unapple. Leave those afraid of innovation with their ignorance.

I'm glad I could help! And, I agree with you completely. We wouldn't have anything today if people in the past had just stuck to using products only in ways that the manufacturer told them they could.

 

[legalballerina]

It lives!

I'm glad I could help! And, I agree with you completely. We wouldn't have anything today if people in the past had just stuck to using products only in ways that the manufacturer told them they could.

Chris, I ordered the parts and did this today at work for a project we are testing. Worked like a charm! Thanks so much!

 

[AllieNeko]

Great finds Chris! Thanks for the link, not sure I'll need one soon but glad to have the link when I do!

BiggAW, quit being such a big AW and go rain on someone else's parade...

 

[Joeysudeeo]

FSR makes a Poe to 10-watt USB adapter!

Needed this for a large silicon valley campus project that I'm designing and FSR made this for me! The savings on electrical costs for conduit and power outlets alone are huge!

http://fsrinc.com/products/we-ipad2-slv.htm

 

[xnetprox]

I'd recommend using one of the POE splitters from Panoptic like this:
http://www.panoptictechnology.com/network-smart-adapters/

They're cheaper and more compact. I use them to power all sorts of things with my POE switches and they're very reliable.

The 5V version is $27 on Streakwave: http://www.streakwave.com/Itemdesc.asp?ic=IPAF255

 

[james123456]

Power iPad with poe

This is the unit that Pinterest and Uber use for there conference room iPad displays. http://www.powerbx.com/product/poe-unit-48-volt/