4 Use Cases for Testing Long Haul Twisted Pair Cabling

Many cable install professionals are under the false impression that a cable tester only needs to verify twisted pair copper up to -- but not exceeding -- 100 meters (328 feet) in length. While it is true that most two- and four-pair 802.3 Ethernet standards do indeed have a maximum distance limitation at the 100-meter mark, there are plenty of other uses and standards that require a tester to verify proper cable operation well beyond 100 meters. This includes cabling projects for the Internet of Things (IoT), Industrial IoT (IIoT) and many surveillance camera deployments over twisted pair copper. In this article, we're going to point out four different real-world use cases where a cable test unit must be capable of validating copper runs up to 1000 meters.

1. Intelligent building control systems

A major part of the IoT movement is to make the buildings we work in smarter. Newly built constructions are receiving intelligent control systems right out of the gate. Older buildings are being retrofitted with similar systems that meter, monitor and automate many building functions. These technologies can be used to better control energy costs of electrical and mechanical systems while also automating previously manual processes. Ultimately, intelligent building controls provide the precise HVAC and lighting/power needs when and where occupants need them while conserving these resources everywhere else. 

The problem is, many intelligent building control system components are dispersed throughout large building campuses. At the same time, they also require constant and fully connected communications. Many leverage the use of serial interfaces over twisted pair copper as a way to allow long haul connections to connect building control components located hundreds or thousands of feet away. Thus, once your business clients begin implementing these types of intelligent systems, expect the need to run and verify twisted-pair cabling well beyond 100 meters.

2. IoT sensors using single pair Ethernet (SPE)

Example 10Base-T1L 1000m (802.3cg) Test

 Example 10Base-T1L 1000m (802.3cg) TestThere are any number of new IoT sensors that are hitting the enterprise market in 2019 and beyond. Examples include sensors that measure temperature, humidity, smoke, pressure, acceleration and chemical levels. Sensors can be used to monitor areas that demand consistent temperature/humidity levels such as in a data center. Other uses are to identify objects/people in proximity to a sensor and send alerts when the object or person moves. Sensors can also be used to rapidly alert building occupants of a dangerous event such as a fire, gas/carbon monoxide/chemical leak or other dangerous environmental situation.

One interesting aspect of these types of sensors is that they typically don’t require even close to 1 Gbps or higher throughput rates that common 802.3 Ethernet data protocols provide. That said, IoT sensor deployments do often require cable runs that extend far beyond common 10/100/1000BASE-T distance limitations of 100 meters. That’s why many are looking at Single pair Ethernet (SPE) for future IoT deployments. SPE is a relatively new standard (IEEE 802.3cg) that allows for cable runs up to 1000 meters using only a single pair of Category 5e cabling or better. Runs can extend this far while also providing data speeds of 10Mbps. 

3. Manufacturing and warehouse automation

Manufacturing plants and warehouses are regularly being revamped with the latest in smart assembly lines and robotics. These technologies help to decrease process times, reduce outages, eliminate waste, and increase safety protections. This is often accomplished using intelligent monitoring, augmented reality and advanced analytics. The problem is, all these platforms, sensors and robots must be centrally connected. This often means that twisted pair cabling used to connect these types of systems will far exceed 100 meters. While this has been the case for manufacturing/warehouse environments for years, the need for long cable runs is only going to increase.

4. CCTV deployments

The demand for closed circuit television (CCTV) and other security control and surveillance systems is growing at a rapid rate. The reason for this is the fact that one can now deploy high-quality and high-definition surveillance cameras at a fraction of the cost compared to even a decade ago. Thus, to ensure the safety of employees, partners and guests within a building or campus – as well as to provide insurance policy protections against robberies, thefts and frauds – CCTV is a wise investment. That said, many CCTV cameras must be installed at considerable distances away from the central network. Cameras are often positioned at remote gates and entrances, building outposts and on rooftops. Thus, many manufacturers offer the ability to stream CCTV feeds over twisted pair cabling up to 1000 meters in length.

Is your test equipment capable of verifying operational status of cabling up to 1000 meters?

