Facts about POE keypads

POE technology has become very popular over the past few years. One reason for it’s popularity can be fact that it helps to integrate data and power across the network cables. This helps to provide flexibility as the integration can be done over the existing network cables and devices like IP phones, cameras etc. using a single network cable.

In addition, if the network is supplied with uninterrupted power supply then continuous operation can be delivered. The elimination of power interruption also helps to decrease the downtime. The POE keypads also give the ability to install endpoints in any location. This helps to provide flexibility and scalability to the networking infrastructure and helps to maximize the growth and efficiency.

Most of the keypads are POE enabled, today. They can share the available power across the switch ports. They have small power supply and are also capable of powering the switch. They can provide power over a number of ports. In fact, many devices that do not allow Power over Ethernet can also use these keypads. A poe splitter can also be used if less than 50 watts is used by the device. It can also be used to connect the keypad to an IP Ethernet network. This helps to separate the power and the data on to two separate cables.

Today’s POE keypads are highly efficient and get easily integrated with the existing networks. They are also called as rugged keypads as they can be installed in all types of climatic conditions. These also allow separation of the power and the data using the wiring closet. This is very efficient and also costs less.

These outdoor keypads can be used over all types of networks. That’s why these are also called as network keypads. These can be integrated with the old as well as the new technologies.

Keypad Display features

Keypads with display are designed for use by the latest generation of users. These can be employed in the most hostile of conditions. Most of these are customizable. From design of the host machine to the color scheme, these keypads can be easily customized. Also, the number of keys and key top legends can be specified. All these features help to make these keypads user-friendly.

Some of the features of these display keypads are:

1. Most of these display keypads are vandal and weather resistant. This makes them apt for use in unsupervised public environments and rugged environments. The construction of these keypads can also be customized to meet the requirements of the specified environment.

2. Nowadays, most of these come with an integrated card reader and writer. However, these are optional. These can be used whenever required.

3. Many manufacturers also provide an illuminated LCD display. Vacuum fluorescent and graphic displays are also offered by many.

4. The data entry method of these rugged keypads is very responsive and rapid. It is also very reliable. No tampering can be done with these keypads.

5. The front plate of these outdoor keypads is made from stainless steel or polymer. This makes them very effective against the rugged environments.

6. These are apt for application in automated teller machines, ticketing machines, control-equipment, vendor machines etc.


These keypads can be configured to suit a wide range of applications. Also, these can be changed from one application to another very easily. A number of options are available that can be availed to make these keypads fully optimum for the required environments. These also come in completely touch-screen format as well as with buttons. The touch screen formats have LEDs installed in them and they illuminate. This also makes them apt for dark environments.

Advanced Access Control Keypad Features

The latest advancement in the access control applications is the digital keyless entry system. These are great for single entry point applications. These keypads can be used in wide range of applications like door locks, automatic gates etc. Each individual is assigned a code and he has to enter that code on the keypad to get access. This way only the authorized personnel are able to get access.

Most of these keypad displays have a backlit keypad that illuminates when in use. These keypads have embedded LEDs that provide the incandescent lighting. The duration of this lighting can also be programmed. The number of access codes to be stored in the keypad can also be programmed. The modern keypads also continue to work properly in case of a power loss as well. There is no effect on the state as these have a non-volatile memory that remains unaffected during the power loss as well and hence, no data is lost.

Most of the modern access control keypads also come with other characteristics like:

1. Timer

2. Sound preferences

3. Security responses for invalid code entry

4. Reprogrammable memory

These keypads do not require a separate programmer. Most of the programming is done at the keypad. Some of the keypads are even able to store more than 500 access codes. These can also be called as rugged keypads as these come with a metal housing that protects the keypad. This housing also helps to seal out the moisture. Also, independent output actions for each access code can be programmed. These are also very secure as these have no external wiring that can be cut by intruders. This fact makes these outdoor keypads apt for office buildings, commercial places, apartments, parking, industrial areas etc. These have an auto-relock feature that gets activated as soon as the door is closed.

Internet Display buying tips

The popularity of internet display can be summarized from the fact that rate of advertising on these is continuously increasing. While in Europe the increase in the rate has been only 10.4%, the figures are considerably higher in Latin America and Asia Pacific. In Asia-Pacific the rate has been around 33.2% while in Latin America, it has been 48.2%. Apart from internet display, outdoor keypad advertising has also increased by almost 4.3 percent.

