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Fiber optic "cable" refers to the complete assembly of fibers, strength members and jacket. Fiber optic cables come in lots of different types, depending on the number of fibers and how and where it will be installed. Choose cable carefully as the choice will affect how easy it is to install, splice or terminate and, most important, what it will cost!
Cable's job is to protect the fibers from the hazards encountered in an installation. Will the cables be exposed to chemicals or have to withstand a wide temperature range? What about being gnawed on by a woodchuck or prairie dog? Inside buildings, cables don't have to be so strong to protect the fibers, but they have to meet all fire code provisions. Outside the building, it depends on whether the cable is buried directly, pulled in conduit, strung aerially or whatever.
You should contact several cable manufacturers (two minimum, three preferred) and give them the specs. They will want to know where the cable is going, how many fibers you need and what kind (singlemode or multimode or both in what we call "hybrid" cables.) You can also have a "composite" cable that includes copper conductors for signals or power. The cable companies will evaluate your requirements and make suggestions. Then you can get competitive bids.
Since the plan will call for a certain number of fibers, consider adding spare fibers to the cable - fibers are cheap! That way, you won't be in trouble if you break a fiber or two when splicing, breaking-out or terminating fibers. And request the end user consider their future expansion needs. Most users install lots more fibers than needed, especially adding singlemode fiber to multimode fiber cables for campus or backbone applications.
Simplex cables are one fiber, tight-buffered (coated with a 900 micron buffer over the primary buffer coating) with Kevlar (aramid fiber) strength members and jacketed for indoor use. The jacket is usually 3mm (1/8 in.) diameter. Zipcord is simply two of these joined with a thin web. It's used mostly for patch cord and backplane applications, but zipcord can also be used for desktop connections.
They contain several tight-buffered fibers bundled under the same jacket with Kevlar strength members and sometimes fiberglass rod reinforcement to stiffen the cable and prevent kinking. These cables are small in size, and used for short, dry conduit runs, riser and plenum applications. The fibers are double buffered and can be directly terminated, but because their fibers are not individually reinforced, these cables need to be broken out with a "breakout box" or terminated inside a patch panel or junction box.
They are made of several simplex cables bundled together. This is a strong, rugged design, but is larger and more expensive than the distribution cables. It is suitable for conduit runs, riser and plenum applications. Because each fiber is individually reinforced, this design allows for quick termination to connectors and does not require patch panels or boxes. Breakout cable can be more economic where fiber count isn't too large and distances too long, because is requires so much less labor to terminate.
These cables are composed of several fibers together inside a small plastic tube, which are in turn wound around a central strength member and jacketed, providing a small, high fiber count cable. This type of cable is ideal for outside plant trunking applications, as it can be made with the loose tubes filled with gel or water absorbent powder to prevent harm to the fibers from water. It can be used in conduits, strung overhead or buried directly into the ground. Since the fibers have only a thin buffer coating, they must be carefully handled and protected to prevent damage.
This cable offers the highest packing density, since all the fibers are laid out in rows, typically of 12 fibers, and laid on top of each other. This way 144 fibers only has a cross section of about 1/4 inch or 6 mm! Some cable designs use a "slotted core" with up to 6 of these 144 fiber ribbon assemblies for 864 fibers in one cable! Since it's outside plant cable, it's gel-filled for water blocking.
Cable installed by direct burial in areas where rodents are a problem usually have metal armoring between two jackets to prevent rodent penetration. This means the cable is conductive, so it must be grounded properly.
Aerial cables are for outside installation on poles. They can be lashed to a messenger or another cable (common in CATV) or have metal or aramid strength members to make them self supporting.
Even more types are available: every manufacturer has it's own favorites, so it's a good idea to get literature from as many cable makers as possible. And check out the little guys; often they can save you a bundle by making special cable just for you, even in relative small quantities.
NEC Rating | Description |
---|---|
OFN | Optical fiber non-conductive |
OFC | Optical fiber conductive |
OFNG or OFCG | General purpose |
OFNR or OFCR | Riser rated cable for vertical runs |
OFNP or OFCP | Plenum rated cables for use in air-handling plenums |
OFN-LS | Low smoke density |
Outdoor cables are not fire-rated and can only be used up to 50 feet indoors. If you need to bring an outdoor cable indoors, consider a double-jacketed cable with PE jacket over a PVC UL-rated indoor jacket. Simply remove the outdoor jacket when you come indoors and you will not have to terminate at the entry point.
With so much choice in cables, it is hard to find the right one. The table below summarizes the choices, applications and advantages of each.
Cable Type | Application | Advantages |
---|---|---|
Tight Buffer | Premises | Makes rugged patch cords |
Distribution | Premises | Small size for lots of fibers, inexpensive |
Breakout | Premises | Rugged, easy to terminate, no hardware needed |
Loose Tube | Outside Plant | Rugged, gel or dry water-blocking |
Armored | Outside Plant | Prevents rodent damage |
Ribbon | Outside Plant | Highest fiber count for small size |