Award-winning Paige GameChanger cable secures U.S. patent

The GameChanger extended-range UTP cable from Paige Datacom.

By CAROL EVERETT OLIVER, RCDD/ESS -- As of October 22, Paige Datacom’s patent-pending GameChanger cable is pending no more.

This innovative cable, which won recognition as a Cabling Installation and Maintenance (CI&M) Platinum award-winning product, has now secured its validated patent by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). This patent ends the three-year quest to become the first four-pair datacom cable to perform beyond the 100-meter channel distance for Ethernet data and power (PoE).

This patent covers all three constructions of the GameChanger cable – riser, plenum and outside plant (OSP) and is available in shielded or unshielded. U.S. Patent No. 10,453,589 protects Paige Electric Company, and its DataCom Division, as the sole manufacturer to produce and market a twisted-pair cable that supports both data and PoE applications to extended distances, depending on the application, source and voltage levels.

The Ethernet standard, IEEE 802.3, which originally defined the copper cabling channel distance to 100 meters from the switch to the work station outlet, was specifically applied to computer and telephone applications. As IP networks have evolved to deliver data and PoE to security cameras, wireless access points and access control systems, infrastructure design has been challenged to stay within the distance limitations and rigors of the device locations.

Currently there are two different application specifications covered in this patent: 1) 10/100BASE-T (10/100 Mb/s) out to 260 meters (850 feet); and, 2) 1000BASE-T (1 Gb/s) out to 200 meters (656 feet). Before the GameChanger cable was developed, alternative methods to reaching extended distances included adding intermediate telecom rooms (or IDFs) and/or telecom enclosures.

Other methods incorporate repeaters along the copper cabling system or installing a hybrid copper/optical fiber cable, which could send the data over the fiber and the power over the copper strands, but requires active media converters on the device end.

Significant cost savings are being realized with the GameChanger by reducing intermediate cross connections and IDFs. Also, active components such as repeaters, transceivers or converters can be eliminated, which add to the system cost and complexity of the cable run with an additional point of failure.

The GameChanger cable supports all four types of PoE – from Type 1 which provides 15W from the powered source equipment (PSE) over two pairs all the way up to Type 4, which provides 90W from PSE through all four pairs.

“By optimizing gauge size, twisting designs and material choices we’ve been able to make big strides in how far we can deliver data and power over Ethernet,” states David Coleman, Vice President of Business Development for Paige.

“In the past, cabling has been developed first with Ethernet systems designed around the cabling. Paige has taken the reverse approach and developed a cabling system with Ethernet specifically in mind to maximize transmission distances,” adds Andy Pluister, Vice President of Engineering for Paige.

All major test equipment manufacturers have updated the software in their handheld testers to accept GameChanger’s distance and applications. With all these attributes coupled with global recognition through the this new patent, GameChanger cable lives up to its name in the ICT industry as a true infrastructure game changer.