IEC 60794-1-24:2014

Optical fibre cables - Part 1-24: Generic specification - Basic optical cable test procedures - Electrical test methods

IEC 60794-1-24:2014 applies to optical fibre cables for use with telecommunication equipment and devices employing similar techniques, and to cables having a combination of both optical fibres and electrical conductors. The object of this standard is to define test procedures to be used in establishing uniform requirements for electrical requirements. Throughout the standard the wording "optical cable" may also include optical fibre units, microduct fibre units, etc. Keywords: optical fibre cables for use with telecommunication equipment, test procedures

Câbles à fibres optiques - Partie 1-24: Spécification générique - Méthodes fondamentales d'essais applicables aux câbles optiques - Méthodes d'essais électriques

L'IEC 60794-1-24:2014 s'applique aux câbles à fibres optiques destinés à être utilisés dans les équipements de télécommunications et les dispositifs utilisant des techniques analogues, ainsi qu'aux câbles constitués de fibres optiques d'une part et de conducteurs électriques d'autre part. L'objet de la présente norme est de définir les procédures d'essai à utiliser en vue d'établir des exigences uniformes relatives aux exigences électriques. Tout au long de la norme, l'expression "câble optique" peut également inclure des ensembles de fibres optiques, des unités de fibres pour micro-conduits, etc. Mots clés: câbles à fibres optiques destinés à être utilisés dans les équipements de télécommunications, procédures d'essai

General Information

• Status: Replaced
• Publication Date: 12-May-2014
• ICS: 33.180.10 - Fibres and cables
• Technical Committee: SC 86A - Fibres and cables
• Current Stage: DELPUB - Deleted Publication
• Start Date: 30-Apr-2021
• Completion Date: 06-Mar-2020

Relations

• Replaced By: IEC 60794-1-401:2021 - Optical fibre cables - Part 1-401: Generic specification - Basic optical cable test procedures - Electrical test methods - Short-circuit test (for OPGW, OPPC and OPAC), Method H1
• Effective Date: 05-Sep-2023
• Replaced By: IEC 60794-1-403:2021 - Optical fibre cables - Part 1-403: Generic specification - Basic optical cable test procedures - Electrical test methods - Electrical continuity test of cable metallic elements, method H3
• Effective Date: 05-Sep-2023
• Replaced By: IEC 60794-1-402:2021 - Optical fibre cables - Part 1-402: Generic specification - Basic optical cable test procedures - Electrical test methods - Lightning test (for OPGW, OPPC and OPAC), Method H2
• Effective Date: 05-Sep-2023

Standards Content (Sample)

IEC 60794-1-24 ®
Edition 1.0 2014-05
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
colour
inside
Optical fibre cables –
Part 1-24: Generic specification – Basic optical cable test procedures – Electrical
test methods
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, no part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form

or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and microfilm, without permission in writing from
either IEC or IEC's member National Committee in the country of the requester. If you have any questions about IEC
copyright or have an enquiry about obtaining additional rights to this publication, please contact the address below or

your local IEC member National Committee for further information.

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About the IEC
The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is the leading global organization that prepares and publishes
International Standards for all electrical, electronic and related technologies.

About IEC publications
The technical content of IEC publications is kept under constant review by the IEC. Please make sure that you have the
latest edition, a corrigenda or an amendment might have been published.

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and withdrawn publications. have been collected from earlier publications of IEC TC 37,

77, 86 and CISPR.
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IEC 60794-1-24 ®
Edition 1.0 2014-05
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
colour
inside
Optical fibre cables –
Part 1-24: Generic specification – Basic optical cable test procedures – Electrical

test methods
INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
PRICE CODE
M
ICS 33.180.10 ISBN 978-2-8322-1576-0

