PoE Ethernet GPIB Adapter – Open Source Project, now public

[Kofen]

Hi everyone,
I’m excited to share that I’ve finally finished and made public my PoE-powered Ethernet GPIB adapter project: https://github.com/Kofen/PoE_Ethernet_GPIB_Adapter

The adapter is designed to simplify connecting multiple GPIB-equipped instruments over Ethernet, reducing the need for bulky cabling and providing a (more) cost-effective alternative to many commercial solutions. It supports both PoE and USB-C for power, with GPIB communication over either Ethernet or USB-C. The hardware is also compatible with the AR488 project.

While there’s still a lot of work to do on the software side (it's functional but has many rough edges), it has proven to be extremely reliable in my lab setup.

I’d love to hear your feedback! I’m also planning a small run of boards for personal use. If anyone is interested, let me know—I can make a few extra boards if there’s demand.

Looking forward to your comments and suggestions!

EDIT:

Adapters and parts are in stock, time from order to ship is 2 business days, following Tiers and pricing are offered:

Tier 1:
PCBA with all the SMD components and core glued in place, pre-flashed with the bootloader and the latest firmware. The through-hole parts (GPIB connector, Ethernet jack, reset switch, programming header) will come in a bag for you to solder yourself. This will also include two screws to secure the GPIB connector and a printed label (24x58mm Brother label) with the MAC address, as shown in previous photos. You can print your own case, or you can add one to your order (details below).

Tier 2:
A fully built and tested adapter, with or without an enclosure. This option comes with limited warranty and support via email, forums, or GitHub. I’ll fully support it, but this is priced as an indie/hobbyist option.

Tier 3:
A fully built and tested adapter with a 5-year warranty on parts and priority support for any issues. This is aimed more for professional users.
Pricing:

    Tier 1: $67 USD + shipping. Add $1 USD if you want a 3D-printed case.
    Tier 2: $90 USD + shipping. Subtract $1 USD if you don’t want the enclosure.
    Tier 3: $150 USD + shipping.

Shipping costs:

    Most of Europe, including UK: $13 USD
    US and more remote locations: $40 USD

To place an order, send me a direct message with:

Qty, tier, 3d printed case yes/no
Name
Address
Postal code
City
Country
Phone number
Email address

You will then get a paypal invoice for the total.
The phone number is needed for ordering shipping

[IanJ]

I’d love to try one of these out when they are available. PM me to work things out.

Ian.

[CatalinaWOW]

Nice work and excellent documentation!

[BennoG]

Count me in for 2 boards also.

I was planning doing something similar with a RPI as base CPU. But if you done the hardware part then that saves me a lot of time.

Benno

[NiHaoMike]

What voltage range does the converter support? Would be nice to have the option to power it from the device it's attached to rather than PoE, particularly if the board is integrated inside the device.

[Kofen]

Thank you for the kind words @CatalinaWOW
@BennoG I will put you down for two boards, I will be ordering pcbs today(plenty extras) and parts on January 2, so it will be a few week before the next batch is ready.

@NiHaoMike In theory, from at least 15v, probably a bit lower. Vin max is 57v(with margins added). I have tested it on 24v and that works fine, but lower is not tested.
If it is important for you, I can do a test to see the limits down in voltage with some extra load added, so that we have margins.
In order to use it stand-alone you should only need to maybe lift the PG pin from the PoE controller and change the UVLO resistors to a lower voltage(currently set to ~35v)

[BennoG]

I usually order the PCB's with all the SMD components assembled from JLC.
So that I don't have to solder all the 0402 components (but I am lazy, and it only costs about 1 euro per board extra)

Benno

[Kofen]

Oh for sure, not planning to hand solder or make you do the same. I will assemble them at home on my pnp.
Do you prefer to get a complete pcb in housing with thru hole part soldered or are you happy with PCBA with all the smd soldered and a baggie with the few thru hole parts for you to assemble?

[Hydron]

Oh man I had to see this the day after my $30 JLC 6-layer coupon expired (didn't have a board ready to use it with - this would have been perfect).

