UPS Scap 5V5A

Safety Instructions & Warnings

① Short-circuiting the positive and negative terminals of the capacitors is strictly prohibited. Damage caused by a short circuit is not covered under warranty.

② Before storing, please press and hold the discharge button to discharge the capacitors.

③ Before disassembling or assembling modules, please turn off the main power switch.

Overview

The UPS_Scap_5V5A is a supercapacitor-based UPS power module designed specifically for the Raspberry Pi 5. It supports either a 12V PD input or a wide-range 9–24V input (use one or the other), and offers three output options: PD USB-C, USB-A, and pins, with a total output of up to 5V 5A. The USB-C port supports the 5V 5A PD protocol required by the Raspberry Pi 5.

The 100F supercapacitor provides ample power for extended battery life. It features a main power switch and bleed circuitry, and can be mounted on the bottom of the Raspberry Pi for power via header pins or a USB-C to USB-C connector. A power monitoring circuitry allows for reading the supercapacitor's voltage and charging/discharging current via an I2C interface to estimate battery life. A compatible USB-C adapter allows for direct stacking on the bottom of the Raspberry Pi 5.

Features

• Raspberry Pi 5 Dedicated PD Handshake Power Supply: Natively compatible with the Raspberry Pi 5's non-standard 5V5A PD power supply protocol, avoiding the "insufficient power" pop-up alarm triggered by ordinary power supplies; the included USB-C adapter board can be directly stacked on the bottom of the Raspberry Pi 5 for plug-and-play functionality.

• 100F High-Capacity Supercapacitor Power-Off Protection: In long-run mode, it can provide up to 3 minutes and 31 seconds of continuous use under a 5V 0.5A load, allowing ample time for data writing and safe system shutdown; the supercapacitor solution eliminates the safety hazards of lithium batteries, offering long lifespan and maintenance-free operation.

• Dual Input Compatibility for Multiple Scenarios: Supports DC 9-24V wide voltage input / USB-C 12V PD fast charging input (choose one; USB-C requires a ≥30W PD/QC charger); internal dual-path isolation circuitry allows for seamless switching between charging and discharging.

• Multi-interface 5V5A output: Standard configuration includes two outputs: USB-C (with PD handshake) and USB-A, sharing a total 5A power output; additionally, there are reserved unsoldered power supply pads for the top pins. Compatible with Raspberry Pi 3B/4B/5, Orange Pi, and other 5V development boards, and can also power other 5V devices.

• Hardware-level power-down detection and intelligent power on/off: GPIO26 hardware direct connection detects power loss; onboard microcontroller manages the power-on signal, automatically powering on when power is restored from a power-off state; the accompanying official demo script supports automatically clearing the power-on pop-up window to avoid forced shutdown triggered by consecutive power losses, suitable for remote unattended operation scenarios (script needs to be deployed manually).

• I2C real-time voltage and current monitoring: Onboard INA219 chip, reading capacitor voltage and charging/discharging current via the I2C interface for easy estimation of remaining battery life; official support scripts are provided for both Raspberry Pi OS and Ubuntu dual-system compatibility.

• Comprehensive safety design: Integrated main power switch, fast discharge button, 5-level power indicator light, automatic cut-off when capacitor charging reaches 5.2V to prevent overcharge, making operation and storage safer.

Technical Specification

Power input	DC 9-24V wide voltage input, DC 5.5-2.1 interface; USB-C PD interface, PD negotiated voltage 12V, please be sure to use PD or QC power supply; input power recommended ≥30W; (Choose one of the two interfaces) Power input is split into two paths: One path steps down to 5.2V to directly power the target board; The other path charges the supercapacitor. For safety, charging stops after reaching 5.2V. These two paths are isolated by a circuit, therefore they will not output simultaneously.
Output	5V5A output, using high-efficiency boost and buck DC-DC power chips; Dual interfaces: USB-C and USB-A, both sharing 5V5A; Specifically designed for powering Raspberry Pi 5; USB-C features PD handshake negotiation, enabling the 5V5APD handshake protocol for Raspberry Pi 5; USB-A; Both interfaces can also be used to connect to other development boards such as Raspberry Pi 4B/3B/Orange Pi;
Energy storage unit	100F supercapacitor (series structure, maximum fully charged voltage 5.4V, safe charging cut-off voltage 5.2V)
Charging time	Approximately 15 minutes to fully charge (under 30W PD power supply conditions)
Current and Voltage Detection'	Identifies charging and discharging status; voltage and current of the supercapacitor can be read via I2C interface, and the direction of the current indicates whether it is charging or discharging; I2C interface allows reading capacitor voltage and charging/discharging current.
Power-down detection	One power-down detection pin; a logic level of 3.3V indicates the presence of external power input, and a logic level of 0V indicates that the external power is off. For Raspberry Pi, external power loss can be detected via GPIO26 (40-pin); for other development boards, it can be connected to a GPIO pin.
Wake-up function	Power-off self-start circuit (Raspberry Pi 5 exclusive).
Physical Switches	Main power switch + quick discharge button; One power switch to shut off output for safe module installation and removal; One discharge button for quick discharge and safe storage; for example, after use, it is recommended to press this button to discharge the supercapacitor for safety.
Status Indicators	1 power indicator + 5 battery indicator lights + 1 discharge indicator light
Product dimensions	85×56mm; Operating
⚠️ Safety Warning	Due to their high energy density and low internal resistance, supercapacitors must not be short-circuited when powered on; similarly,the positive and negative terminals of two supercapacitors must not be short-circuited. Damage caused by short circuits is not covered under warranty. Please exercise extreme caution during operation.

Packing List

• Supercapacitor UPS 5V 5A PD power module x 1
• USB C-C adapter board x 4

Script Reference

This section includes two types of script resources for debugging and adapting X120x series UPS HATs. Official scripts are factory-adapted basic versions, while open-source projects are for extended reference only. All scripts must undergo prototype testing before formal use to avoid compatibility risks.

Note: The content below is a brief summary only. Click the corresponding link for detailed script examples.

Official Scripts (Click Here)

1. Edit EEPROM Configuration
2. Configure I2C on Raspberry Pi
3. Read UPS Status
4. Manually Check Battery Voltage & Percentage
5. Test AC Power Loss Detection
6. Control Battery Charging (For Advanced Users Only)

Third-Party Extension

We sincerely appreciate the dedication and generous open-source contribution from the community user for these GitHub projects.

Please note: these are independent third-party resources, not developed, verified, or maintained by our official team. We share these links for reference only; please independently verify its compatibility with your specific device, system environment, and actual needs.

Extension 1(Click Here)

This repository hosts a community-developed x120x-dkms kernel driver for Raspberry Pi, designed for X120x series UPS HATs, with tentative experimental compatibility for X728, X729 and X708 models. It enables basic native Linux power supply integration (including simple battery status display, low-power shutdown, and optional battery longevity mode) with no extra custom scripts required.

Extension 2(Click Here)

This project supports intelligent automatic shutdown, battery overcharge protection, low-temperature delayed charging, systemd journal logging, JSON UPS status output, network-based real-time UPS status update, system service & manual running modes, battery temperature monitoring and automatic thermal cooling.