– 2 – IEC 60794-1-24:2014 © IEC 2014

CONTENTS
FOREWORD . 3

1 Scope . 5

2 Normative references . 5

3 Method H1: Short-circuit test (for OPGW and OPAC) . 5

3.1 Object . 5

3.2 Sample . 5

3.2.1 OPGW testing . 5
3.2.2 OPAC testing . 6
3.3 Apparatus . 6
3.4 Procedure . 7
3.4.1 OPGW testing . 7
3.4.2 OPAC testing . 7
3.4.3 Common procedure for OPGW and OPAC . 8
3.5 Requirements . 8
3.6 Details to be specified . 8
3.6.1 OPGW testing . 8
3.6.2 OPAC testing . 8
4 Method H2: Lightning test method for optical aerial cables along electric power

lines (OPGW and OPAC) . 8
4.1 Object . 8
4.2 General . 9
4.3 Sample . 9
4.4 Apparatus . 9
4.5 Procedure . 10
4.6 Requirements . 10
4.7 Details to be specified . 10
5 Method H3 – Electrical continuity test of cable metallic elements . 10
5.1 Object . 10
5.2 Sample . 10
5.3 Apparatus . 10
5.4 Procedure . 11
5.5 Requirements . 11

5.6 Details to be specified . 11
Bibliography . 12

Figure 1 – OPGW short-circuit test arrangement . 6
Figure 2 – OPAC short-circuit test arrangement . 7
Figure 3 – Lightning test arrangement . 9

Table 1 – Test parameters . 10

INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION

____________
OPTICAL FIBRE CABLES –
Part 1-24: Generic specification –

Basic optical cable test procedures –

Electrical test methods
FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising
all national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote
international co-operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To
this end and in addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications,
Technical Reports, Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) and Guides (hereafter referred to as “IEC
Publication(s)”). Their preparation is entrusted to technical committees; any IEC National Committee interested
in the subject dealt with may participate in this preparatory work. International, governmental and non-
governmental organizations liaising with the IEC also participate in this preparation. IEC collaborates closely
with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in accordance with conditions determined by
agreement between the two organizations.
2) The formal decisions or agreements of IEC on technical matters express, as nearly as possible, an international
consensus of opinion on the relevant subjects since each technical committee has representation from all
interested IEC National Committees.
3) IEC Publications have the form of recommendations for international use and are accepted by IEC National
Committees in that sense. While all reasonable efforts are made to ensure that the technical content of IEC
Publications is accurate, IEC cannot be held responsible for the way in which they are used or for any
misinterpretation by any end user.
4) In order to promote international uniformity, IEC National Committees undertake to apply IEC Publications
transparently to the maximum extent possible in their national and regional publications. Any divergence
between any IEC Publication and the corresponding national or regional publication shall be clearly indicated in
the latter.
5) IEC itself does not provide any attestation of conformity. Independent certification bodies provide conformity
assessment services and, in some areas, access to IEC marks of conformity. IEC is not responsible for any
services carried out by independent certification bodies.
6) All users should ensure that they have the latest edition of this publication.
7) No liability shall attach to IEC or its directors, employees, servants or agents including individual experts and
members of its technical committees and IEC National Committees for any personal injury, property damage or
other damage of any nature whatsoever, whether direct or indirect, or for costs (including legal fees) and
expenses arising out of the publication, use of, or reliance upon, this IEC Publication or any other IEC
Publications.
8) Attention is drawn to the Normative references cited in this publication. Use of the referenced publications is
indispensable for the correct application of this publication.

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 60794-1-24 has been prepared by subcommittee 86A: Fibres and
cables, of IEC technical committee 86: Fibre optics.
This edition of IEC 60794-1-24 cancels and replaces the electrical tests methods section of
the second edition of IEC 60794-1-2, published in 2003 (and subsequently replaced by the
third edition). It constitutes a technical revision.
It has been decided to split the second edition of IEC 60794-1-2 into six new documents:
– IEC 60794-1-2 : Cross reference table
– IEC 60794-1-20 : General and definitions
– IEC 60794-1-21 : Mechanical tests
– IEC 60794-1-22 : Environmental tests

– 4 – IEC 60794-1-24:2014 © IEC 2014

– IEC 60794-1-23 : Cable elements

– IEC 60794-1-24 : Electrical tests

The text of this standard is based on the following documents:

FDIS Report on voting
86A/1591/FDIS 86A/1606/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.
A bilingual version of this publication may be issued at a later date.

