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2.7 Gigabit Ethernet 1000Base-TX Cabling
Recommendations
The IEEE 802.3ab Gigabit Ethernet standard defines 1000 Mbit/s Ethernet
communications over distances of up to 100 meters using all 4 pairs in category
5 (or higher) balanced unshielded twisted-pair cabling. For wiring guidelines,
system designers and integrators should refer to the Telecommunications
Industry Association (TIA) TIA/EIA-568-A wiring standard that characterizes
minimum cabling performance specifications required for proper Gigabit Ethernet
operation. To ensure reliable, error-free data communication, new and pre-
existing communication paths should be verified for TIA/EIA-568-A compliance.
Table 7 summarizes the relevant cabling standards.
Cabling
Category
1000BaseTx
Compliant
Required action
<5 No
New wire infrastructure required
5 Yes Verify TIA/EIA-568-A compliance
5e Yes
No action required. New installations should be
designed with Category 5e components or higher
6 Yes No action required
>6 Yes
Connector and cabling standards to be
determined.
Table 7: Cabling categories and 1000BaseTx compliance defined.
Follow these recommendations for copper data cabling in high electrical noise
environments:
• Data cable lengths should be as short as possible, ideally limited to 3m (10ft)
in length. Copper data cables should not be used for inter-building
communications.
• Power and data cables should not be run in parallel for long distances, and
ideally should be installed in separate conduits. Power and data cables
should intersect at 90° angles when necessary to reduce inductive coupling.
• Shielded/screened cabling can optionally be used. The cable shield should
be grounded at a single point to avoid the generation of ground loops.
Note: RuggedCom does not recommend the use of copper cabling of any length
for critical real-time substation automation applications. However, transient
suppression circuitry is present on all copper ports to protect against damage
from electrical transients and to ensure IEC 61850-3 and IEEE 1613 Class 1
conformance. This means that during a transient event communication errors or
interruptions may occur but recovery is automatic. RuggedCom also does not
recommend using these ports to interface to field devices across distances which
could produce high levels of ground potential rise, (i.e. greater than 2500V)
during line to ground fault conditions.
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