Description
The POWERplate is a multipurpose power management solution for your Pi-Plate stack that provides a combination of must-have features for the Raspberry Pi that includes:
- four different input connectors that allow you to use the power supply of your choice.
- an RPi compatible, battery backed, Real Time Clock
- a 45mm cooling fan
- a power switch with bicolor status LED
- a low power microcontroller to handle scheduled tasks
- 5VDC power output connectors to drive additional peripherals in your system
- Included with the POWERplate is a set of heatsinks for the hot components on your RPi and the backup battery for the RTC
Experiments found that the combination of chip mounted heatsinks and a fan provided the best cooling performance for the quad core CPU on the Raspberry Pi4:
Unlike our other products, only a single POWERplate is required for your Pi-Plate stack and it should be placed directly above the the Raspberry Pi for maximum cooling. Also we are using plugable terminal blocks to eliminate the hassle of having to disassemble a stack of plates to add or remove cables. See below for detailed features for the POWERplate.
Power Management
- Provides four different connectors for 5VDC input:
- USB-C
- USB microB
- 5.5mm barrel
- 5mm pluggable terminal block
- Five "always on" 3.5mm pluggable terminal blocks to provide 5VDC for your setup
- Onboard A/D converter allows monitoring of both input voltage and current
- Smart customizable power switch
- Power up scheduler for remote battery operated applications
- Software shutdown
- Bicolor LED provides programmable power status at a glance
Cooling
- Onboard 45mm fan cools RPi
- Each POWERplate includes a set of heat sinks for the hot components on the RPi
- Fan can be controlled manually for customizable cooling solutions or to minimize quiescent power consumption for battery based power solutions.
Real Time Clock
- RPi compatible PCF8523T RTC chip
- Ultra low power
- Included CR1220 battery keeps clock running when no power is available
General
- Uses SPI signals, CE1 and two dedicated GPIO pins (16 & 22)1
- All features accessible via rich Python command set
- Compatible with all 40-pin versions of Raspberry Pi
- Uses less than 5mA of DC current during standby2
- Conforms to ROHS, FCC Part 15 Class A, and CE standards
- Designed in the USA.
- Each POWERplate is 100% tested and calibrated
- Detailed Online Users Guide with Examples
- Dimensions: 100mm long x 75mm wide X 25mm high
Compatibility
- DAQCplate
- DAQC2plate
- RELAYplate
- MOTORplate
- THERMOplate
- CASEplate
- DINplate
Notes
- More pins may be required if additional features are enabled
- GPIO 22 is required when interrupts are enabled
