I've made an easy modification to 2 popular chinese market cameras to provide 12 volt power from their external power input jack (models HFW4431M-I2 and HFW4431R-Z). The same power components are in at least one model international starlight I looked at, so I'd expect the modification to be the same. The prerequisites are (1) Willing to open up the camera, (2) Small geometry soldering capability, and (3) Assuming the risk of destroying the camera.
Inside the camera, its internal poe-powered 12 volt supply and the external 12 volt input are hooked in parallel, with the exception of a diode in the external power input line that prevents POE power exiting the power input jack, and provides reverse polarity protection. Merely bridging this diode allows the camera's 12 volt POE power to be available at the power input jack. I'd expect powering the camera through the input jack to still work, with reverse polarity protection lost.
Starting with the 4431M, this is a picture of its main board. The diode is already bridged:
A closeup of the power input area shows the bridged diode on the right:
The component 3 positions to the left is a 15 volt transient suppression diode. The green "150" component is a "polyfuse", which is roughly a non-mechanical automatic reset circuit breaker. This one is manufactured by CYG Wayon, and opens up between 1.5 and 3 amps at 25 deg C. With the 4431M I've not seen an initialization problem that crops up with the 4431R-Z, but it's something to be aware of. You then need a "double male" cord to connect the camera to the IR light. The cable you already have to split a POE splitter's power output works as a temporary substitute.
The modification is the same on the 4431R-Z's board:
Even with the internal IR light turned off in the camera's setup, both cameras turn it on full blast for a few seconds during startup. With the 4431R-Z, the camera won't successfully boot up if the external IR light is active. It just keeps looping, attempting to get started. This was solved by forcibly disabling the 4431R-Z's internal IR lights by cutting the wire that goes to pin 1 of the IR array:
I've been running the 4431M with a 6 watt external light, and the 4431R-Z with a 4 watt external light, and so far, so good.
These are voltage measurements of the camera's 12 volt supply:
4431M:
no IR - 11.86
internal IR at 100% - 11.66
4 watt external IR - 11.49
6 watt external IR - 11.45
6 watt external + internal at 100% - 10.58
4431R-Z:
no IR - 11.66
internal IR at 100% - 11.40
4 watt external IR - 11.23
6 watt external IR - 11.14
4 watt external + internal at 100% - 11.18
6 watt external + internal at 100% - 11.11, with possibility of shutdown
I'm not doing this to avoid the cost of POE splitters. It's to fight the war on spiders without adding a bunch of cords and connectors exposed to the elements.
Inside the camera, its internal poe-powered 12 volt supply and the external 12 volt input are hooked in parallel, with the exception of a diode in the external power input line that prevents POE power exiting the power input jack, and provides reverse polarity protection. Merely bridging this diode allows the camera's 12 volt POE power to be available at the power input jack. I'd expect powering the camera through the input jack to still work, with reverse polarity protection lost.
Starting with the 4431M, this is a picture of its main board. The diode is already bridged:
A closeup of the power input area shows the bridged diode on the right:
The component 3 positions to the left is a 15 volt transient suppression diode. The green "150" component is a "polyfuse", which is roughly a non-mechanical automatic reset circuit breaker. This one is manufactured by CYG Wayon, and opens up between 1.5 and 3 amps at 25 deg C. With the 4431M I've not seen an initialization problem that crops up with the 4431R-Z, but it's something to be aware of. You then need a "double male" cord to connect the camera to the IR light. The cable you already have to split a POE splitter's power output works as a temporary substitute.
The modification is the same on the 4431R-Z's board:
Even with the internal IR light turned off in the camera's setup, both cameras turn it on full blast for a few seconds during startup. With the 4431R-Z, the camera won't successfully boot up if the external IR light is active. It just keeps looping, attempting to get started. This was solved by forcibly disabling the 4431R-Z's internal IR lights by cutting the wire that goes to pin 1 of the IR array:
I've been running the 4431M with a 6 watt external light, and the 4431R-Z with a 4 watt external light, and so far, so good.
These are voltage measurements of the camera's 12 volt supply:
4431M:
no IR - 11.86
internal IR at 100% - 11.66
4 watt external IR - 11.49
6 watt external IR - 11.45
6 watt external + internal at 100% - 10.58
4431R-Z:
no IR - 11.66
internal IR at 100% - 11.40
4 watt external IR - 11.23
6 watt external IR - 11.14
4 watt external + internal at 100% - 11.18
6 watt external + internal at 100% - 11.11, with possibility of shutdown
I'm not doing this to avoid the cost of POE splitters. It's to fight the war on spiders without adding a bunch of cords and connectors exposed to the elements.
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