PoE Plus

Last installment of the blog we talked about Power over Ethernet technology. We discussed what it is, what is does, and how it works. Today, as promised, we will discuss the future of PoE technology, PoE +. PoE + is an improvement and more developed version of its predecessor, like the Playstation 3, Gen 3 iPhone, and Windows Vis…ehh Windows 7.

PoE currently is capable to deliver up to 12.95 watts to the powered device at a safe nominal 48 volts direct current over Cat5 cabling or higher. The IEEE recognized an opportunity to enhance the capabilities of PoE to deliver necessary power to devices that make sense to run on PoE but need more juice. PoE+ will deliver up to 29.5 watts to the powered device at a safe nominal 53 volts DC over Cat5e or higher rated cabling. But with PoE as with really any cabling you have done for a new install it should be Cat5e or higher.

PoE + will be a huge benefit to energy consumption and costs as well as helping move people into the next realm of technology easier and more efficiently. Here is a list of a few devices that will be able to be powered by PoE+:

• Laptop Computers and Thin Clients- Imagine the savings of one cable to the desktop, using your phone as a switch to connect your phone and computer back to the main server room. No more power bricks of any kind. Also using an IP phone and a virtualized desktop or cloud computing for true inter-enterprise ease of mobility.
• Security cameras with pan/tilt/zoom capabilities
• IP television
• Factory Automation
• WiMax transceivers providing wireless data over long distances
• Biometric sensors- With the ever constant development in security these types of sensors that were once a part only of Sci-fi movies are now becoming common place.
  

Now don’t rush out and expect to purchase devices that are PoE+ compatible. The technology is still in the development and testing stages however it is not as far off as one would believe. There are many parts of the equation that will have to work together for the release of the technology. The switch manufacturers need to make their devices send the power, the powered devices will need to make their equipment receive the power, and both will need to retro-fit existing equipment to accept the new technology. There has already been one issue that has been solved; sending so much power through the cabling was heating the cables to an unsafe level. Through their studies the IEEE has developed a standard to make sure the correct cables are used and installed properly for the specific devices being powered. As you are ready to move forward with the new technology make sure you are working with a BICSI certified installer and someone who understands the technology and what needs to be done. We would not want your cabling to burn down your business, but in the event it does…be proactive on how to recover. http://taylored.com/business-continuity

This was Michael Martin's latest conversation with Bill Taylor and Dean Reskevich.

PoE / Power over Ethernet

Do you think Alexander Graham Bell thought his “vocal telegraph” invention would ever be the source of new technologies over the last 100 years? Telephones have spurred numerous trends and inventions from voicemail to mobile devices to text messaging to voice documentation, just to name a few. One technology that came out of the IP version of telephones was Power over Ethernet (PoE) technology.

Traditional TDM or digital phones are connected back to a phone system using copper wiring. This copper wiring is used to send the digital signal from the port card in the TDM telephone system. This signal powers the telephone set and it’s LED lights. When using TCP/IP to send data and voice, as IP phones do, those signals cannot use the same pairs as power. When VoIP telephones, using TCP/IP to communicate, first came out there was a question of how do we power these new devices? One solution was to add a power brick to each phone and plug it into an outlet. This seemed a bit over-kill for power consumption as well as, “just one more thing to buy and worry about.” This is where PoE took shape. To solve the problem manufacturers began sending power over the unused wire pairs in the Ethernet cables.

Today most common PoE set ups are comprised of a PoE switch(es), powered by a centralized power unit. There is then an Ethernet cable running from the switch to the device that will be Powered over Ethernet. This allows for a couple newer developments into the IT and telecom world. We can now run one network for both voice and data using one cable, or run separate networks using one cable depending on your switch’s capability (there is then a patch cord from the phone to the computer connecting both back to the switch). With IP phones working so well over PoE and the culmination of both networks using only one cable it lead to a thought. If we can power these phones this way what else can we power this way and what benefits does it give?

PoE can currently be used for:
· IP telephones
· IP security cameras
· Wireless access points
· Radio frequency identification (RFID) tag readers
· Print servers
· Bar code scanners
· Building automation system; including thermostats, smoke detectors, alarm systems, security access, industrial clocks/timekeepers, and badge readers

Benefits of PoE:
· Lower install costs (those magic words again…lower costs)
· Going Green…reduction of costs as well as a reduction of energy consumption
· Space saver…consolidation of wiring saves precious space in ordinarily cramped and full data rooms

As with everything in the telecom and IT industry, PoE is going through an upgrade and change. Soon there will be a new form of PoE that will have increased power allowing us to power even more devices using PoE and open up many more opportunities for PoE benefits. Stay tuned, the next post will be on PoE+, the next generation of PoE.

This was Mike Martin's last conversation with Bill Taylor and Dean Reskevich

Wired vs Wireless Technology

At Taylored Systems the other morning, I had a discussion on wired vs. wireless technology with Bill and Dean Reskevich, our Vice President of Installations. Bill had thought that five to ten years ago wireless would have become more prevalent than wired, but he was wrong.

Even though wireless is a convenient way of accessing a network, or “the Internet,” allowing you the freedom to work anywhere, sometimes the use of an Ethernet cable makes more sense. With wireless you still have cables at the access points, there is a limited range of signal and speed decreases depending on your distance from the main source. Your signal can also be intercepted (low security), and signals are affected by other signals and radio waves.

However with a wired network the signals can’t be intercepted down the wire (high security), and have immensely high speeds depending on the cable and hardware. You can plug and play without messing around with settings, and most people feel they are in a comfort zone with the use of a wired solution over a wireless.

Dean stated that structured wiring (cabling) has come a long way from the use of locations with (4) cables (quads) to single runs which can support data & voice with VoIP Technology and from the migration from Cat-5 to Cat-5e to Cat-6 all the way to Augmented Cat-6 (Cat-6a) which gives you 10 Gig technology to your desktop. With the VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) technology, being wired is more cost effective than using wireless and a whole lot safer. Also with the PoE Switches (Power Over Ethernet) life just keeps getting better being wired instead of wireless.

Taylored Systems, a communications technology company based out of Noblesville, Indiana, uses a wired solution along with several wireless access points for laptop capability around the building. However , even though he uses a wireless laptop, Bill sometimes has to plug it in due to reliability issues.

Wireless can be indispensable when you need to locate a networked device in an area where running cable is not practical such as older homes, but a wired solution is still your best bet for more speed, reliability, security and less interference from other sources. Wireless Technology is being used more in Manufacturing and Warehousing as way to keep track of inventory and mobile employees. To me having an Ethernet cable to plug my computer into makes more sense especially if I am somewhere on vacation and the wireless keeps dropping my signal giving me a major headache, and not letting me get connected to my world.

Mary Couch’s conversation with Bill Taylor & Dean Reskevich