WIRES, CABLES & CONNECTORS

 PRACTICAL ELECTRONICS FOR INVENTORS

 Third edition
 Paul Scherz and Simon Monk
 Chapter 3 :
 Basic electronic circuit components
 Most electrical wires are made from copper or
silver and typically are protected by an
insulating coating of plastic, rubber or
lacquer.
 Cables consist of a number of individually
insulated wires bound together to form a
multi conductor transmission line.
 Connectors such as plugs, jacks and adapters
are used as mating fasteners to join wires &
cable with other electrical devices.
 A wires diameter is expressed in terms of
gauge number.
 In a gauge system, as wires diameter
increases, the gauge number decreases; at
the same time the resistance of the wire
decreases.
 When currents are expected to be large,
smaller gauge wire should be used.
 For rubber insulated wire, the allowable
current should be reduced by 30 percent.
WIRE SIZE DIAMETER OHMS PER CURRENT CARRYING
(AWG) (MM) KM CAPACITY (A)
1 7.35 0.41 119.564
2 6.54 0.51 94.797
3 5.83 0.65 75.178
4 5.19 0.82 59.526
5 4.62 1.03 47.268
6 4.12 1.30 37.491
7 3.67 1.63 29.746

Wire comes in solid core, stranded, or braided forms.

 This wire is useful for wiring breadboards; the
solid core ends slip easily into breadboard
sockets and will not fray in the process.
These wires have the tendency to snap after a
number of flexes.
 The main conductor is comprised of a
number of individual strands of copper.
Stranded wire tends to be a better conductor
than solid core wire because the individual
wires together comprise a greater surface
area. Stranded wire will not break easily when
flexed.
 A braided wire is made up of a number of
individual strands of wire braided together.
Like stranded wires, these wires are better
conductors than solid core wires, and they
will not break easily when flexed. Braided
wires are frequently used as electromagnetic
shield in noise reduction cables and may also
act as a wire conductor within the cable (e.g.,
coaxial cable)
KINDS OF WIRES
 This wire is often referred to as hook up wire.
It includes a tin lead alloy to enhance
solderability and is usually insulated with
polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyethylene, or
Teflon. Used for hobby projects, preparing
printed circuit boards, and other applications
where small bare-ended wires are needed.
 This wire is stranded to increase surface area
for current flow. It has a high copper content
for better conduction.
 This wire is used for building coils and
electromagnets or anything that requires a
large number of loops, say, a tuning element
in radio receiver. Its built of a sold core wire
and insulated by a varnish coating. Typical
wire sizes run from 22 to 30 gauge.
 A cable consist of a multiple number of
independent conductive wires. The wires
within cables may be solid core, stranded,
braided, or some combination in between.
 Typical wire combinations within cables
include the following :
 This cable is made from two individually
insulated conductors. Often it is used in dc or
low frequency ac applications.
 This cable is composed of two interwound
insulated wires. It is similar to a paired cable,
but the wires are held together by a twist.
 This cable is a flat two-wire line, often
referred to as 300Ω line. The line maintains
an impedance of 300Ω. It is used primarily as
a transmission line between an antenna and a
receiver (e.g., TV, radio). Each wire within
cable is stranded to reduce skin effect.
 This cable is similar to paired cable, but the
inner wires are surrounded by a metal foil
wrapping, that’s connected to a ground wire.
The metal foil is designed to shield the inner
wires from external magnetic fields- potential
forces that can create noisy signals within the
inner wires.
 This cable typically is used to transport high
frequency signals (e.g., radio frequencies). The
cable’s geometry limits inductive and capacitive
effects and also limits external magnetic
interference. The centre wire is made of solid
core copper or aluminium wire and acts as hot
lead. An insulative material, such as
polyethylene, surrounds the centre wire and acts
to separate the centre wire from a surrounding
braided wire. The braided wire or copper
shielding acts as the cold lead or ground lead.
Characteristic impedances range from about 50Ω
to 100Ω.
 This cable consist of two unbalanced coaxial
cables in one. It is used when two signals
