Customer:
I was switching the Inkplate 10 power supply from USB to VIN and attached a 12V power supply. Smoke appeared on the lower left corner of the board backside, near the CH340C. I removed the 12V supply quickly but the PowerLED no longer powers on when I plug in USB. What component did I damage? Can it be repaired?
Originally submitted via email support on 18 January 2025. Migrated to the forum for community visibility.
Customer:
This is the e-radionica.com variant of the board. I have a picture of the area where the smoke came from.
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Soldered Support:
The battery charger IC is the most sensitive component and should be replaced first. Check the official schematic at Inkplate-10-hardware/Schematics, Gerber, BOM/v1.0/Inkplate10 schematics v1.0.pdf at main · SolderedElectronics/Inkplate-10-hardware · GitHub to find the part number.
If replacing the battery charger IC doesn’t work, the next component to try replacing is the TPS e-paper power supply chip, though it’s unlikely you’ll be able to do this without damaging the panel. The damage to the board is likely severe.
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Soldered Support:
Unfortunately no - the battery charger IC also acts as a switcher between battery and USB power supply and must bridge the connection from VUSB to the OUT pin which is the 3.3V power rail, so it cannot be bypassed.