I'm interested in the reason for having the RJ45 coming straight out the back - most (all?) GPIB cables have the big thick cable coming out one specific side so it may help to do the same with the RJ45 to minimise the depth added to an piece of test gear.

Edit: put me down as interested in one too - I'm currently using an AR488 plus a SBC as a serial server - was looking at making a ESP32 based AR488 but I'd trust a wired ethernet option more and PoE is the correct way to power one

I also tried to open it in KiCAD to look at how hard it would be to change the RJ45 connector orientation (probably quite slow for me - only experience is in Altium), but it's not opening in the latest stable release - did you use the nightly releases to save it?

Edit 2: Just realised that moving the RJ45 could cause issues trying to screw the adapter into the GPIB connector. The answer to the shelf-depth question is probably just to put it behind something short or use a GPIB cable.

[BennoG]

Oh for sure, not planning to hand solder or make you do the same. I will assemble them at home on my pnp.
Do you prefer to get a complete pcb in housing with thru hole part soldered or are you happy with PCBA with all the smd soldered and a baggie with the few thru hole parts for you to assemble?

For me I can hand solder the true hole parts.
I can also 3d print the housing.

Benno

[Kofen]

@NiHaoMike Curiosity and lack of sleep got the better of me, so I ran some tests. I would say you can run the flyback from 9V to 57V—good range if you ask me!
I’ve attached a thermal plot at 8.4V. The CM choke is the hottest part at this point (due to the current), but it’s still within limits when factoring in ambient temperatures inside an enclosure.
EDIT: For got to say that I added an extra 200mA load on the 5v to give some margins.

@Hydron I received another request for an alternate footprint in the xDevs chat. The only real possibility is to add a vertical jack. If you can provide a part number that matches the footprint of the Ethernet lines, I can try to create a universal footprint if it’s important. The LED footprint doesn’t matter, as it’s not high speed.
The current magjack used is: ARJM11C7-114-BA-EW2. I’ll put you down for one adapter. Would you prefer a “kit” or a finished, tested unit with a 3D print?

Apologies for the KiCad incompatibility; I’m on a nightly build, awaiting KiCad 9. There are some real benefits. I’m using version 20241210-1013-16cbb218c6.
The good news is that KiCad 9 should be released around the end of January.

@BennoG Great! I’ll put you down for a PCB with a flashed bootloader, firmware, and a baggie of parts.

I’ll try to finalize the pricing for this run; I just need to get an overview. Don’t feel committed to any of your orders until I provide the final prices. I’ll make extras regardless.

[voltsandjolts]

Vertical GPIB or bent RJ45 might help some folks...

[krish2487]

@Kofen
That looks amazing and quite useful. Put me down for 2 boards if you are still taking requests... :-)
One of my new years resolution was to do exactly that.. ;-) a POE GPIB Ethernet adapter.. but you did it..

[H.O]

I'm also interested in a PCB with a flashed bootloader, firmware, and a baggie of parts, thanks!

[Hydron]

Had a quick look at alternative RJ45 connectors and no luck matching the pin out. One option might be to add another set of pins for an alternative that the ethernet connections "run through" and accept the stubs if using the alternative vertical connector - 100MBit will likely be very forgiving of things like that. I'll have a quick look at that if I have time today

As for my interest in a board, it would be as a kit rather than assembled. A second might be useful depending on cost, but even just one would be very useful in my setup.

[mansaxel]

Yay!

Looks amazeballs!

I'd like to sign up for the magic order, Happy Meal, or whatever, i.e. "PCB with a flashed bootloader, firmware, and a baggie of parts." :-)

[Kofen]

Thank you for the nice comments!

None of you are too late and I will make some extra boards regardless, I will run thru the final cost tomorrow and post here.

I had an epiphany after publishing the design that there is zero reasons to have a split case 3d print since screws are needed any way, will clean up and publish the files tomorrow. Much easier to print and not so printer dependent.

[Kofen]

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to check in and share the new enclosure, it’s very easy to print.

I’m still working on the final pricing. I’ve got a lot on my plate today, but you should have it by tomorrow at the latest. The order for parts and PCBs will go out tomorrow regardless, with plenty of extras, so it won’t affect the timeline.

