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Net Work Alan Winstanley Our Net Work columnist tries some compact uninterruptible power supplies designed for routers, modems or small electronics during a power outage. How the UK would manage power shortages using a system of ‘regional blocks’ is also described, and there’s more space news. T his month, we start with the price of power: ‘The cost of electrical energy consumption has become increasingly significant in recent years as the price of primary fuels has risen more quickly than the average increase in the cost of living. In order to control costs in the house, it is necessary to know which appliances cost the most to use and to what extent savings can be made by reduced usage, turning thermostats down, etc.’ Those words could have been written yesterday, but were actually the opening lines of a constructional project, the Telectric Electricity Cost Monitor, featured over 40 years ago in Practical Electronics, March 1982. Mindful of the need for consumers to monitor energy bills, this complex project used an 8035 microprocessor and a 7-segment LED readout programmed to display the running costs of a single appliance, at a time when electricity costs were about 15% of what they are today, although the demand for gas still outstripped the available supply, even back then. The question of electricity running costs is still very relevant, and modern plug-in successors to the PE Telectric are commonly available online for £10 or so. They display power used, voltage, current, power factor and running costs. While modern electronics may consume negligible power (under a watt) when on standby, many devices such as routers or telephone handsets are left running 24 hours a day. This started me thinking about my four wireless mesh hubs that are dotted around the house. Each ITE (Information Technology Equipment) mains adaptor is rated at 9V, 7.6W; if something operating 24x7 consumed just 6W then it would use one unit or kWh per week, costing about £14 a year each, or £56 annually for all four. Add a crop of smart speakers and a smart display or two (some rated up to 30W – costing up to £65 a year, say), a modem, a pretty warm Devolo PLC adaptor or two, a switch or network hub, and the running costs of home networking devices soon mounts up significantly. Of course, we can only know a device’s actual power usage by logging its current consumption, but a typical ‘smart’ household probably spends hundreds of pounds a year powering these devices alone. For now, I’ve unplugged a wireless mesh hub or two, dumped an old clock radio and other unneeded mains electricals which will save a further £50 a year, and I make sure nothing is left on standby unless it’s absolutely necessary. A compact UPS solution In October’s Net Work I described how my router suddenly stopped working late one evening, taking my entire network down with it. The fault was traced to a failed The iPower-H from Power Inspired Ltd is a 12V uninterruptible power supply offering up to one hour of UPS protection through its built-in battery. Available in UK or Euro mains adaptor styles. switched-mode mains adaptor, so I found a neat ‘Zolt’ 34W multi-voltage adaptor that came with a range of DC connectors. Unlike some dubious-looking imports, this model is UKCA type-approved, seems to be well made and it has done the job admirably so far. I then realised how my entire home network relies on just two mains adaptors, one for the router and one for a separate modem, and if either of them failed then nearly 20 network or smart devices would be rendered useless. By sheer co-incidence, I’d recently had an annoying two-second mains outage that knocked out the network for five minutes 1551W IP68 miniature enclosures Learn more: hammfg.com/1551w uksales<at>hammfg.com • 01256 812812 10 Practical Electronics | December | 2023 An adaptor lets 2.1mm (ID) DC plugs fit into a 2.5mm DC jack. or more while the router and network reset itself, and some smart devices took longer to re-establish themselves properly again. For desktop computer users, an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) will safeguard against data loss or crashes if mains power is interrupted or there’s a brownout, and it will also protect against surges when power is restored again. It buys you time to save work in progress and the computer can then be shut down gracefully. Brands include APC, Salicru, Eaton and Cyberpower and they generally have IEC mains outlets for operating a monitor and PC for a period of time. My Salicru