SynqNet Custom Cable Guidelines

MEI makes several different types of cables that work in many situations. See Variations of SynqNet Cables.

In industrial machines there can be circumstances where the cable selection from MEI is not sufficient. For those situations, it may become necessary to create a custom cable. The guidelines below will help ensure that you will be able to make a properly functioning custom cable. Following these guidelines is not an absolute guarantee of success, but provides solid recommendations and tips.

Guidelines

The number one source of cabling problems is sloppy cable construction. For the large part, this means making careless mistakes, such as not using the wire you intended to use, making poor crimps, etc.
Use shielded CAT 5, shielded CAT 5e, or shielded CAT 6 rated cable when making cables. These ratings are supplied by your cable vendor.
Use proper crimping and cutting tools that are designed for the connectors and cable. Understand how to use the crimpers and cutters properly.
When choosing the pinout of the connector, make sure to use adjacent pins in the connector for the two conductors in a twisted pair. Do not choose pins for the two conductors of a twisted pair that are far apart.
Choose a connector that has a metal hood and be sure to bond the shield to the metal hood.
Combining the IN and OUT conductors of the two SynqNet cables in a ring topology is OK from a signal quality point of view. However, it does eliminate the benefit of redundancy in the case of a cable break.
Always used the two conductors of the same twisted pair for the + and – half of a TX or RX line.
If it is required to insert a connector into the middle of a SynqNet cable, make sure to insulate the metal hood of the connector from the external world. If it were to make contact with another electrically live or grounded element, it would cause a ground loop