Product Focus

From the November, 2013 Issue of Cabling Installation & Maintenance Magazine

Omnitron Systems' OmniConverter GPoE/SE multiport media converters provide 10/10/1000Base-T UTP to 1000Base-X fiber conversion and support for Power over Ethernet (PoE) in a cost-effective manner, the company says. Classified as power sourcing equipment (PSE), the GPoE/SE provides power to a powered device (PD) using standard unshielded twisted-pair (UTP) cables. Converters in the GPoE/SE line can power PDs such as surveillance cameras, wireless access points, Internet Protocol (IP) phones, building-access devices and automation equipment. Omnitron points out they are particularly useful powering PDs in hard-to-reach locations with limited access to AC power outlets.

GPoE/SE media converters support fixed-fiber connectors and SFP transceivers, Omnitron adds, enabling adaptability to different fiber types, distances and wavelengths. The products support multimode, singlemode and single-fiber, in standard and CWDM wavelengths.

Omnitron Systems
www.omnitron-systems.com

The 065-1196SFPDR 10/100/1000Base-T/TX-to-100/1000Base SFP Switching Media Converter, from Signamax Connectivity Systems, "provides a flexible and intelligent solution for long-distance connections between legacy 10Base-T and 100Base-TX networks and either 1000Base Gigabit Ethernet fiber or 100Base fiber networks," the company explains. The built-in 10/100/1000 switch enables the fiber-cable connection to operate at 1000 Mbits/sec connected to either a 10Base-T, 100Base-TX or 1000Base-T network, Signamax says, while remaining completely 1000Base-SX/LX or 100Base-FX/BX standard-compliant for the fiber-optic connection.

Signamax lists several characteristics of the 065-1196SFPDR dual-rate media converter, including: latency of less than or equal to 1.6 µs, FIFO, worst-case; 1,857,775.35 hours mean time between failure; the ability to force the RJ45 port to 100Base or 10Base full- or half-duplex modes.

Signamax Connectivity Systems
www.signamax.com

B&B Electronics says its iMcV-10G-Converter SFP+ features 10-Gbit/sec speed in an SFP+ modular form factor, allowing operators of high-bandwidth, mission-critical networks--such as Internet service providers, telecommunications providers, municipalities, medical facilities and large campuses--to convert between different fiber types within a network, and to move significant amounts of data over long distances. The single-wide module optimizes the cost-per-slot in a multiport chassis and its modular form factor allows installation in a variety of chassis, including 20-, 6-, 3-, 2- and 1-slot varieties, the company explains. It supports multiple protocols and allows remote management from a central office using SNMP.

The iMcV-10G-SFP-Converter SFP+ is protocol-independent, with dual SFP+ ports that can provide a single conversion between singlemode and multimode fiber, singlemode-to-singlemode or multimode-to-single-strand-singlemode fiber.

B&B Electronics
www.bb-elec.com

The Industrial Ethernet to Fiber Optic Bit Driver joins S.I. Tech's family of Ethernet products that include other media converters as well as switches and fiber-optic repeaters. The Bit Driver product is 4x3.6x1.2 inches in dimension with one 10/100-Mbit/sec Ethernet port and one fiber port; separate multimode and singlemode fiber versions are available. Multimode versions come with ST connectors; singlemode versions come with SC standard and LC optional. The unit offers DIN-rail mounting with redundant 10- to 32-VDC power input commonly available in industrial plants. The Ethernet board is conformal coated for environmental protection from dust, dirt and humidity, S.I. Tech explains. The enclosure is rated IP 40.

The bit driver supports IEEE 802.3 specification Medium Dependent Interface (MDI) using autonegotiation or manual setting. Status indicators enable troubleshooting such as power and link status, LAN activity and data speed. The bit driver, which is S.I. Tech's Model number 2151, can be used with straight or crosswired Ethernet cables.

S.I. Tech
www.sitech-bitdriver.com

Lynn Electronics' MC-1500 series TEC Optix triple-speed media converters comply with the IEEE 802.3ab Gigabit Ethernet standard and support media network connections such as 10/100/1000Base-T-to-1000Base-SX/LC, the company says. The 1000Base-T port supports a full-duplex Gigabit connection at wire speed with RJ-45 connectivity, while the fiber port supports short-wave (SX) or long-wave (LX) laser transmission over multimode or singlemode, with LC and SC connector options. The converter gives a copper-based Gigabit-speed connection the ability to interface with fiber and extend distance to as much as 120 kilometers via long-wave transmission, Lynn Electronics explains.

The converter is a low-cost integration option for network managers who want to migrate from 10/100 networks to Gigabit Ethernet.

Lynn Electronics
www.lynnelec.com

The FOI-6010 media converter from FiberPlex Technologies "extends the life and reach of secure fiber-optic infrastructure currently in use by the vast majority of data centers and secure networks today," the company says, by offering "bidirectional coupling between optical formats in order to add the range and flexibility of emergent singlemode optical transport to existing multimode fiber-optic infrastructure."

The company describes the converter as a universal SFP/SFP+ frame capable of data rates up to 12.5 Gbit/sec per slot. It adds that the FOI-6010's capabilities can be particularly beneficial to government-related users because it "offers a way to join the latest optical networks with existing optical systems acquired by agencies and corporations more than a decade ago as part of a government-wide mandate to secure communications."

More than a dozen SFP modules are available for the converter, providing capabilities including conversion between media formats SD-SDI, HD-SDI, 3G-SDI, and 6G-SDI as well as for HDMI/DVI, 10/100/1000-Mbit/sec Ethernet and MADI, full-duplex and BiDi optical.

FiberPlex
www.fiberplex.com

The ION x4120-1048 media converter from Transition Networks is a 10-Gigabit Ethernet copper-to-fiber converter, available in standalone and slide-in card form factors. It offers conversion technology by providing one 10GBase-T RJ-45 port and one pluggable 10GBase-X fiber SFP+ port. The open SFP+ port supports a wide variety of the company's 10GE SFP+ fiber modules, as well as third-party MSA-compatible SFP+ modules, the company explains.

The ION x4120 provides several 10G Ethernet enterprise and data center connectivity solutions, Transition Networks adds. Because most 10G Ethernet switches support a combination of copper RJ45 and open SFP+ ports, the ION x4120 allows users to convert either of these ports to the media type of their preference, to match their network requirements, including direct-attached SFP+ cables.

The standalone S4120 is an unmanaged device until it is linked to C4120, installed in a managed ION chassis; then remote in-band management of the S4120 is available. Transition Networks explains that this capability, coupled with the ION x4120-1048's Transparent Pass Through, Loopback, DMI and Automatic Link Restoration network-troubleshooting features, provides network managers with end-to-end link visibility.

Transition Networks
www.transition.com