Files will be uploaded in the repro shortly.

[pbs74]

Happy New Year! I am interested in a couple as well, pending cost. Been looking at building Xyphro's adapter, but would like something with Ethernet. Can do through hole soldering myself.

[Kofen]

I’ve finally sorted out the pricing and decided to offer three tiers for the adapter:

Tier 1:
PCBA with all the SMD components and core glued in place, pre-flashed with the bootloader and the latest firmware. The through-hole parts (GPIB connector, Ethernet jack, reset switch, programming header) will come in a bag for you to solder yourself. This will also include two screws to secure the GPIB connector and a printed label (24x58mm Brother label) with the MAC address, as shown in previous photos. You can print your own case, or you can add one to your order (details below).

Tier 2:
A fully built and tested adapter, with or without an enclosure. This option comes with limited warranty and support via email, forums, or GitHub. I’ll fully support it, but this is priced as an indie/hobbyist option.

Tier 3:
A fully built and tested adapter with a 5-year warranty on parts and priority support for any issues. This is aimed more for professional users.
Pricing:

    Tier 1: $67 USD + shipping. Add $1 USD if you want a 3D-printed case.
    Tier 2: $90 USD + shipping. Subtract $1 USD if you don’t want the enclosure.
    Tier 3: $150 USD + shipping.

Shipping costs:

    Most of Europe, including UK: $13 USD
    US and more remote locations: $40 USD

I’m eager to hear your thoughts on this pricing. For Tier 1, I’m only covering the parts cost without factoring in my time. I wanted to keep the price as low as possible, so I added the Tier 2 indie price for hobbyists who want a fully built adapter. The Tier 3 option is the only one where I make a reasonable profit, but even that’s modest when you consider the warranty responsibility and the time I’ll invest.

If you’re still interested, let me know! To place an order, send me a private message with your full address, phone number, email address, and the tier you’d like. I’ll send you a PayPal invoice in return.
Production Timeline:

Parts and PCBs are ordered. One part is back-ordered until January 23, but it’s a through-hole component, so it shouldn’t delay the timeline. I expect to start shipping units by early to mid-February, barring any unforeseen delays.

I’ve ordered parts and PCBs for 40 units. Twenty are reserved for me and friends, but if demand exceeds the other 20, I’ll do my best to accommodate.
Current Orders:

    @BennoG: 2 pcs (Tier 1)
    @Hydron: 1 pc (Tier 1)
    @krish2487: 2 pcs (Tier 1?)
    @H.O : 1 pc (Tier 1)
    @mansaxel: 1 pc (Tier 1)
    @pbs74: 2 pcs (Tier 1)

That makes 10 units spoken for so far (one order came via DM). Ian was first in line and already accepted one of the prototypes, which is on its way to him.

There’s still plenty left for late bloomers! If you’d like to order, just send me a message with the info, and I’ll get one reserved for you.

[H.O]

Can't speak for others of course and I usually don't want to pay more than I have to but yeah, €47 sounds unreasonably cheap for a low volume semi assembled and programmed unit.

I'll happily pay for Tier 2 but receive the kit. That way I won't feel too bad if I have to ask a stupid question and I get to practice my 3D printing.

[BennoG]

Can't speak for others of course and I usually don't want to pay more than I have to but yeah, €47 sounds unreasonably cheap for a low volume semi assembled and programmed unit.

That is why I asked the OP to charge me €55 per tier 1 unit, so he has some profit on these also.

Benno

[Kofen]

Thats very kind of you and I appriciate it! Having a bit of profit sure helps to ensure that I can keep these available in the future so I won't reject your offers.
H.O , send me a message with details when you are ready and you will have an adapter kit soon.

[smaultre]

Hello! Happy New Year!!!
I'd like to sign up for 2pcs Tier1 and 2cases for them.

[krish2487]

I agree with the others and I would not mind paying 55 Euro per Tier 1 unit to help support the OP and the effort he has put into the project.. :-)
And yes, 2 units for me @Kofen