Most of the revenue of internet display advertising comes from direct response campaigns. These account for three-quarters of the whole display advertising. In these campaigns, visual advertisements are presented to the target audiences. These advertisements are called “ad”. They help to increase the revenue of short-term sales.

These give great performance when used in control devices. These have both-tactile and non-tactile response. The responses help to reduce the operation time. Other major feature of these keypads is that these have embedded LED’s like the ones used in outdoor keypads. LED’s are light emitting diodes. These LED’s help to give high end visibility during low lighting conditions. This helps to operate these devices efficiently in such conditions.

Before buying an internet network keypad, keep the following points in mind:

1. Always try to get all the information about the brand, before you buy its products. Avoid poor brands
2. Get the basic information of the brand from the website and only buy their products, if you feel that they are true and genuine. You will also get the basic knowledge of the technologies used from their website.
3. Read all the testimonials and the other client’s reviews about the brand. This will help you to know about their service and no way is better than getting information from the other customers.
4. Also, compare the prices of a brand with the prices of the other brands of rugged keypads. This will help you to decide whether the prices of the brand are reasonable or not.

Serial over Ethernet keypad applications

Keyboards are the most widely used input devices. Despite advancements in the input technology and entry of devices like mice, touch screens, voice recognition etc, these are still used extensively as the human-machine interface. The basic working of all the keypads is same. These have keys that have printed or engraved numbers, symbols, words, letters or images, which when pressed act as switches. These switches send instructions to the machine.

Embedded computers and microprocessors are extensively used nowadays. These use serial ports and support serial communication. These use serial over Ethernet keypads. In microprocessors, serial ports called as UART (Universal Asynchronous Receiver Transmitter) are used. These are used in coordination with a line driver chip. Almost all of the microprocessors have the hardware provisions for serial communications. These serial over Ethernet keypads act as an excellent connectivity option between interface technologies and embedded microprocessors. It helps to make these technologies easy to implement. These have COM ports into which these keypads can be plugged in and used.

Network keypads, serial over Ethernet, outdoor keypads etc. are all on the rise in use. These are used to connect the network devices to the Wi-Fi or Ethernet. Most of these keypads can synchronize with PCs, whole house lightings, iPods etc. The user can connect as many components over the LAN (Local Area Network) as one wants. These components are IP controlled.

The popularity of serial communications is massive and so is that of internet display keypads, serial over Ethernet keypads and access control keypads. Most of the keypads available today in the market are designed to work in the harshest of conditions. These come with a metal housing as well and so are called as metal keypads as well. These are very apt for the outdoor and extensive conditions like military etc. These are also suitable for high security applications and can be used in any system. Their characteristics like vandal-proof, water-proof and weather-proof further increase their applicability. These are apt for all the Ethernet applications as well.

Network Keypads information

Network keypads have seen great advancement in their technology. Modern keypads even come with the ability to audio-video components, PCs, iPods, Whole house lightings, energy management devices etc. These come with the ability to attach as many IP controlled components over the Local Area Network (LAN) as the user wants. The components are controlled by a serial.

These can be used to control the lightening in the whole house. There is no need for expensive black boxes or exotic wiring. The whole lightening can be controlled by a control customized in the form of a URC dimmer or switch. The user can completely control by dimming, brightening or recalling various scenes without the help of any PC or programmer. The settings can be adjusted manually.

In order to enjoy the RSS feeds, the LAN has to be connected to the internet. These keypads can also be used to control a metal keypad device as well. These devices are powered by a PoE injector. In addition, these are provided with slim and narrow, aluminium alloy housing that is most suitable for doorframe mounting. This housing provides durability to the keyboard and resistance to vandalism.

Most of these keypads are vandal resistant and are designed in a way to function properly in the most hostile environments. These can be used as outdoor keypads as well. These are in particular apt for high security applications. These come with an open protocol and can be used in any system. Redundant connections like UDP and TCP are also available with many of these. There is an integrated web server that can be configured and reset.

Many network keypads also come with an optional transmitter. In all, theses keypads let a user to make a local stack of components using a low cost wireless control. These are also compatible with third party access control keypads.