SPS SOHO+ 1200W will power my PC and monitor for some tens of minutes and its USB port allows PC software to monitor the battery status and log data. I also use red-coloured IEC mains leads to indicate which supplies are UPS-protected, and I might turn the UPS off at the mains once or twice a year to exercise the battery. How long the internal battery will last before it’s scrapped is down to pot luck (five years, say), and replacing them can be nontrivial or even impossible. With smaller peripherals such as storage drives, IP cameras and routers in mind, a range of compact UPS products has evolved that are designed to power individual devices during power interruptions. I recently received two samples kindly offered by Power Inspired Ltd, a UK manufacturer based near Oxford, who make a range of very interesting power supplies and accessories. I’ve been testing them over the past few weeks, starting with their iPower-H, which is a plug-in 12V mains adaptor with a difference: it also contains a 3350mAh Li-Ion battery which can provide an uninterruptible 12V DC supply at one amp (or 25W peak) for up to an hour or so. This battery back-up adaptor can protect ITE equipment like a lowpower router or ONT (Optical Network Terminal) modem, or security devices, CCTV and so on – anything needing 12V DC at up to 1A or 2.1A peak. It’s slim enough to fit onto a crowded multiway power strip, and it has a multi-state LED to display status. Pressing a small pushbutton for a few seconds will toggle the DC power on and off. Fit for purpose This UPS adaptor can be used with 90264V AC mains at 50/60Hz and comes pre-fitted with either a UK or 2-pin Euro mains plug. It has a lengthy (2m) DC lead terminated in a 5.5 x 2.5/2.1mm DC plug of the sprung, bifurcated variety that I described back in the October issue. It will therefore fit most 12V equipment and it powered up my router without any issue, charging up within an hour or so. Users might also want to power a separate modem as well, if it’s not already built into their router. As my modem also used a 12V supply, eventually I found a DC Y-splitter cable which is commonly used in CCTV set-ups. This would allow the iPower-H to operate both the router and modem for a reasonable period of time. These DC splitter cables (up to 9-way!) are readily available on the usual Internet sites, including my suggested supplier, Kenable Ltd, who offer a very keenly-priced range of DC The writer’s 12V router and modem; note the 12V DC splitter cable and 2.5mm adaptor on the router (left). Practical Electronics | December | 2023 and CCTV leads. Kenable will also be found on eBay, but here is their main site: www.kenable.co.uk To hook the modem and router to the UPS, I grappled with various DC plugs and splitter cables, learning a few things along the way. In my case, the main stumbling block was that my router has a 5.5 x 2.5mm DC jack, which I found out through trial and error. However, the CCTV sector seems to use 5.5 x 2.1mm DC plugs, so the splitter cable would obviously not fit into my router DC jack as the plug’s ID was too small. Again, the CCTV market had an answer, as an adaptor plug is sold that reduces a 2.5mm DC socket to 2.1mm. They are also listed by Kenable (Part No. 005013) for just 59p. However, I found these DC plugs to be a pretty slack interference fit that could pull apart again without much effort – something to bear in mind. As the ‘input’ side of the splitter cable is 2.1mm, the spring-contact of the iPower-H supply lead connected to it very securely. It also plugged directly into the modem’s 2.1mm DC jack, and finally the router and modem were both running from the mini 12V UPS, see photos. I would expect the router and modem to continue for at least 30 minutes or so during power failures, enough to hopefully guard against brief power outages, surges and brownouts. An extra benefit is that the router’s settings are preserved for a time, which can only reduce network disruption once mains power is restored again. If you know the load’s power consumption, try using the ‘Runtime’ graph on the maker’s online data sheet, see: https://bit.ly/pe-dec23-iph On the threshold My network also uses a 4-port Ethernet switch and a Wi-Fi mesh hub, which use 9V mains adaptors. Power Inspired offers an unusual uninterruptible power supply in the shape of a powerbank-style unit that can provide 9, 12 or 24V DC during Sat on the floor, the author’s iPower-DC² UPS underneath a 9V switch and 9V mesh hub (white cube) powered by the iPower-DC². 11 the CCTV market, along with handy DC extension