Why Should You Use Shielded Cables In Wire Assemblies - Miracle Electronics

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Why Should You Use Shielded Cables In Wire
Assemblies Miracle Electronic Devices
Wire assemblies are often used in applications
where environments are industrial, commercial,
and factory-oriented all of which are
electrically noisy settings. To reduce the risk
of electrical noise interference that your wire
assemblies may face shielded cables can greatly
help to improve the performance of your
equipment. What is electrical noise, you may ask.
It is a combination of electromagnetic
interference (EMI) and radiated noise. Wire
assemblies can become the primary source of EMI
transfer as they can produce noise that passes to
other equipment, or can act as antennas to
radiate noise. They can also act as receivers and
pickup EMI generated from other sources. Such
noise transfer can seriously disrupt the data
transmission and functioning of equipment and
electronic components around the assembly.
What kind of shielding should the wire assemblies
have? Now, you are certain that using wire
assemblies that are shielded is a wise decision.
But, what kind of shield should they have, is
the next question. JACKET OR OUTER SHEATH The
shielding must be a jacket or outer sheath that
protects each wire from abrasion, moisture,
spills, and wear and tear. However, an outer
sheath is vulnerable to electromagnetic energy,
thus providing no EMI protection. Conversely,
jacketing with a cable shield is an effective
method that surrounds the components within the
cable and can impact
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EMI by reflecting the energy or transmitting the
noise to the ground. In this way, the EMI is
prevented from reaching the inner components of
the cable. FOIL OR BRAIDED SHEATH Another
consideration is whether the wire should be foil
shielded or braid shielded. Foil shields are
those that are made up of aluminum or copper and
attached to a carrier like polyester, which
provides durability and toughness to the foil to
be wrapped around the cable without tearing.
However, this foil shield is comparatively
thinner. On the other hand, brand shields
consist of a woven mesh made of copper wires,
around a cable core. These braids provide a
low-resistance path to the ground creating a much
easier termination point than a foil shield
through crimping or soldering. However, foil
shields offer complete coverage, while braid
shields provide only 70-95 coverage to the
components. Because foil sheaths provide better
coverage than braid sheaths, but braid sheaths
are much thicker and denser than foil sheaths, a
combination of both foil and braid sheaths is
seen to be popularly used to offer the best
protection. Both these types of sheaths support
each other, thus overcoming the deficiency of
the other by compensating it with their own
strength. Therefore, you must opt for shielded
cables that have a combination of both sheaths to
provide improved shielding effectiveness.
However, remember that a shielded cable can only
be effective if the equipment it is installed in
is properly grounded. So, while it is important
to purchase your shielded wire assemblies from
leading wire assembly manufacturers in India like
Miracle Electronics, it is equally important to
make sure that you have properly grounded your
equipment.
For more information, please visit Miracle
Electronics