How many types of cables are available in the igus® cable range?
igus® cable range: Types and testing
How many types of cables do igus® supply and in what range? chainflex® cables are supplied in a range of types, lengths, qualities and even fully harnessed. Our chainflex® cables are specially designed for continuous flex over long periods of time and in diverse environments. These can be supplied as raw cable or as readycables® – connectorised cables that are ready to install into energy chains.
The chainflex® cable range that we supply is vast in both type and application characteristics. More than 1,350 cable types are thoroughly tested in our test laboratories in Cologne so that we can offer our 4 years, or 10 million movement, guarantee – whichever comes sooner.
How many types of cables per range?
Bus cable range
We supply bus (binary unit system) cables that are suitable for commonly-used industrial bus systems such as Profibus, CAN-bus, Interbus, DeviceNet, CC-Link, Ethernet, Profinet, USB, and AS-i Bus.
In addition, since their outer jackets are made from PVC, PUR or TPE, the bend radiuses can range from 7.5 x d to 15 x d for constant motion in the energy chain. They work extremely well in these very tight radiuses and also over long distances and even in extreme climates where temperatures fall below freezing.
Our tests not only involve the effect of changing environmental factors on our cables but also of high numbers of motion cycles. The cables can therefore be guaranteed for many millions of cycles while remaining safe for use. This bus cable was tested for 22 million cycles at a torsion of +/- 180°.
Data cable range
Our data cables are suitable for a wide variety of working conditions and as such possess special properties to ensure constant and safe working; these properties are included in flame retardant and halogen-free versions of the data cables. Certain features can be specified according to requirements. Outer jacket materials can also be altered to gain high oil resistance; most jackets are made or PVC, PUR or TPE.
igus® data cables are supplied with high quality, highly flexible shielding to resist EMI such as if they are to be used in the same energy chain as motor cables. The data cables are tested for over 50 million strokes on a bend radius of 75mm.
Fibre Optic cable range
The igus® fibre optic cables are available as polymer optical fibre (POF), polymer-cladded fibre (PCF), or graded fibre optic cables. Thanks to their easy harnessing, POFs are suitable for short-distance transmission; while PCF fibres are used for bandwidth and transmission rates of <100Mbps for ranges of up to two kilometres. Meanwhile, our graded fibre optic cables are great for using where the bend radiuses are extremely small within an energy chain. These cables are offered in special jacket materials – PUR, PVC or TPE – which help them withstand harsh environments in moving applications.
Their reliability and dependability is proven by over 8 years of service in more than 300 systems, as well as the 50 million strokes at a bend radius of 35mm.
Motor cable range
With flexible motor cables from igus®, you can rest assured that core ruptures are kept at bay; thanks to our high-quality copper conductors with optimised stranding and bundling, stoppages and downtime are avoided. With our chainflex® technology, the reliability and flexibility is second to none and provide longer service life and increased cost savings compared to alternative motor cables.
With a range of jacket materials to cover the toughest environments such as coolant exposure or low temperatures, these capabilities are guaranteed. We test them for over 40 million strokes at bend radiuses as small as 110mm.
Servo cable range
For advanced servo motion, select igus® servo motor cables to save the day. Typically used in harsh environments, our servo cables retain their favourable characteristics in whatever condition they find themselves. The required servo cable can vary depending on the conditions you need it to meet and the application it must be used in.
In addition, the number of cores and the conductor cross section need to be selected. With 53 million strokes at just 100mm, igus® servo cables are guaranteed to be the right fit for your application.
Encoder cable range
Where there is a motor, there needs to be an encoder.
The igus® encoder cables are required for transmitting signals between the positioning sensors in servo motors and the control systems for them. Signals include positional information signals and machine speed information.
As usual, our exhaustive tests ensure the cables are guaranteed for millions of cycles, high speeds and high accelerations. So much so that we guarantee these for 4 years. You can, as with all of our cables, configure them online. By testing these cables for (as before, please link to a test) igus® can ensure the life and suitability of its encoder cables.
Robot cable range
For even more complex movements, the igus® robot cables are sure to be the right solution for carrying energy in a robotic application. Specifically design for this purpose, and tested for over 20 million torsional movements in our test lab, our robot cables provide secure and reliable support while carrying energy across complex, high speed and torsional movements. Requirements can be specified according to the robot you are using or the application it carries out; from industrial robots to high speed pick and place robots, the answer is igus®.
Control cable range
If working in harsh environments and in unusual movements the igus® control cables will be the best choice for transmitting signals between transmitter and receiver. Our cables can be further specified for variability in torsion, radius size, temperatures, UV-environments and flames. We guarantee their suitability thanks to the millions of tests.
Customise your cables with us
Are the above cables the only types of cables igus® can do? We can customise to your needs and all our types of cables are extremely customisable, according to the connectors, cores, bend radius, and environmental resistance they require. If you have the application, igus® has the cable.
It is important to remember that all of our cables come with a 4 years guarantee thanks to the extreme testing they undergo in our factory’s 3,800m² test laboratory in Germany.
We are also proud to tell you that our cables can be ordered at no minimum order quantity, and without cutting charge. In addition, thanks to our automated readycable line and our many stocked cables, we can deliver to you from 24hrs.
igus® cables can even be fitted into our e-chain® cable management systems so that you can leave the practical side to us and receive your ready-to-install system with peace of mind.
