IEC 60794-2-31:2012

Optical fibre cables - Part 2-31: Indoor cables - Detailed specification for optical fibre ribbon cables for use in premises cabling

IEC 60794-2-31:2012 presents the detailed requirements specific to indoor optical fibre ribbon cables to ensure compatibility with ISO/IEC 11801. The requirements of the family specification IEC 60794-2-30 are applicable to cables covered by this standard. This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition published in 2005. It constitutes a technical revision. This edition includes the following significant technical changes with respect to the previous edition:
- incorporation of the OM4 cabled fibre performance category;
- incorporation of the OS2 cabled fibre performance category;
- incorporation of the B6_a1 and B6_a2 fibre categories as per IEC 60793-2-50. Keywords: indoor optical fibre ribbon cables, OM4, OS2, B6_a1, B6_a2

Câbles à fibres optiques - Partie 2-31: Câbles intérieurs - Spécification particulière pour les câbles à fibres optiques en ruban utilisés dans le câblage de locaux

La CEI 60794-2-31:2012 donne les exigences détaillées spécifiques aux câbles à fibres optiques en ruban à usage intérieur, et assure la compatibilité avec l'ISO/IEC 11801. Les exigences contenues dans la spécification de famille CEI 60794-2-30 sont applicables aux câbles couverts par la présente norme. Cette deuxième édition annule et remplace la première édition publiée en 2005. Elle constitue une révision technique.La présente édition inclut les modifications techniques significatives suivantes par rapport à l'édition antérieure:
- ajout de la catégorie de performance de fibre câblée OM4;
- ajout de la catégorie de performance de fibre câblée OS2;
- ajout des catégories de fibre B6_a1 et B6_a2 selon la CEI 60793-2-50. Mots clés: câbles à fibres optiques en ruban à usage intérieur, OM4, OS2, B6_a1, B6_a2

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 06-Nov-2012
• ICS: 19.040 - Environmental testing
• ICS: 33.180.10 - Fibres and cables
• Technical Committee: SC 86A - Fibres and cables
• Current Stage: DELPUB - Deleted Publication
• Start Date: 12-Apr-2019
• Completion Date: 16-Feb-2018

Relations

• Revises: IEC 60794-2-31:2005 - Optical fibre cables - Part 2-31: Indoor cables - Detailed specification for optical fibre ribbon cables for use in premises cabling
• Effective Date: 05-Sep-2023
• Revised: IEC 60794-2-31:2019 - Optical fibre cables - Part 2-31: Indoor cables - Detailed specification for optical fibre ribbon cables for use in premises cabling
• Effective Date: 05-Sep-2023

Overview

The IEC 60794-2-31:2012 standard specifies detailed requirements for indoor optical fibre ribbon cables used in premises cabling. Developed by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), this second edition updates and replaces the 2005 edition, incorporating important technical revisions for improved performance and compatibility with international cabling standards such as ISO/IEC 11801. This standard ensures critical aspects such as cable construction, optical transmission performance, and environmental resilience meet stringent criteria for indoor deployment.

Key advancements in this edition include the integration of the OM4 and OS2 cabled fibre performance categories, alongside new fibre categories B6_a1 and B6_a2 as defined in IEC 60793-2-50. These additions reflect evolving industry needs for higher bandwidth and better signal integrity in indoor optical fibre networks.

Key Topics

• Scope and Compatibility
  The standard applies specifically to indoor optical fibre ribbon cables compliant with the family specification IEC 60794-2-30 and aligned with ISO/IEC 11801 to ensure global interoperability in premises cabling systems.

• Fibre Categories and Performance
  It covers a range of fibre types, including:

  • Multimode fibres: OM1, OM2, OM3, and OM4, based on IEC 60793-2-10 core specifications.
  • Single-mode fibres: OS1 and OS2, including the B6_a1 and B6_a2 categories according to IEC 60793-2-50.
    These categories define standardized performance levels for attenuation and bandwidth, critical for achieving reliable signal transmission indoors.

• Environmental Testing – Temperature Cycling
  Indoor cables must withstand temperature cycling between -20 °C and +60 °C without attenuation changes. This ensures cable reliability under typical building environmental variations.

• Optical Transmission Requirements
  The standard defines strict limits for optical attenuation:

  • Multimode fibres have maximum attenuation coefficients at 850 nm and 1300 nm wavelengths.
  • Single-mode fibres have maximum attenuation limits at key telecommunications wavelengths (1310 nm, 1383 nm, 1550 nm).
    Additionally, minimum bandwidth requirements for multimode fibres ensure they support required data rates for premises networks.