leads. I spent quite some time trying out the iPower-DC 2 using a Zolt 9V adaptor, connecting my network switch and mesh hub using the male-male leads provided. The battery UPS starts automatically when plugged into the mains, but it Unusual male-male DC leads are needed to connect can only be switched off when loads to the UPS. A very short pair is included in the in battery mode – ie, with the kit, others are available online. input fully disconnected. It rated at 36W, which offers 9, 12, 15 or took many hours for the internal battery 19V DC priced at roughly £60, or the to charge to 100%, and the output voltage 12V Salicru SPS Net for the same price. cannot be changed while in use or the Compare battery capacities as well. Fault LED lights and it shuts down. After an awful lot of testing and some mild abuse I did on one occasion manage Caught in a Load Block to lock up the UPS, which was overcome Still on the topic of power outages, regular by disconnecting the internal battery for readers will know that I’m currently kept an hour to reset the microcontroller. I busy down on the farm, in a rural area haven’t seen the problem again, though where smart meters are just a dream, but the makers say it can also be soft-reset mains power cuts can be a nightmare. by powering off the unit and shorting Strangely, the farm sometimes suffers a any DC jack. Otherwise the UPS has power cut along with some neighbouring operated as expected. The built-in USB villages, even though other areas, such port might be handy for powering some as one half of the rural village in which I smart devices or a smartphone too. live close by, might escape cut-free. Why Only time can tell how well the products some areas can be hit while others are will perform in practice, but they have freed unaffected is explained by the electricity up a couple of mains sockets and their industry’s use of ‘power blocks’ or ‘Rota unique compact design may well appeal to Load Blocks’ which organise electricity users looking to add extra protection to their distribution into blocks denoted by a home network, especially if power cuts are letter (often seen on your electricity bill). a nuisance. These versatile uninterruptible It turns out that I’m located in a different power supplies can be bought online block from the farm’s, which for some direct from the manufacturers at: reason is out on a limb and attached to a https://bit.ly/pe-dec23-ups neighbouring block instead (probably to Other compact UPS products on the do with overhead cables). market include the Eaton 3S Mini UPS It might be useful to know how power blocks are mapped out in your locality, which can be done by entering your postcode into www.powercut105.com/en/ In the UK, ‘105’ is the phone number to report power cuts or obtain updates. However, I’ve found that by entering a nonsense postcode, the 105 web page offered a link to a more useful interactive map instead. Use it to search the correct postcode and one’s location can be highlighted along with its Rota Load Block letter. This works best on a desktop PC, as you can zoom or click around to show neighbouring blocks. I found my own village is bisected by two blocks, hence one half can sometimes have a blackout while the other half is unaffected. Rota Load Blocks are instrumental in managing power during civil emergencies or supply shortages, something we have fortunately not seen in Britain since the 1970s. How the UK Government would manage our electricity supplies at critical times is explained in a PDF in the rather dystopian Electricity Supply Emergency Code (ESEC) – see: The iPower-DC2 is a powerbank-style compact UPS with five parallel 9, 12 or 24V DC outputs and a 5V USB socket. https://tinyurl.com/yrxxxsne power interruptions. The iPower-DC2 is a compact 30W UPS with 10,000mAh internal battery and apart from a 5V, 10W USB power port there are no less than five DC jacks wired in parallel, their output voltage being pre-set by a single slide switch when the unit is offline. A row of LEDs indicates battery capacity, and a tri-colour LED denotes the set voltage. The makers claim it provides at least 30 minutes runtime at full load, and over six hours at five watts. The one proviso is that it must be powered from a regulated mains power supply with a DC voltage that matches the UPS output (eg, use a 9V mains adaptor for 9V loads). The company tells me that the unit has a ‘pass through’ threshold voltage and that, as well as the different voltages, the input voltage has to be monitored closely. They explain that if the DC input