Patent Application
20120305285
1. Field of the Invention
This application relates to cables. More particularly, this application relates to network cable insulation.
2. Description of Related Art
Communications cables are broadly grouped into two arrangements, fiber optic cables and metal conductor cables, each of which has their own unique set of construction parameters that affect the quality of the communication signals carried therethrough.
Regarding metal conductor cables, one typical arrangement is the LAN (Local Area Network) cable that is usually constructed of four pairs of twisted insulated copper conductors encased within a jacket. Other larger cables may employ more pairs of conductors.
In this typical four pair LAN cable construction, in addition to the outer jacket, each of the eight primary conductors are individually coated with an insulation layer. Special designs for LAN cables may include a cross-filler for better NEXT (Near End Cross Talk) performance.
Aside from electrical performance considerations, there are certain mechanical performance tests that need to be met. One such crucial test is the NFPA 262 flame test, which is a standard method of testing for flame travel and smoke generation in wires and cables that may be installed in air-handling spaces such as budding ductwork.
In this context, FEP (fluorinated Ethylene Polymer) resin, thanks to its outstanding electrical and flame performance, is a typical material choice for the LAN cable application, for use in the primary conductor insulation. Other fire resistant materials such FRPVC (Flame Resistant PVC) are used for the outer jacket as the balance of ruggedness versus electrical considerations are different for the outer jacket than for the primary insulation.
With respect to the use of FEP on the primary insulation however, because FEP resin is expensive and the source of supply is limited, it is desirable to reducing or replace the FEP using alternative materials.
One such prior art example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,563,377 illustrates a LAN cable where the insulation on each of the four pairs of primary conductors made of four insulated dual layers pairs where a smaller amount of FEP resin covers the primary insulation layer made of an olefin based flame retardant formulation, thus reducing the amount of FEP required.
The present arrangement addresses the problems with the prior art and provides for a LAN cable that meets the required NFPA 262 flame test, without the use of FEP.
To this end, the present arrangement provides a communications cable having a jacket and a plurality of twisted pairs, each Misted pair having two insulated conductors twisted around one another. On at least one twisted pair, the insulation on the conductors of the pair is a two layer insulation with a first inner layer employing polyolefin and a second outer layer employing imide polymer.
The present invention can be best understood through the following description and accompanying drawings, wherein:
In one embodiment as illustrated in
As shown in
As illustrated in
It is noted that normally, insulation 24 in a LAN cable would be a single layer of insulation (of one material). In the present arrangement as shown in
Regarding the selection of polymers for insulation 24 as shown in
PET has excellent flame and smoke performance. However, it tends to be stiffer resulting in less cable flexibility and its dielectric constant is higher, which means the velocity of signal propagation through PEI insulated conductors is slower than through conductors insulated by FRPP. On the other hand, signal dissipation factor for PEI is lower than that of FRPP, which results in less signal attenuation.
In alternative arrangement, the use of other polymers of comparable flame resistance and electrical performance to PEI, including polyether sulfone, polyphenylene oxide, or combinations thereof with each other or with PET, is contemplated.
Furthermore, it is noted that in order to improve metal release, processibility, aging, or flame and smoke performance, the PEI may contain organic and/or inorganic additives such as 0.5% HDPE (High Density PolyEthylene) so as to improve metal release. In one example, the PEI may be a copolymer of polyetherimide (PEI) and siloxane.
Based on these combined factors, according to one arrangement, as shown in
In order to provide improved smoke/fire resistance, the other two pairs 20 are insulated with the two layer insulation 26/28 of PEI over FRPP as shown in
In an alternative arrangement, as shown in
In another alternative arrangement, as shown in
Finally, in another alternative arrangement, as shown in
Turning to test results for the present arrangement, the above described NFPA 262 flame test is applied to cables, such as cable 10, intended for use within buildings inside of ducts, plenums, or other spaces used for environmental air distribution. Any cable used in these areas must be “plenum rated” in order to be installed without conduit. On such plenum rating test is the NFPA 262 test. In order to pass the NFPA 262 test, these cables must have outstanding resistance to flame spread and generate low levels of smoke during combustion. As noted above, this smoke spread factor is directly related to the use of insulation on cable 10, and in particular the insulation used on twisted pairs 20. Because of the need to use low smoke insulation, these plenum rated cables are the highest in cost of the three major premise data communications cable types specified by the NEC (National Electric Code).
The NFPA 262 flame test uses a test apparatus called a Steiner Tunnel, The set up includes a chamber that is 25 long by 18 inches wide by 12 inches high. An 11.25 inch wide tray is loaded with a single layer of cable, such as cable 10 placed side to side against each other so that the width of the tray is filled. The cable is then exposed to a 300,000 btu flame for 20 minutes. During the course of the test, the flame must not propagate more than 5 feet, the peak smoke must not exceed a value of 0.5 (logIo/I), and the average smoke value must not exceed 0.15 (logIo/I), It is noted that logIo/I refers to the optical density where I is the intensity of light at a specified wavelength λ that has passed through a sample (transmitted light intensity) and I0 is the intensity of the light before it enters the sample or incident light intensity (or power). If the cable is tested twice meets all three criteria after each test, it is deemed to have passed the test.
As indicated above, the use of PET in the various explained embodiments shown above in
While only certain features of the invention have been illustrated and described herein, many modifications, substitutions, changes or equivalents will now occur to those skilled in the art. It is therefore, to be understood that this application is intended to cover ail such modifications and changes that fall within the true spirit of the invention.
