PowerDsine devices add power to Ethernet

NEW YORK - PowerDsine launched a Power-over-Ethernet product at the Interop show here this week for delivering power to IP phones, WLAN access points and other devices over Ethernet cabling.

PowerDsine introduced midspan devices that sit in front of LAN switches and inject power into the Ethernet cabling that connects to PoE devices.

PowerDsine’s 6500 Midspan product comes in versions with six, 12, 24 and 48 ports.

The Midspan devices would sit between a rack of LAN edge switches in a wiring closet and a wiring patch panel, which connects cables from end users’ desktops to the closet. PowerDsine says this allows the devices to provide 802.3af-compliant power to PoE-capable devices without having to replacing existing non-PoE-capable LAN equipment.

The 24-port 6500 Midspans will also ship with an option for powering PoE devices that require more than 15.4 watts of power, such as small network-based touch-screen terminals and PoE-powered displays.