Cable test equipment manufactures only guarantee their test results up to a certain distance limitation. In many cases, this distance is far below what you might need given today’s demand for long haul twisted pair runs. In order to prepare for the increase in long haul runs, be sure to have test tool like the AEM CV100 which can verify twisted pair runs up to 1 KM in length. The CV100’s standard autotest supports testing twisted-pair cabling up to 600 meters. If you require testing beyond this length, there is a special test mode for cables that range between 500 and 1000 meters.

Long Cable Setting for 500m to 1km Testing

 Showing GamerChanger Cable Type inSetup

Many field test units on the market today aren’t capable of testing this far. Considering the growing need for building control systems IoT sensors, IIoT and CCTV long cable runs, long haul verification tests are definitely a function of the CV100 test tool that you’ll put to good use.

Superspreader for PoE Lighting

Powering light through the data IP network using Category cable, instead of hazardous 120V electrical systems is creating a superspreader of PoE technology throughout all buildings and outdoor applications.  With the emergence of smart/intelligent buildings, PoE lighting is on forefront of driving converged building application advancements. LEDs are inherently DC, so installation is greatly simplified by eliminating separate power and control wiring.  And because LEDs require little energy and are powered through Ethernet cables, they easily create a connected system providing many benefits over traditional independent ballast/lamp systems, but can also present new challenges when it comes to the design of the cabling topology.

Many IT players are designing and installing LED PoE-powered lighting systems as part of the intelligent building infrastructure to reap numerous benefits. From commercial office and data center employees to retail shoppers, from hotel guests to patients at a hospital, building occupants are demanding a more customized, comfortable, and smart building experience. Smart and connected LED-based lighting is a key part of the picture with associated control systems which account for HVAC systems, air quality, and more.  Building owners and managers are realizing that the implementation of a PoE lighting system allows numerous energy efficient and sustainability benefits such as: installation savings through low-voltage cabling (vs. electrical products and installation); LED averages 70% more efficient cost savings than fluorescent or HID lamps;  UL924 compliancy which eliminates a separate emergency lighting network;  and can be monitored and scheduled through an integrated management system which also optimizes work space. In addition, without line-voltage connections, light fixtures and sensors can be more easily added, reconfigured and upgraded.

PoE lighting is gaining ground and providing growth opportunities for all IT designers and integrators. According to a report by Fortune Business Insights, the global PoE LED lighting market will rise from a value of 192.3 million units in 2018 to 544.8 million units by the end of 2026. The forecast period is set from 2019 to 2026 and the market for PoE LED lighting is anticipated to rise at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.1%. 

PoE Safety Ratings

With the ratification of IEEE P802.3bt which recognizes 60W (Type 3) and 90W (Type 4) of power (PoE) to run over twisted pair cabling, there is growing concern of excessive heat generation due to additional current (amperage) running through the cable. Bundled cable is especially vulnerable to heat build-up.  As a result, UL created a certification called “LP”  (Limited Power) which includes a test procedure for determining how many amps a conductor can safely accommodate.  Some cable manufacturers have submitted their twisted-pair cables to be tested and earn that rating.  

An alternative to LP cables is to refer to the ampacity chart, which was published by the National Electrical Code® (NEC)  in Section 725 of the 2017 NFPA 70®. This chart is based on allowable amps for  each conductor’s current carrying capacity at 60W or above, and is determined by the cable’s mechanical (operating) temperature, gauge size (AWG) of the conductors and bundle size.  This table is solely based on an ambient temperature of 30° C (86° F).  As expressed in the chart, the larger the AWG, the better performing the cable and the greater the bundles for higher wattage.  Note that a 4-pair cable constructed with 22 AWG conductors, such as the GameChanger Cable™ from Paige Datacom would be recommended as the best choice to safely transmit over 60W and with a maximum bundle size of 192 cables without having to carry the LP rating .

 System Architecture

There are different architecture designs for PoE LED lighting.  PoE lighting systems contain multiple components connected through Ethernet cabling: the PoE switch — the power supply for the PoE lighting systems — provides the needed voltage for the lighting system ; LED luminaires (such as troffers); wall controllers and ceiling sensors.  The wall controllers are wall switches and are usually directly connected to the sensors which sense occupancy, daylight harvesting or ambient temperature.

