Traceable cables

Abstract

Traceable cables (e.g., networking cables, power cables, etc.). Some embodiments include a traceable power cable with a battery (e.g., that may be rechargeable from current from an external power source to which the power cable is electrically connected). Some embodiments include a traceable networking cable configured to draw power from power-over-Ethernet (POE) power sourcing equipment (PSE) even if the networking cable is not connected to a separate powered device (PD).

1 . A power cable comprising:
 a power cable having a first end, a second end, and two or more conductors in a flexible sheath between the first end and the second end;   a male connector hood on the first end of the power cable;   a female connector hood on the second end of the power cable;   an electric power source configured to be incorporated into at least one of the connector hoods;   an electrically activated telltale incorporated into at least one of the connector hoods; and   a manually operated switch incorporated into at least one of the connector hoods and configured to activate the telltale by initiating electrical communication between the electric power source, at least one of the two or more conductors, and the telltale.   
     
     
         2 . (canceled) 
     
     
         3 . The power cable of  claim 1 , further comprising a charging circuit coupled to the two or more conductors and configured such that if the power cable is coupled to an external electric power source, the charging circuit can communicate electric current from the external electric power source to the power source. 
     
     
         4 . (canceled) 
     
     
         5 . The power cable of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a controller coupled to the electric power source, the switch, and the telltale.   
     
     
         6 . The power cable of  claim 5 , where the controller incorporated into one of the connector hoods and is configured to:
 activate the telltale for a predetermined amount of time responsive to the switch being operated if the telltale is not active; and   inactivate the telltale responsive to the switch being operated during a predetermined amount of time in which the telltale is activated.   
     
     
         7 . The power cable of  claim 6 , where the controller is configured to:
 activate the telltale for a first predetermined amount of time responsive to the switch being operated in a first manner if the telltale is not active; and   activate the telltale for a second predetermined amount of time responsive to the switch being operated in a second manner if the telltale is not active.   
     
     
         8 . The power cable of  claim 5 , where:
 the electric power source comprises a battery; and   the controller is configured to activate the telltale if the voltage of the battery falls below a threshold voltage.   
     
     
         9 . The power cable of  claim 5 , where the electric power source comprises a battery, and the controller is configured such that if the power cable is coupled to an external electric power source, the controller can direct electrical current from the external power source to the battery. 
     
     
         10 . The power cable of  claim 9 , where the controller is configured to direct electrical current from the external power source to the battery if the voltage of the battery falls below a threshold voltage. 
     
     
         11 . (canceled) 
     
     
         12 . The power cable of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a second electrically activated telltale incorporated into the other of the connector hoods; and   where:
 the manually operated switch is configured to activate both telltales by initiating electrical communication between the electric power source, at least one of the conductors, and the telltale; 
 the electrically activated telltale comprises one or more items selected from the group consisting of: a light emitting diode, an incandescent light bulb, and a liquid crystal visual indicator; and 
 the electrically activated telltale is configured to emit an audio or visual signal if activated. 
   
     
     
         13 . (canceled) 
     
     
         14 . A networking cable comprising:
 a plurality of conductors in a flexible sheath having a first end and a second end, the plurality of conductors comprising a plurality of conductor wire pairs;   a connector hood on each end of the flexible sheath;   an electric power source configured to be incorporated into at least one of the connector hoods;   an electrically activated telltale incorporated into at least one of the connector hoods;   a manually operated switch incorporated into at least one of the connector hoods and configured to activate the telltale by initiating electrical communication between the electric power source and the telltale; and   a resistor incorporated into at least one of the connector hoods, the resistor electrically connected to at least one of the conductor wire pairs such that if the cable is electrically connected to power-over-Ethernet (POE) power sourcing equipment (PSE), the POE PSE will deliver electric power to the cable even if the cable is not also electrically connected to a separate POE powered device (PD).   
     
     
         15 . The networking cable of  claim 14 , where the plurality of conductors further comprises at least one indicator wire, and the switch is configured to activate the telltale by initiating electrical communication between the electric power source and the telltale via the at least one indicator wire. 
     
     
         16 . The networking cable of  claim 14 , further comprising:
 a charging circuit coupled to the at least one of the conductor wire pairs and configured such that if the cable is electrically connected to POE PSE, the charging circuit can communicate electric current from the POE PSE to the electric power source; and   where the electric power source comprises a rechargeable battery.   
     
     
         17 . (canceled) 
     
     
         18 . The networking cable of  claim 14 , further comprising:
 a second electrically activated telltale incorporated into another of the connector hoods;   where the manually operated switch is configured to activate both telltales by initiating electrical communication between the electric power source, at least one of the conductors, and the telltale.   
     
     
         19 . The networking cable of  claim 14 , further comprising:
 a controller coupled to the electric power source, the switch, and the telltale.   
     
     
         20 . The networking cable of  claim 19 , where:
 the controller is configured to:
 activate the telltale for a predetermined amount of time responsive to the switch being operated if the telltale is not active, and 
 inactivate the telltale responsive to the switch being operated during a predetermined amount of time in which the telltale is activated. 
   
     
     
         21 . The networking cable of  claim 20 , where:
 the controller is configured to:
 activate the telltale for a first predetermined amount of time responsive to the switch being operated in a first manner if the telltale is not active, and 
 activate the telltale for a second predetermined amount of time responsive to the switch being operated in a second manner if the telltale is not active; and 
   to activate the telltale, power is pulsed to the electrically activated telltale.   
     
     
         22 . The networking cable of  claim 19 , where:
 the electric power source comprises a battery;   the controller is configured to activate the telltale if the voltage of the battery falls below a threshold voltage; and   the resistor is included in a printed circuit board (PCB) to which the controller is coupled.   
     
     
         23 - 25 . (canceled) 
     
     
         26 . The networking cable  claim 19 , where:
 the electric power source comprises a battery;   the controller is configured such that if the cable is electrically connected to POE PSE, the controller can direct electrical current from the POE PSE to the battery; and   the controller is configured to direct electrical current from the POE PSE to the battery if the voltage of the battery falls below a threshold voltage.   
     
     
         27 . (canceled) 
     
     
         28 . The power cable of  claim 14 , where:
 the electrically activated telltale is configured to emit an audio or visual signal if activated; and   the electrically activated telltale comprises one or more items selected from the group consisting of: a light emitting diode, an incandescent light bulb, and a liquid crystal visual indicator.   
     
     
         29 . (canceled) 
     
     
         30 . The networking cable of  claim 14 , further comprising:
 a separator mechanism incorporated into at least one of the connector hoods to separate at least one of the plurality of conductors from at least one of the other plurality of conducts to prevent crosstalk between the separated conductors.