Plastic optical fiber cable LiteWIRE

LiteWIRE cable is a plastic optical fiber which, unlike the more well-known glass optical fibers used for long-distance data transmission, is made of polymeric material. This gives this transmission medium properties of robustness and ease of use that make it suitable for difficult installation situations and ideal for sensors and short-distance data transmission. The use of simple passive tools to make the connectors makes this type of cable unbeatable in terms of cost, timing, and ease of installation and maintenance.

The advantages of plastic optical fiber

Like any optical fiber, it transmits light, not electricity: it is an electrical insulator, does not create risks of electric shock for installers and users, eliminates ground loops and all electromagnetic interference, can be laid in the same conduits where electrical cables pass;
Uses visible light from normal LEDs for illumination: no risk of eye damage for installers and users as occurs with lasers;
Simple to terminate and repair (see video) with a few simple passive tools;
Plastic optical fiber has a diameter of 1mm (larger than any glass optical fiber);
The fiber head can be touched without problems and is not affected by humidity or water;
Anti-UV sheath, suitable for outdoor installations, not sensitive to weather and temperature variations.

Cavo in fibra plastica LiteWIRE Simplex con filtri UV: dati tecnici

LiteWIRE cable is made in Italy according to high-quality requirements, which make data transmission possible up to a distance of 300m.

Litewire cable is also available in an anti-rodent version with steel armor for laying in underground conduits or for pre-terminated pigtails to protect equipment, machinery and mobile fences.

Upon request, it is possible to supply plastic optical fiber cable with greater resistance to industrial oils or hydrocarbons.

Attenuation of plastic optical fiber

The signal transmitted along an optical fiber undergoes three types of attenuation that cause a loss of power:

the intrinsic attenuation of the material with which the fiber is made;
the attenuation related to the Naria Security fixing elements fundamental for the correct operation of the system (such as cable tensioning bolts) and that due to any splices;
avoidable external factors such as stress due to excessively tight bends, excessively tight cable ties, poorly positioned fixing bolts, too much tension during laying, etc. (see installation advice).

The sizing of Naria Security systems already takes into account the first two causes of attenuation and provides a margin to compensate for part of the installation problems as well.

Example of attenuation on a LiteFENCE system for flexible fences
Consider an installation on a flexible fence that involves the use of the LiteFENCE analyzer, cable tensioning bolts, LiteWIRE cable, and cable ties. The attenuation of light signals is measured in dB:
- the attenuation of correctly laid LiteWIRE cable is 1dB every 10m;
- a cable tensioning bolt has a typical attenuation of 0.1dB (max. 0.2dB) and should be positioned every 10m.
The LiteFENCE analyzer can standardly manage up to 30dB. For this reason, normally 250m of fiber (max. attenuation 25dB) combined with 25 bolts (max. attenuation 5dB) are used.
The LiteFENCE, LiteCOPPER, andLiteSUN Plus SMART analyzers have an integrated optical power meter that monitors the light signal loss values. This function allows constant control of the attenuation value during installation, promptly detecting any errors in the cable laying.