Metal keypad details

Metal keypads are a huge rage nowadays. One reason is that they are highly resistant to harsh conditions, contaminations and liquids. Their front panels are completely metallic. This makes them vandal proof as well. All the electronics are contained inside the housing of the keypad. Some of these may even have volt free relay contacts. This helps in the direct operation without any need to fit additional relay contacts.

These rugged keypads may meet meet the protection classes of up to IP 67 and IK 07. They can provide high operating convenience and also, a pleasant touch. The design options are also very large. They have a robust metal construction. Also, the backlit keys make them easy to use even in low light conditions. They are also used to flash different access permissions.

The installation of all the metallic outdoor keypads is almost the same and fairly simple. It contains several wires connecting it to power supply etc. Most of the cables exit centrally from the back, which makes it very simple for drilling and mounting them. They also contain a terminal strip making it ideal to be connected to the external wiring. The settings and the codes can be programmed via the keypad. Some may also have relay contacts that can be used for triggering devices. Many companies also offer the choice of choosing between metal mounting plate and metal surface mounting box.

Metal keypads are perfect for use in areas that are susceptible to vandalism. The metal housing gives a durability to the keypad that the plastic casing can never give. These are also supplied with security tools that help to prevent these keypads from being tampered. Theses keypads are ideal for use in delivery depots, construction sites, external gates or barriers and other vandal prone areas.  

Understanding PoEs

Power over Ethernet (PoE) can be used to describe any system that passes electrical power on Ethical cabling along with data. The system may be any standardized or ad-hoc system. In this way, a single cable can be used to provide both the data connection and electrical power. The devices that usually require both, data and electricity are wireless access points or IP cameras.

The best part about the PoE is that it allows long cable lengths. As compared to the USB (Universal Serial Bus) standard, this is better. Power may be carried on the same conductors as the data, or it may be carried on dedicated conductors in the same cable.

As for the POE Injector ; there are many techniques. However, IEEE 802.3 has standardized only two of them. For such a transmission, only two pairs are needed. So, the power is transmitted through the unused conductors of a cable. The power can also be transmitted by using a common—mode voltage. It has to be applied on each pair of the data conductors. But, does it interfere with the data transmission? No, it doesn’t as it uses differential signaling.

What about the common mode voltage? It is extracted using the center tap of the standard Ethernet pulse transformer. This can be compared to the phantom power technique. This technique is used for powering the audio microphones.

And, that is not all that IEEE standards do. It also sets the standards for signaling between the power source equipment (PSE) and powered device (PD). It also standardizes the practices for spare-pair and common-mode data pair power transmission. So, what exactly is done? The conformant device is detected by the power source. This allows the device and source to negotiate the amount and source to negotiate the amount of power required or available. Up to 25 watts is available for a device, depending on the version of the standard in use.

Most of the rugged keypads are vandal-resistant

Where reliability is concerned, we can’t use the sophisticated keypads that we daily use. They may serve our purposes but we can’t use them in all types of environments. For them, we need ruggedized keyboards. They are the safest bet for outdoor applications.

Most of the rugged keypads are vandal-resistant and suited for indoor and outdoor use in applications including banking kiosks, ticketing machines, access control systems and harsh public environments. Most of them come with very simple panel configurations and adaptable layouts to accommodate a broad range of client designs. Customers can specify any number of keys, as well as benchmark 4, 12 or 16 keypad layouts.

The characteristics may also include commanded illumination in red, yellow, blue, green, or white, multiple button forms and colors inside one keypad, and blank spaces for separation between keys in one unit. Other features may be anti-twist, anti-pull off, non sticking keys.

Rugged keypads have applications in several areas. Some of them are:

1.    Commercial applications
2.    Industrial applications
3.    Military applications

The commercial application may include:

1.    Oceanic vessel control
2.    Power plant control system
3.    Rugged mobile computers
4.    Water manufacturing equipments
5.    Telephonic operator terminals
6.    Retail lottery terminals
7.    High end VME systems

The industrial applications include:

1.    Advanced integrated display systems
2.    Tactical advanced computer system
3.    Tactical mobile rugged computer
4.    Advanced display system

The military applications include:

1.    Rugged military computers
2.    Coast guard tactical computers
3.    Airborne satellite control system
4.    Military aerospace management

Rugged keypad play the crucial role in all the major events of space as well. Man would not have been able to land at the moon without them.