There are two industry standards that provide well-defined guidelines for the design, planning and installation of PoE LED lighting systems as an integral part of an intelligent building infrastructure — TIA-862-B-2016 Structured Cabling Infrastructure Standard for Intelligent Building Systems and ANSI/BICSI-007-2020 standard, Information Communication Technology Design and Implementation Practices for Intelligent Buildings and Premises.  These two documents complement each other in the IP cable installation planning of intelligent building applications.  Specific content in the TIA standard provides guidelines for cabling types, topology, design and installation best practices and test procedures for any size building or premise. The BICSI standard leverages the TIA requirements but gets more granular with best practices for planning spaces, topology and media selection for the specific building applications, including a detailed chapter on LED lighting.  In addition, the BICSI standard recognizes that in many instances, the cabling infrastructure and cabling selection of the horizontal cabling may vary as it should be planned to incorporate the deployment of numerous building systems that may utilize an IP network.  In addition, BICSI-007 recognizes that some building systems may require cabling other than balanced twisted-pair or optical fiber because of system and application architecture or manufacturer requirements. In fact, primary decisions for cabling type are often based on manufacturer requirements, signal type, distance and location, power requirement, and longevity of building occupancy.

Depending on the cabling requirements of the lighting manufacturer, the horizontal cable can run in a star topology from the telecommunications room (TR) directly to the lighting (also known as point-to-point).  However, some lighting manufacturers incorporate a node (or a gateway device) where the Ethernet cable runs from the switch (either an endspan in the TR or a midspan within the horizontal run or housed in a zone enclosure) to the node to maximize the usage of each port.  (For more information on zone cabling design, see https://paigedatacom.com/news-article/in-the-zone-cabling-design-for-todays-intelligent-buildings) From the node, the cable can either be a twisted pair construction or even a multi-conductor cable such as an 18 gauge, 2 conductor cable (18/2) which can be daisy-chained.  This is known as a tree topology.

(Courtesy of ANSI/BICSI-007-2020)

Spreading the Light

One of the biggest challenges in the cabling design for PoE LED lighting for both Star and Tree topologies are distance considerations from the TR or node to the actual components.  Because these are running on Ethernet cables, the TIA and IEEE standards limit the Category cable runs to 100 meters.  But in many instances the cable runs will need to exceed that distance, such as: 

• Warehouses that cannot allocate precious square footage for a TR
• Industrial locations that require unique harsh environment cable and connectivity
• Outdoor parking lots or garages in a large environment (ie.: hotels, airports education, campuses and healthcare) which require 24/7 lighting
• Expansive data centers (such as colocation or hyperscale facilities) where square footage costs are at a premium and lighting is an essential utility
• Outbuildings, such as guard shacks, where a TR or enclosure is not a cost-effective or safe options.

The solution to this constant challenge is installing the GameChanger Cable™ from Paige Datacom, which doubles the distance of a typical Category 6 or 6A cable.  PoE LED lights use very low bandwidth and power which means that the patented GameChanger cable is UL verified to deliver 10 Mb/s up to 850 feet from the switch in the TR to the device or the node.  If using a Star topology, the distance is determined by the voltage drop. (See the GameChanger voltage drop chart).  If the lighting components are daisy chained from a node employing a multi-conductor cable the total cable length is determined by the number of devices, wattage required, voltage drop and, of course, gauge (AWG) size (usually, 12, 16 or 18 AWG).  

The GameChanger is available in different constructions to suit the specific installation environment including indoor unshielded riser or plenum, outdoor direct burial or shielded OSP. For those industrial locations, GameChanger is also available in an ITC-HL Class 1 Division Armored style specifically designed for hazardous locations. See the complete GameChanger cable specifications here.  Many integrators have already seen the light as  GameChanger has all scenarios covered and is becoming the recognized superspreader for delivering power and data to smart lighting systems.

Electrical equipment can and does cause explosions in some atmospheres. As cameras and senor capabilities increase, these cameras are being used in more areas than ever.  In the past, one of the limiting factors was placing a camera in a critical area defined as hazardous.   Hazardous areas are environments in which the atmosphere contains, or may possibly contain, flammable or explosive gases and, in the right conditions, may cause a fire or explosion.  The frequency of occurrence determines the level of hazard for a location. The longer the material is present, the greater the risk. These areas present many challenges in terms of where you can place, maintain, and use a sensor. Explosion-protected cameras address some of these concerns and regulations. 

