Daktronics AF-3090-89-R,A - Manual (Page 18)

Electrical Installation
3-3
Fiber Optic
This cable is a 4-fiber cable (Daktronics part number W-1376). Two fibers are used for display
communications and the other two are saved for spares. The cable may be either direct burial or
routed in conduit but should not be subjected to mechanical flexing. The maximum length of a
fiber optic cable is 2,000 feet (611.6 meters).
3.3 RJ Connector Cables
The connector used for RS/232 input to the display is
an industry standard, 6-pin RJ11. This connector can
be found on many telephones and LANs.
The cable used in the network is a standard flat six
conductor telephone cable (standard flipped cable ).
Refer to Figure 15. This cable has one end that is the
mirror image of the other end (i.e. the cable is
flipped). Refer to Figure 16 for a standard flipped
cable .
Notice in Figure 16 that the color code on one connector must be made the opposite on the other
connector. When installing a network, it is not easy to remember in which direction the previous end
was oriented. One simple way to avoid confusion is to standardize the color code, having one color for
the connector going into the output of a sign and the opposite color for a connector going into the
input of a sign. This will help ensure correct cabling since cables are always installed from the output
jack of one sign to the input jack of the next sign.
Installing an RJ Connector
Installing an RJ connector on the end of the conductor cable is a simple task when the correct
tools are used. The RJ crimping tool (Daktronics part number TH-1033) performs two separate
steps
First, use the crimping tool to strip the outer insulation from the inner
wires. This does not result in bare wires since only the gray outer
jacket is removed. After correct stripping, the wire will appear as
shown in Figure 17.
The crimping tool is then used to crimp the RJ connector onto the
cable. The RJ connector is locked into a special socket in the tool. The stripped wire is inserted
into the RJ connector. Finally, the tool is squeezed like pliers to crimp the connector onto the wire.
This completes the installation of an RJ connector onto the wire.
Figure 15: 6-Conductor RJ11 Connector and
Cable
Figure 16: Flipped Cable with RJ Connectors
Figure 17: Wire with
Outer Jacket Stripped