A cable is an assembly of one or more conductors or fiber optic strands, often within a protective sheath. In the cable-specific properties you can determine the cable's characteristics. The following properties are available:
Property |
Description |
---|---|
Outside diameter |
Mandatory property. Outside diameter of a cable including insulation. By clicking the AutoCompute link, the outside diameter can be calculated in accordance with the cable content defined in the Wire list section. |
Min. bending radius |
Minimally permitted radius of bending according to the data sheet of the cable used. Note: It is determined in multiples of the Outside diameter value. |
Max. voltage |
Maximally permitted voltage for safe operation. |
Fixed lengths |
Available for cables which are supplied not in footage, but in fixed lengths. If you activate the Fixed lengths only check box, you can enter the supplied lengths in the list below. |
Wire list
This section serves to define the cable content. The following properties are available:
- Wire: A wire provides electrical connectivity between pins. Typically it has a core of drawn or rolled metal whose length exceeds its diameter.
-
Insulator: A device that is used to electrically isolate a conductor or electrical device from ground or a different electrical potential.
Note:
An insulator should be used as a superior node for wires and shields.
-
Shield: A metallic layer placed around an insulated conductor or group of conductors to prevent electrostatic or electromagnetic interference between the enclosed
wires and external fields. A shield can be braided or protect the wires by means of
foil wrap, foil-backed tape, a metallic tube, or conductive material.
Note:
A shield can only be created as a subnode of an insulator. A Shield node may contain further wires, insulators, shields, twisted bundles, and strains.
-
Twisted: A twisted bundle
is a cable type that consists of two (or more) independently insulated
wires twisted around one another. Usage of wires twisted together helps
to reduce cross-talk and electromagnetic induction.
Note:
The Twisted option itself does not contain any wires. These have to be added manually into the Twisted node.
-
Strain relief: A stranded wire which does not provide electrical connectivity. It serves
to increase the cable's mechanical resistance (especially the pulling force).
Note:
A strain can only be used as part of an insulator or shield.
The available properties of the individual cable components are listed in the following table:
Available properties |
Wire |
Insulator |
Shield |
Twisted |
Strain relief |
Name |
● |
● |
● |
● |
● |
Color |
● |
● |
● |
● |
- |
Min. bending radius |
● |
- |
- |
- |
- |
Color code |
● |
● |
● |
- |
- |
Cross-section |
● |
- |
●* |
- |
- |
Imprint |
● |
● |
● |
- |
- |
Material |
● |
● |
● |
- |
- |
Max. current |
● |
- |
- |
- |
- |
Max. voltage |
● |
- |
- |
- |
- |
Resistance |
● |
- |
- |
- |
- |
Outside diameter |
● |
- |
- |
- |
- |
Strands |
● |
- |
- |
- |
- |
Insulation |
●** |
- |
- |
- |
- |
Thickness |
- |
● |
- |
- |
- |
Conductive |
- |
- |
● |
- |
- |
Twist factor |
- |
- |
- |
● |
- |
Multi-color |
● |
- |
- |
- |
- |
Stripe color |
● |
- |
- |
- |
- |
* Available only for activated Conductive option.
** If this check box is not activated, the wire outside diameter is calculated automatically.
Name - item name.
Color - color of the cable (wire, insulator, ...) when it is placed in the EPLAN Harness proD workspace.
Color code - system of different colors or stripes used to identify components of cables such as the individual conductors or groups of conductors.
Cross-section - "metal" cross-section of the wire, usually in [mm²] or [AWG].
Imprint - printed number or a combination of characters and numbers which are printed on a wire for identification.
Material - material from which a wire, insulator, or shield is made.
Max. current - maximally permitted current for safe operation.
Max. voltage - maximally permitted voltage for safe operation.
Resistance - maximally permitted electrical resistance a wire can have.
Insulation - if activated, the outside diameter can be entered manually; if not activated, the outside diameter is calculated automatically.
Outside diameter - outside diameter of the wire including its insulation.
Strands - number of strands of which a wire is composed.
Thickness - wall thickness of an insulator.
Conductive - shield option. If activated, a shield can be connected to a grouped pin only. Shields can be mapped to the pins of a grouped pin as a wire.
Twist factor - number of twists per length unit.
Multi-color - makes the Stripe color option available.
Mapping
In the Connectable objects section you can assign (using the part navigator) connectable objects (connectors, connectable objects, terminals) to both cable ends (but you can also assign just one connectable object to one end). Then you can determine a wiring in the Wire / pin mapping table. To do so select a pin from the drop-down list for each wire and connectable object. If you want to leave some wires un-connected, activate the corresponding check box.
When placing such a cable in EPLAN Harness proD Studio, the mapped connectable objects are inserted together with the cable.
Note:
Shields (acting as wires) cannot be mapped to single pins. It is only possible to map them to the pins included in a grouped pin.