must be transferred independently.
 This cable consist of two solid wires insulated
from one another by a plastic insulator. Like
unbalanced coaxial cable, it too has a copper
shielding to reduce noise pickup. Unlike
unbalanced coaxial cable, the shielding does
not act as one of the conductive paths; it only
acts as shield against external magnetic
interference.
 This type of cable is used in applications
where many wires are needed. It tends to flex
easily. It is designed to handle low level
voltages and often is found in digital
systems, such as computers, to transmit
parallel bits of information from one digital
device to another.
 This type of cable consist of a number of
individually wrapped, colour coded wires. It is
used when a number of signals must be sent
through one cable.
 Fibre optic cable is used in transport of
electromagnetic signals, such as light. The
conducting core medium is made from a glass
material surrounded by a fibre optic cladding (a
glass material with a higher index of refraction
than the core). An electromagnetic signal
propagates down the cable by multiple total
internal reflections. It is used in direct
transmission of images and illumination and as
waveguides for modulated signals used in
telecommunications. One cable typically consists
of a number of individual fibres.
Fibre optic
 The following is a list of common plug and
jack combinations used to fasten wires and
cables to electrical devices.
 Connectors consist of plugs (male-ended)
and jacks (female-ended).
 To join dissimilar connectors together, an
adapter can be used.
 This is a typical home appliance connector. It
comes in un polarized and polarized forms.
Both forms may come with or without a
ground wire.
 This is used for connecting single wires to
electrical equipment. It is frequently used
with testing equipment. The plug is made
from a four-leafed spring tip that snaps into
the jack.
 This is a simple connector that uses a screw
to fasten a metal spade to a terminal. A
barrier strip often acts as the receiver of the
spade lugs.
 Crimp connectors are colour-coded
according to the wire size they can
accommodate. They are useful as quick,
friction type connections in dc applications
where connections are broken repeatedly. A
crimping tool is used to fasten the wire to the
connector.
 Alligator connectors are used primarily as
temporary test leads.
 These connectors accept shielded braid, but
they are larger in size. They come in two or
three element types and have a barrel that is
31.8mm long. They are used as connectors in
microphone cables and for other low voltage,
low current applications.
 3.5mm and even 2.5mm versions of these
connectors are also commonly used.
 Phono connectors are often referred to as
RCA plugs or pin plugs. They are used
primarily in audio connections.
 F-type connectors are used with a variety of
unbalanced coaxial cables. They are
commonly used to interconnect video
components. F-type connectors are either
threaded or friction-fit together.
 These connectors are commonly used to
supply voltage dc between 3 and 15V.
 IDC connectors are often found in computers.
The plug is attached to ribbon cable using v-
shaped teeth that are squeezed into the cable
insulation to make a solderless contact.
 They are often used as UHF plugs. They are
used with RG-59/U coaxial cable. Such
connectors may be threaded or friction-fit
together.
 BNC connectors are used with coaxial cables.
Unlike the F-type plug, BNC connectors use a
twist on bayonet like locking mechanism.
This feature allows for quick connections.
 T-connectors consist of two plugs ends and
one central jack end. They are used when a
connection must be made some where along
a coaxial cable.
 These connectors are used with multiple
conductor wires. They are often used for
interconnecting audio and computer
accessories. Smaller versions of these
connectors (mini-DIN) are also widely used.
 These connectors are used as test probes.
The spring loaded hook opens and closes
with the push of a button. The hook can be
clamped onto wires and component leads.
 D-connectors are used with ribbon cable.
Each connector may have as many as 50
contacts. The connection of each individual
wire to each individual plug pin or jack socket
is made by sliding the wire in a hollow metal
collar at the back side of each connector. The
wire is then soldered into place.
 Take home task
 Take home task