Compiled by Marcy Koff
Telecommunications systems connector
The Model BCS telecommunications systems connector replaces the standard 50-pin connector used in business telecommunications systems. The connector withstands a minimum 1600 V rms (2260 V DC or peak) before corona discharge arc-over occurs between any two pins. It is useful to any manufacturers of business telecom systems who may ship their products to Australia, New Zealand, and other countries and places where lightning protection mandates of 1600 V between adjacent pins are in effect. The unit's contact pitch is 2.16 mm, and contact resistance is 15 milliohms, typical. Maximum operating current per contact is 2 A.
RANODA ELECTRONICS INC.
SUNNYVALE, CA
Training module
A training module for Thread-Lock connectors consists of a step-by-step video demonstration, pocket guide, and optional CD-ROM version of the video training with interactive controls. The video portion of the training features SC, FC, and ST Thread-Lock connectors, and various fiber-optic cables, including jacketed cable, loose-tube gel-filled cable, and 900-micron distributed cable. Detailed assembly instructions cover multimode and singlemode installations and the use of various tools and consumables. The company has posted the guide on the training area of its Website, in RealVideo format (access www.levitontelcom.com and follow the links to the Tech/Ed section and training modules).
LEVITON TELCOM
BOTHELL, WA
Workgroup switch
The AT-FS909SX workgroup switch provides eight autosensing 10/100Base-TX ports and one 1000Base-SX port for gigabit backbone connectivity. The device taps into the speed and bandwidth of Gigabit Ethernet to maximize performance from the desktop to the core of the network. The AT-FS900 family of switches emphasizes power, ease of use, and versatility, with a variety of connectivity options. Each switch in the FS-900 family supports up to 12,000 move, add, and change addresses and provides switched 10 or 100 Mbits/sec to the desktop, shared hubs, or servers with bandwidth-intensive applications.
ALLIED TELESYN INTERNATIONAL
BOTHELL, WA
Video balun
The PV950 isolated video balun is designed for baseband, NTSC, PAL, and SECAM signals. The unit blocks the effects of ground loops when sending baseband video signals over Category 5 or better 100-ohm shielded or unshielded twisted-pair cabling. The balun uses special circuitry to block noise ingress at the point of entry to the Category 5 cabling, yielding a better transmission medium for baseband video, especially over the longer distances required by any current applications, according to company claims.
ENERGY TRANSFORMATION SYSTEMS INC.
NEWARK, NJ
Wireless access point
The ZoomAir AP128 wireless access point with Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) routing distributes high-speed Internet connections to multiple computers using wireless local area networking of 2 Mbits/sec. An 11-Mbit/sec 802.11 DSSS upgrade will be available later this year. The device is also an Internet protocol router that provides 128-kbit/sec ISDN connections that can be used to connect multiple LANs and provide shared Internet access to wired and wireless clients. Included with the device is WebManage, an HTML-based management software program. WebManage allows the remote configuration and management of a ZoomAir AP128 over the Internet using any Web browser software.
ZOOM TELEPHONICS INC.
BOSTON
Connector
A two-piece single connector attachment-type connector interfaces Fibre Channel disk drives directly to a backplane system or motherboard. The 40-position, 0.05-inch pitch FCN-244 series consists of a surface-mount, straddle-mount plug, and a vertical-mount socket that meets ANSI's T-11 Fibre Channel arbitrated-loop standard. It features gold-plated bellow contacts with three-stage sequential mating for hot-swapping. The connector is self-aligning and features ESD grounding. It has a current rating 1 A and operating temperature of -55° to +105°C. The connector's housing is constructed of UL-94V-O high-temperature polyester.
FUJITSU TAKAMISAWA AMERICA INC.
SUNNYVALE, CA
SCS guide
The Complete Guide to Structured Cabling Systems features more than 220 pages of value-added network solutions for high-performance, high-capacity structured cabling systems that support today's multimedia environments and emerging technologies. Among the offerings are Category 5E and proposed Category 6 cabling systems, raceway systems, 110 crossconnect systems, patch panels, workstation outlets, residential/small-office/home-office cabling systems, and fiber-optic systems. The guide includes warranty and training programs as well as technical information.