To help define hazardous areas, a rating system was devised for definition of what can be used in a Hazardous Area.  In short, areas that produce a certain level of gas, vapor or liquid that are present in normal operation conditions.  Class/Division/Zone is the classification system set up in the US.  For this discussion we will use the Class I Division I hazardous areas. 

Class I, Division 1: There are three different situations that could exist to classify an area as a Class I, Division 1 location:

1.     Ignitable concentrations of flammable gases or vapors may exist under normal operating conditions.

2.     Ignitable concentrations of such gases or vapors may exist frequently because of repair or maintenance operations or because of leakage.

3.     Breakdown or faulty operation of equipment or processes might release ignitable concentrations of flammable gases or vapors and might also cause simultaneous failure of electric equipment.

The control and monitoring of equipment to ensure sustained processing activity is essential in refineries and industrial plants to control production and operational cost.  Companies are always looking to increase production, drive down the cost of production and improve environmental performance in refineries.  In the past, most of the monitoring relied on individual people walking an area to be the eyes and ears for any problems. Sensors were introduced and embedded in processing areas to monitor vibration, heat, and the like. Verification once a sensor alarmed was confirmed by still having to send in a person to validate the alarm. Cameras today can be the eyes and ears of a human to validate remotely without disruption to process operation or production thus reducing production costs. 

As we investigate a typical oil and processing area, we see the hazardous area and the CID1 with ignitable concentrations present as defined. We also see many process monitoring applications present. Such applications include:

·       Rotating equipment – equipment that could come out of balance triggering a vibration sensor

·       A thermal couple area – areas that could heat up too fast or exceed processing limitations. Many products are developed by mixing and adding chemical at a precise temperature for the chemical reaction to occur properly. I.e. antifreeze 

·       Valves and seals – junction points controlling volume tend to leak and fail. 

·       Settling tanks – used for separations during process. Monitored by thermal couples 

·       Pumps and pumping stations – looking for seal failure and early leaks

·       Piping – miles and miles of pipes can be monitored for leaks and wear or damage 

Using sensors such as visible and thermal cameras can help in monitoring and verify problems in some of these applications, remotely without shutdown or the risk of sending a person in that area. 

Challenges in remote monitoring in hazardous areas

Some challenges in remote monitoring in hazardous areas involve access to equipment for maintenance and reducing failure points.  Shut down for maintenance is costly in lost production.  Unscheduled shutdowns are very costly.  Easy quick installations with reduced crews because of lighter camera systems and no additional equipment needed to boost or extend network signals help reduce production downtime. New cabling solutions like the GameChanger Cable^TM from Paige, deliver 1Gb/s Ethernet and PoE+ up to 656 feet or 10Mbs/s up to 850 feet reducing costs, simplifying installs and saving money.  By extending the distance limitation with cable alone, installers are also avoiding the need to install (and later service) equipment in remote and hazardous areas, saving money and keeping workers safe.

Preventive maintenance 

Remote monitoring of these applications listed could help establish trend analysis and facilitate predictive maintenance thus allowing intelligent scheduling for preventive maintenance.  Explosion-protected cameras are IP cameras that can be configured remotely, health monitored remotely and rebooted remotely reducing the need for human interaction in the hazardous areas. 

Processing applications

Process capabilities of these cameras have increased significantly in the past several years. The ability to take an unacceptable image and process to get an acceptable usable image has never been more available than today.  These sensors are now a computer with a lens. Users are seeing more in challenging conditions using this technology to verify and confirm before costly intervention.

On the edge analytics

The ability to run multiple event-driven edge analytics reduces bandwidth use lowering costs and automates our monitoring process for implementation of AI (Artificial Intelligence) and ML (Machine Learning). Edge based analytics can not only tell you if a person is entering an area that is restricted (safety, security) but can also notify if it see a rise in temperature of a failing component or detect a leaking pipe or emissions. 

New markets and applications  

As we see the cost of explosion-protected cameras go down, we see other verticals opening such as agriculture (processing plants, storage facilities, transportation lines, fuel distribution terminals), chemical (fertilizer plants, chemical facilities) transportation and water treatment facilities all having hazardous areas associated. These verticals also have common applications within their own plants requiring explosion-protected cameras and sensors. Automating critical monitoring not only reduces overall production costs but positions companies for the new digital age to come.