IMPORTANT – The 'colour inside' logo on the cover page of this publication indicates
that it contains colours which are considered to be
...

IEC 60794-1-24 ®
Edition 1.0 2014-05
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
NORME
INTERNATIONALE
colour
inside
Optical fibre cables –
Part 1-24: Generic specification – Basic optical cable test procedures – Electrical
test methods
Câbles à fibres optiques –
Partie 1-24: Spécification générique – Méthodes fondamentales d'essais
applicables aux câbles optiques – Méthodes d'essais électriques

All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, no part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form
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About the IEC
The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is the leading global organization that prepares and publishes
International Standards for all electrical, electronic and related technologies.

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The technical content of IEC publications is kept under constant review by the IEC. Please make sure that you have the
latest edition, a corrigenda or an amendment might have been published.

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IEC 60794-1-24 ®
Edition 1.0 2014-05
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
NORME
INTERNATIONALE
colour
inside
Optical fibre cables –
Part 1-24: Generic specification – Basic optical cable test procedures – Electrical

test methods
Câbles à fibres optiques –
Partie 1-24: Spécification générique – Méthodes fondamentales d'essais

applicables aux câbles optiques – Méthodes d'essais électriques

INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
COMMISSION
ELECTROTECHNIQUE
INTERNATIONALE
ICS 33.180.10 ISBN 978-2-8322-3074-9

– 2 – IEC 60794-1-24:2014 © IEC 2014
CONTENTS
FOREWORD . 3
1 Scope . 5
2 Normative references . 5
3 Method H1: Short-circuit test (for OPGW and OPAC) . 5
3.1 Object . 5
3.2 Sample . 5
3.2.1 OPGW testing . 5
3.2.2 OPAC testing . 6
3.3 Apparatus . 6
3.4 Procedure . 7
3.4.1 OPGW testing . 7
3.4.2 OPAC testing . 7
3.4.3 Common procedure for OPGW and OPAC . 8
3.5 Requirements . 8
3.6 Details to be specified . 8
3.6.1 OPGW testing . 8
3.6.2 OPAC testing . 8
4 Method H2: Lightning test method for optical aerial cables along electric power
lines (OPGW and OPAC) . 8
4.1 Object . 8
4.2 General . 9
4.3 Sample . 9
4.4 Apparatus . 9
4.5 Procedure . 10
4.6 Requirements . 10
4.7 Details to be specified . 10
5 Method H3 – Electrical continuity test of cable metallic elements . 10
5.1 Object . 10
5.2 Sample . 10
5.3 Apparatus . 10
5.4 Procedure . 11
5.5 Requirements . 11
5.6 Details to be specified . 11
Bibliography . 12

Figure 1 – OPGW short-circuit test arrangement . 6
Figure 2 – OPAC short-circuit test arrangement . 7
Figure 3 – Lightning test arrangement . 9