ORTRONICS INC.
NEW LONDON, CT
Voice-compression transcoder
MaxPro 4 is the latest entry in the MaxPro family of voice-compression transcoders. The unit offers 4:1 voice compression that enables telecommunications carriers to increase network voice and fax transmission capacity using existing cellular, wide-area and local-area network, private communications, wireless local loop, or microwave infrastructures. The transcoder incorporates up to eight clear 64-kbit channels to handle high bandwidth demand without sacrificing any of the 120 compressed, toll-quality voice channels. The unit also handles fax and modem data, and its compact design draws less power, generates less heat, and requires less rack space than similar transcoders.
L-3 COMMUNICATIONS
RESTON, VA
Round cable strippers
The round cable stripper tools are suitable for jacket stripping fiber-optic cables and can be used to strip soft rubber jackets such as those found in electric utility grounding applications. The tools perform a simple spiral cutting action or a radial cut combined with a longitudinal cut to remove jackets. Features include a spring-loaded brace, ergonomic handle, and blade-depth adjustment. The devices come in two sizes, allowing stripping of cable-jacket diameters from 0.178 inch to 1.58 inches.
RIPLEY CO.
CROMWELL, CT
Cable measuring system
The Model CMS-2000 high-performance cable measuring system automatically tests cables, cable assemblies, and patch cables to verify compliance with industry standards. The system can be used for testing one or more cable types. Configurations include options for testing IEEE-1394 cables and connectorized cords, universal-serial-bus cables and connectorized cords, or any combination of cables and cords. The standard 4-pair configuration is expandable to 12 pairs. Among the measurement parameters are impedance, attenuation, velocity of propagation, and crosstalk.
DCM INDUSTRIES INC.
UNION CITY, CA
Fiber-optic patch panels
SMART MT-RJ fiber-optic patch panels for the PatchView family have a footprint equivalent to one-half that of standard SC connectors. The SMART MT-RJ 48 Patch Panel is an intelligent, high-density fiber-optic patch panel offering the option of real-time physical network management with RiT's PatchView system. The MT-RJ 48 patch panels support up to 48 fibers in 1U of rack space.
RIT TECHNOLOGIES
TEL AVIV, ISRAEL
Coaxial surge protectors
A new line of coaxial surge protectors is suitable for wireless systems, microwaves, radios, antennas, GPS, and satellite systems, as well as for the cellular-wireless industry. The devices protect against lightning surges and electrical transients. They use a fast-acting gas-tube technology that makes them suitable for broadband applications. The P8AX coaxial protectors are available for any power from 1 to 1000 W and any frequency from DC to 4 GHz.
CITEL INC.
MIAMI
By the Book
Telecom and datacom textbooks from Prentice Hall
Telecommunications Primer: Data, Voice and Video Communications, Second Edition (copyright 1999), by E. Bryan Carne, is just what the title promises: a primer. No doubt intended as a textbook for introductory telecommunications courses, the 820-page illustrated hardcover begins with a definition of telecommunications, an overview of telecom technologies and standards, and an explanation of modulated baseband signaling. Cabling media get a chapter of coverage, as do connectors and active equipment. The telephone network, networking protocols, the OSI model, wireless networks, local area networks and the Internet, and enterprise networks also receive full treatment. The volume, published by Prentice Hall (Upper Saddle River, NJ), concludes with glossaries and an index.
Data and Telecommunications: Systems and Applications, by Charles N. Thurwachter, Jr., of the DeVry Institute of Technology, is a 630-page, two-color, hardcover textbook (copyright 2000) also published by Prentice Hall. In addition to appendices, glossary, and index, the book includes chapter-end summaries and problem sections. An engineering text with quite a bit of mathematics in it, the book includes chapters on fundamentals, electromagnetic signals, metallic and optical cabling media, antennas, signal and Fourier analysis, amplitude modulation and demodulation, angle modulation and demodulation, pulse modulation, and multiplexing. There are also chapters on coding, digital modulation, the OSI model, and networking hardware. The book concludes with descriptions of a number of telecommunications protocols.