Applications

IEC 60794-2-31:2012 targets the design, manufacture, and testing of indoor optical fibre ribbon cables used widely in:

• Commercial buildings such as offices and data centers
• Educational and healthcare facilities deploying robust fibre infrastructure
• Telecommunications rooms and riser cables inside facilities
• Local area networks (LANs) requiring high-speed, high-capacity fibre optic links

By adhering to this standard, installers and manufacturers ensure cables provide optimum optical performance, mechanical durability, and compliance with international cabling architecture models, facilitating future-proof, high-bandwidth indoor fibre networks.

Related Standards

• IEC 60794-2-30: Family specification for indoor ribbon optical fibre cables – establishes baseline construction and testing principles.
• IEC 60793-2-10: Defines product specifications for multimode optical fibres used in indoor cabling.
• IEC 60793-2-50: Provides product specifications for single-mode optical fibres, including updated fibre categories B6_a1 and B6_a2.
• ISO/IEC 11801: International generic cabling standard for customer premises, ensuring compatibility of installed cabling systems.
• IEC 60794-1-2: Basic optical cable test procedures supporting the evaluation of cable attenuation and mechanical properties.

---

By conforming to IEC 60794-2-31:2012, stakeholders gain confidence in their indoor optical fibre ribbon cables’ ability to deliver reliable, high-performance optical communication, aligned with global requirements for modern premises cabling infrastructure. This supports efficient network operation, scalability, and longevity in diverse indoor environments.

Standards Content (Sample)

IEC 60794-2-31 ®
Edition 2.0 2012-11
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
NORME
INTERNATIONALE
colour
inside
Optical fibre cables –
Part 2-31: Indoor cables – Detailed specification for optical fibre ribbon cables
for use in premises cabling
Câbles à fibres optiques –
Partie 2-31: Câbles intérieurs – Spécification particulière pour les câbles à fibres
optiques en ruban utilisés dans le câblage de locaux

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IEC 60794-2-31 ®
Edition 2.0 2012-11
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
NORME
INTERNATIONALE
colour
inside
Optical fibre cables –
Part 2-31: Indoor cables – Detailed specification for optical fibre ribbon cables

for use in premises cabling
Câbles à fibres optiques –
Partie 2-31: Câbles intérieurs – Spécification particulière pour les câbles à fibres

optiques en ruban utilisés dans le câblage de locaux

INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
COMMISSION
ELECTROTECHNIQUE
PRICE CODE
INTERNATIONALE
CODE PRIX H
ICS 33.180.10 ISBN 978-2-83220-437-5

– 2 – 60794-2-31 © IEC:2012
CONTENTS
FOREWORD . 3

1 Scope . 5

2 Normative references . 5

3 General requirements . 5

4 Particular requirements . 6
4.1 Temperature cycling . 6
4.2 Transmission requirements. 6
4.2.1 Attenuation of cabled fibre . 6
4.2.2 Fibre bandwidth requirements . 7
Bibliography . 8

Table 1 – Multimode maximum cable attenuation coefficient (dB/km) . 6
Table 2 – Single-mode maximum cable attenuation coefficient (dB/km) . 7
Table 3 – Minimum multimode fibre bandwidth (MHz×km) . 7

60794-2-31 © IEC:2012 – 3 –
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION

____________
OPTICAL FIBRE CABLES –
Part 2-31: Indoor cables –
Detailed specification for optical fibre ribbon cables

for use in premises cabling
FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising
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8) Attention is drawn to the Normative references cited in this publication. Use of the referenced publications is
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9) Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this IEC Publication may be the subject of
patent rights. IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
International Standard IEC 60794-2-31 has been prepared by subcommittee 86A: Fibres and
cables, of IEC technical committee 86: Fibre optics.
This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition published in 2005. It constitutes a
technical revision.
This edition includes the following significant technical changes with respect to the previous
edition:
• incorporation of the OM4 cabled fibre performance category;
• incorporation of the OS2 cabled fibre performance category;
• incorporation of the B6_a1 and B6_a2 fibre categories as per IEC 60793-2-50.

– 4 – 60794-2-31 © IEC:2012
The text of this standard is based on the following documents:

FDIS Report on voting
86A/1468/FDIS 86A/1484/RVD
Full information on the voting for the approval of this standard can be found in the report on
voting indicated in the above table.