was 10.5V, say, is that a ‘low’ 12V or a ‘high’ 9V? For safety the unit doesn’t operate unless the input voltage is within tolerance of the selected output voltage, otherwise the Fault warning LED lights and the device shuts down. They state that any regulated mains PSU should be sufficient though – the unit needs a 36W supply at most, as the maximum output is 30W and the UPS consumes a further 6W. A Zolt PSU would suffice for 9V or 12V loads, or you can try the DC adaptor supplied with your apparatus. A DIN rail bracket is also available for secure mounting. Personally, I haven’t seen DC jacks being used as outputs before, and to use them a male-male DC lead is therefore needed. A pair of very short DC leads (5.5 x 2.1mm only) was included, though Kenable offers them in longer lengths for 12 Practical Electronics | December | 2023 The 105 website for UK users shows your electricity Rota Load Block letter – to launch the map, search for a dummy postcode first. Neighbouring blocks can also be selected. Just to cheer us all up, the Code’s Annexes show the Block Disconnection Plan and Rotas of 3-hour power cuts that we hope will never be needed, especially the worst Level 18 Disconnection Plan (a total nationwide blackout). The National Grid has an outline at: https://bit.ly/pe-dec23-disc A Quality job I recently stumbled across an online ad by a firm that made ‘smart’ barriers that can be raised remotely to control traffic accessing, say, a driveway. A bright spark in marketing exclaimed that they had the ‘ISO 9000 certificate for high-quality materials and exceptional manufacturing standards.’ This irked me because, unfortunately for them, I happened to be an ISO9002 quality manager in industry at one time, so I immediately pointed out that their claims were meaningless! Readers may often see ‘ISO9000’ certification mentioned in marketing material, but consumers should note that it has nothing to do with ‘quality’ as in Rolls-Royce, and therefore, it doesn’t follow at all that you’re buying the best ‘quality’ product. Instead, it means the product has been made to a documented, qualityassured standard or specification: the spec may say that propeller blades, for example, are made from balsa wood, but it will be a quality-assured balsa wood propeller rather than an aerospace alloy one. The ISO standard evolved from the British car industry’s efforts in the 1970s to raise quality by specifying, sampling and approving materials, suppliers and production. The famous British Standard BS5750 was the result, and it evolved into the internationally recognised ISO9000 standards. Importantly, it doesn’t mean something is perfect either, but customer complaints get fed back into the system so that problems are gradually eradicated and products are refined over time. So, the next time you see an ISO9000 logo, remember that you’re not necessarily buying a RollsRoyce – it could be a lemon, but it will be a quality-assured lemon! in Asia and Argentina to build petrol, hybrid and electric SUVs. You can take a sneak peek at the forthcoming Omoda 5 SUV at: https://bit.ly/pe-dec23-omoda Meantime, the cost of insuring Tesla and other electric vehicles has hit the crash barrier in Britain, as insurers recoil from the extreme costs of repairing them. The batteries effectively form the car’s floorpan and repairs can be highly complex and ruinously expensive. Insurer John Lewis had suspended offering policies and Tesla owners were reportedly quoted £4,500 a year to renew – with some underwriters not renewing EV policies at all. Local authorities are also assessing whether multi-storey car parks can cope with the substantial extra weight of electric vehicles; a 1960s ‘Brutalist’ style multistorey car park in the author’s locality was refurbished at great expense but then had to be pulled down because structural problems made it unsafe for use. Space news Amazon has finally launched the first two satellites as part of its Project Kuiper programme. The test satellites were carried into LEO (low earth orbit) by a United Launch Alliance rocket in early October, and are intended to test telemetry of the satellites and ground network. UK-headquartered OneWeb, a smaller rival to Elon Musk’s Starlink LEO satcoms Chery picking Still on the topic of vehicle quality, Chinese car manufacturer Chery has come out top in the 2023 JD Power China Initial Quality Study. British readers may not have heard of Chery, but they soon will, as it’s reported they will arrive in the UK this year marketing a new ‘Omoda’ brand. Chery are also building four