PoE-to-USB-C Dock Allows Ethernet Powering of Laptops, Tablets, Peripherals

PoE Texas offers a patented PoE-to-USB-C Dock that the company explains “provides intrinsically safe wired power and data to USB-C enabled devices such as laptops and tablets using Ethernet cabling.”

The dock uses IEEE 802.3bt Power over Ethernet to deliver 60 or more watts of power. “Using intrinsically safe Class 2 power permitted to be used outside of conduits, this dock drastically reduces cost and increases safety for enterprise and education applications,” the company further states.

User organizations can extend power from their PoE switch to this converter, to power a tablet or laptop—eliminating the need to plug in power adapters. The dock delivers continuous USB-C power and data to a tablet or laptop on the USB-C connector, and delivers continuous USB power and data to up to two devices, such as keyboards, storage devices, and microprocessors. The dock includes a USB-A port for these accessories and peripherals.

Because it is an Ethernet device, the dock extends power and data up to 100 meters from the source, and delivers both USB-C power and 10/100-Mbit/sec data over a single cable. It is compatible with an 802.3bt switch or with PoE Texas’s GPOE-1AB Injector.

“PoE Texas has converged these two previously incompatible standards,” the company points out.

The dock offers the following.

• Aluminum enclosure for use in high-traffic locations
• Cable relief glands allowing for customized cable lengths and connector protection
• LED indicators to allow installers to determine if PoE is sufficient for 60-watt laptop charging
• USB-A accessory port

You can download a data sheet for the PoE-to-USB-C Dock here.