This publication has been drafted in accordance with the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.

A list of all the parts in the IEC 60794 series, published under the general title Optical fibre
cables, can be found on the IEC website.
The committee has decided that the contents of this publication will remain unchanged until
the stability date indicated on the IEC web site under "http://webstore.iec.ch" in the data
related to the specific publication. At this date, the publication will be
• reconfirmed,
• withdrawn,
• replaced by a revised edition, or
• amended.
IMPORTANT – The 'colour inside' logo on the cover page of this publication indicates
that it contains colours which are considered to be useful for the correct
understanding of its contents. Users should therefore print this document using a
colour printer.
60794-2-31 © IEC:2012 – 5 –
OPTICAL FIBRE CABLES –
Part 2-31: Indoor cables –
Detailed specification for optical fibre ribbon cables

for use in premises cabling
1 Scope
This part of the IEC 60794 series presents the detailed requirements specific to indoor optical
fibre ribbon cables to ensure compatibility with ISO/IEC 11801. The requirements of the family
specification IEC 60794-2-30 are applicable to cables covered by this standard.
The particular requirements detailed in Clause 4 either define a specific option relative to the
requirements of IEC 60794-2-30 or define additional requirements.
2 Normative references
The following documents, in whole or in part, are normatively referenced in this document and
are indispensable for its application. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For
undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any
amendments) applies.
NOTE They complete the normative references already listed in the generic specification (IEC 60794-1-1[1] and
IEC 60794-1-2) and in the sectional specification (IEC 60794-2 [2]) or in the family specification (IEC 60794-2-30).
IEC 60793-2-10:2011, Optical fibres − Part 2-10: Product specifications − Sectional
specification for category A1 multimode fibres
IEC 60793-2-50:2008, Optical fibres − Part 2-50: Product specifications − Sectional
specification for class B single-mode fibres
IEC 60794-1-2, Optical fibre cables – Part 1-2: Generic specification – Basic optical cable test
procedures
IEC 60794-2-30:2008, Optical fibre cables − Part 2-30: Indoor cables − Family specification
for ribbon cables
ISO/IEC 11801, Information technology − Generic cabling for customers premises
3 General requirements
The cable shall comply with the family specification (IEC 60794-2-30) and meet the
requirements that are defined in it.
The optical fibre contained in the cables which are covered by this standard shall comply with
one of the following standards and meet the normative requirements defined within them as
applicable:
• IEC 60793-2-50:2008, Annex A (Single-mode B1.1 fibre)
—————————
Numbers in square brackets refer to the Bibliography

– 6 – 60794-2-31 © IEC:2012
• IEC 60793-2-50:2008, Annex C (Single-mode B1.3 fibre)

• IEC 60793-2-50:2008, Annex G (Single-mode B6_a1 and B6_a2 fibre)

• IEC 60793-2-10:2011, Annex A (Multimode A1a.1, 50 µm core fibre)

• IEC 60793-2-10:2011, Annex A (Multimode A1a.2, 50 µm core fibre)

• IEC 60793-2-10:2011, Annex A (Multimode A1a.3, 50 µm core fibre)

• IEC 60793-2-10:2011, Annex B (Multimode A1b, 62,5 µm core fibre)

To ensure compatibility with ISO/IEC 11801, optical performance level requirements are

presented in terms of the performance classification codes for cabled optical fibre as follows:

• OS1 Single-mode fibre, categories B1.1, B1.3 or sub-categories B6_a1 and B6_a2;
• OS2 Single-mode fibre, category B1.3 or sub-categories B6_a1 and B6_a2
• OM1 Multimode fibre, model A1a.1 or sub-category;A1b
• OM2 Multimode fibre, model A1a.1 or sub-category;A1b;
• OM3 Multimode fibre, model A1a.2;
• OM4 Multimode fibre, model A1a.3.
NOTE These codes are informative from the perspective of the requirements defined in this detailed specification.
4 Particular requirements
4.1 Temperature cycling
The cable shall meet the requirement of IEC 60794-2-30:2008, Table 2, Option c (–20 °C to
+60 °C).
The test shall be performed on a 50 m specimen.
No attenuation changes shall be allowed during the test (see IEC 60794-1-2 for definition of
“no change in attenuation).
4.2 Transmission requirements
4.2.1 Attenuation of cabled fibre
Depending on the fibre category, the attenuation coefficient of the cabled fibre s
...