more factories An ISO9001 (or ISO9002) logo indicates that a quality management system to ISO standards is in place, but consumers should note it’s no guarantee of ‘RollsRoyce’ levels of quality. (Image: NQA) Terrington Components • Project boxes designed and manufactured in the UK. • Many of our enclosures used on former Maplin projects. • Unique designs and sizes, including square, long and deep variaaons of our screwed lid enclosures. • Sub-miniature sizes down to 23mm x 16mm, ideal for IoT devices. MADE IN BRITAIN www.terrington-components.co.uk | sales<at>terrington-components.co.uk | Tel: 01553 636999 Practical Electronics | December | 2023 13 JTAG Connector Plugs Directly into PCB!! No Header! No Brainer! Our patented range of Plug-of-Nails™ spring-pin cables plug directly into a tiny footprint of pads and locating holes in your PCB, eliminating the need for a mating header. Save Cost & Space on Every PCB!! Solutions for: PIC . dsPIC . ARM . MSP430 . Atmel . Generic JTAG . Altera Xilinx . BDM . C2000 . SPY-BI-WIRE . SPI / IIC . Altium Mini-HDMI . & More www.PlugOfNails.com Tag-Connector footprints as small as 0.02 sq. inch (0.13 sq cm) Amazon’s Project Kuiper satellite broadband project saw two satellites launched in October for test purposes. network, is merging with satellite operator Eutelsat. The newly formed Eutelsat Group will therefore be able to offer both geostationary earth orbit (GEO) and LEO-based space communications, including maritime, broadcast, inflight and satellite broadband services. OneWeb was rescued from bankruptcy by the British Government and Indian telco Bharti Airtel in 2020, and it’s since been reported that Britain’s MI5 security service investigated a Chinese plot to acquire OneWeb for themselves at the time. The idea of using OneWeb in a new British satnav network was eventually shelved. There has been no news since 2021 about the UK’s proposed Space-Based Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) Programme, which has been floated as a replacement for GPS-based satnav systems. A satellite (the DOVER Pathfinder) intended to evaluate PNT technologies, was onboard the ill-fated Virgin Orbit 747 flight from Cornwall at the beginning of this year (see Net Work, Feb. 2023). Online news Amazon Prime customers will start to see limited advertisements on their streaming Prime Video channels starting next year. An ad-free option will cost an extra $2.99 or equivalent, in an effort to drum up more revenue. Of course, the current £8.99 monthly fee offers them some slack to raise prices up to the 14 £9.99 price point, which I guess will follow next. If you’re thinking of investing in any of Google’s smart devices or Nest security hardware, a post on Android Authority might make you think twice. It summarises neatly many of Google’s false dawns, failures and withdrawn products, and can be read at: https://bit.ly/pe-dec23-googfail Facebook might sometimes have a lot to answer for, but it also has some positive uses: in the author’s locality a distraught motor caravan owner posted a message saying that their pride and joy had been stolen from their driveway during the night. He reported it to the Police as usual, but he also posted an appeal and photos of the vehicle in a local Facebook group. A few days later an eagle-eyed Facebook user in a town 20 miles away spotted the camper van sticking out like a sore thumb in a housing estate, and he managed to re-unite it with its owner. Car thieves often park up for a few days somewhere to see if a tracker is fitted, and one motorhome owner suggested that a small tracker unit could be hidden in, say, a cushion. (Beware of cheap GPS trackers sold on the web that are tricky to set up and may depend on now-obsolete mobile data networks.) At the same time, while I was checking through another local Facebook group, a car owner posted a photo of his classic car that he takes to car shows. I recognised it immediately as the Opel saloon that my father bought brand new in 1976, which I drove to nightschool as a teenager soon after passing my driving test (no pressure!). I learned the car would be exhibited locally in a few days, so I had the great pleasure of being re-united with our family car, now 47 years old and looking well with 151,000 miles on the clock. It’s a funny old world! That’s all for this month. Don’t forget, at our advert-free website – electronpublishing.com – you will find all the above links readymade for you on the The author can be reached at: alan<at>epemag.net Net Work blog. Practical Electronics | December | 2023