Ethernet Cable

Transmission standards

10Base5

The transmission medium for 10Base5 consists of a thick coaxial cable ("yellow cable") with a max. transmission speed of 10 MBaud arranged in a line topology with branches (drops) each of which is connected to one network device. Because all the devices are in this case connected to a common transmission medium, it is inevitable that collisions occur often in 10Base5.

10Base2

10Base2 (Cheapernet) is a further development of 10Base5, and has the advantage that the coaxial cable is cheaper and, being more flexible, is easier to lay. It is possible for several devices to be connected to one 10Base2 cable. It is frequent for branches from a 10Base5 backbone to be implemented in 10Base2.

10BaseT

Describes a twisted pair cable for 10 MBaud. The network here is constructed as a star. It is no longer the case that every device is attached to the same medium. This means that a broken cable no longer results in failure of the entire network. The use of switches as star couplers enables collisions to be reduced. Using full-duplex connections they can even be entirely avoided.

100BaseT

Twisted pair cable for 100 MBaud. It is necessary to use a higher cable quality and to employ appropriate hubs or switches in order to achieve the higher data rate.

10BaseF

The 10BaseF standard describes several optical fiber versions.

Short description of the 10BaseT and 100BaseT cable types

Twisted pair copper cable for star topologies, where the distance between two devices may not exceed 100 meters.

UTP

Unshielded twisted pair
This type of cable belongs to category 3, and is not recommended for use in an industrial environment.

S/UTP

Screened/unshielded twisted pair (screened with copper braid)
Has a general screen of copper braid to reduce influence of external interference. This cable is recommended for use with Bus Couplers.

FTP

Foiled shielded twisted pair (screened with aluminum foil)
This cable has an outer screen of laminated aluminum and plastic foil.

S/FTP

Screened/foiled-shielded twisted pair (screened with copper braid and aluminum foil)
Has a laminated aluminum screen with a copper braid on top. Such cables can provide up to 70 dB reduction in interference power.

STP

Shielded twisted pair
Describes a cable with an outer screen, without defining the nature of the screen any more closely.

S/STP

Screened/shielded twisted pair (wires are individually screened)
This identification refers to a cable with a screen for each of the two wires as well as an outer shield.

ITP

Industrial Twisted-Pair
The structure is similar to that of S/STP, but, in contrast to S/STP, it has only one pair of conductors.