I am responsible for a power quality meter used in power distribution gear that has Ethernet 100 base Tx or Fx interfaces to LAN/WAN. The assembly gear has a lot of control wiring rated at 600V and presently no portioned area for Ethernet Cat 5 cabling. For most applications the Ethernet cables can come directly to the meter with no exposure to the 600V wiring or if necessary can be brought through conduit. That is because the meter is located in one of the top buckets of the gear and so is easily accessible to the outside. In the future we would like to run Ethernet through the gear and so the challenge of voltage rating, noise immunity etc, becomes a much larger challenge So I am looking for some advise on how others deal with this problem and if there are any new cables that can help in this regard. Here are some of the topics that I am trying to get a greater focus on: Voltage rating The voltage rating of most Cat 5 cable is CM 300V. Are there any copper based Ethernet cables with a 600V rating? Noise Immunity UTP versus STP I have found that the unshielded UTP Cat5 is fairly noise immune within gear as long as a link does not leave the gear to cause common mode signals to push on it. I can purchase shielded STP cable which appears to be an aluminized vinyl and now I am seeing some braided solutions from Phoenix Contact. What has been your experiences with regards to shield performance and type? Fiber Optic 100 base Fx For nice noise immunity of course the Fiber Optic solution is great but expensive. It is also fragile and has a poor temperature rating. Most are 0- 60C rated - What is the best one can expect? I have seen some cable that has been sheathed for improved ruggedness. Any feedback to share on this? Routing - protected chasses. If I could get the assembly groups to provide protected chases to route Ethernet that would be ideal. However with all their design history it is very difficult to push in this resource. What have others done? Thanks Chris Wells Eaton Electrical
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