Table 1 – Test parameters . 10

INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
______________
OPTICAL FIBRE CABLES –
Part 1-24: Generic specification –
Basic optical cable test procedures –
Electrical test methods
FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising
all national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote
international co-operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To
this end and in addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications,
Technical Reports, Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) and Guides (hereafter referred to as “IEC
Publication(s)”). Their preparation is entrusted to technical committees; any IEC National Committee interested
in the subject dealt with may participate in this preparatory work. International, governmental and non-
governmental organizations liaising with the IEC also participate in this preparation. IEC collaborates closely
with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in accordance with conditions determined by
agreement between the two organizations.
2) The formal decisions or agreements of IEC on technical matters express, as nearly as possible, an international
consensus of opinion on the relevant subjects since each technical committee has representation from all
interested IEC National Committees.
3) IEC Publications have the form of recommendations for international use and are accepted by IEC National
Committees in that sense. While all reasonable efforts are made to ensure that the technical content of IEC
Publications is accurate, IEC cannot be held responsible for the way in which they are used or for any
misinterpretation by any end user.
4) In order to promote international uniformity, IEC National Committees undertake to apply IEC Publications
transparently to the maximum extent possible in their national and regional publications. Any divergence
between any IEC Publication and the corresponding national or regional publication shall be clearly indicated in
the latter.
5) IEC itself does not provide any attestation of conformity. Independent certification bodies provide conformity
assessment services and, in some areas, access to IEC marks of conformity. IEC is not responsible for any
services carried out by independent certification bodies.
6) All users should ensure that they have the latest edition of this publication.
7) No liability shall attach to IEC or its directors, employees, servants or agents including individual experts and
members of its technical committees and IEC National Committees for any personal injury, property damage or
other damage of any nature whatsoever, whether direct or indirect, or for costs (including legal fees) and
expenses arising out of the publication, use of, or reliance upon, this IEC Publication or any other IEC
Publications.
8) Attention is drawn to the Normative references cited in this publication. Use of the referenced publications is
indispensable for the correct application of this publication.
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 60794-1-24 has been prepared by subcommittee 86A: Fibres and
cables, of IEC technical committee 86: Fibre optics.
This edition of IEC 60794-1-24 cancels and replaces the electrical tests methods section of
the second edition of IEC 60794-1-2, published in 2003 (and subsequently replaced by the
third edition). It constitutes a technical revision.
It has been decided to split the second edition of IEC 60794-1-2 into six new documents:
– IEC 60794-1-2 : Cross reference table
– IEC 60794-1-20 : General and definitions
– IEC 60794-1-21 : Mechanical tests
– IEC 60794-1-22 : Environmental tests

– 4 – IEC 60794-1-24:2014 © IEC 2014
– IEC 60794-1-23 : Cable elements
– IEC 60794-1-24 : Electrical tests
This bilingual version (2015-12) corresponds to the monolingual English version, published in
2014-05.
The text of this standard is based on the following documents:
FDIS Report on voting
86A/1591/FDIS 86A/1606/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.
The French version of this standard has not been voted upon.
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.
OPTICAL FIBRE CABLES –
Part 1-24: Generic specification –
Basic optical cable test procedures –
Electrical test methods
1 Scope
This part of IEC 60794 applies to optical fibre cables for use with telecommunication
equipment and devices employing similar techniques, and to cables having a combination of
both optical fibres and electrical conductors.
The object of this standard is to define test procedures to be used in establishing uniform
requirements for electrical requirements.
Throughout the standard the wording “optical cable” may also include optical fibre units,
microduct fibre units, etc.
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.
Void.
3 Method H1: Short-circuit test (for OPGW and OPAC)
3.1 Object
The short-circuit test is intended to assess the performance of the OPGW (optical ground
wire) under typical short-circuit, or the impact on the performance of OPAC (optical attached
cable) under short-circuit current on the messenger wire.
3.2 Sample
3.2.1 OPGW testing
3.2.1.1 Two samples test method
A typical arrangement using two test samples is shown in Figure 1.
Two samples, each being at least 10 m long, shall be terminated at each end with suitable
fittings. In sample A, one or more thermocouples shall be inserted into holes drilled into the
optical unit to monitor the optical unit temperature. In sample B, one or more thermocouples
shall be attached to the wires of the OPGW to monitor the OPGW temperature. Fibre optical
attenuation shall be measured using a light source and power meter connected to each end of
the test fibre of sample B. The test length of the optical fibre shall be a minimum of 100 m
(when the sample is shorter than 100 m, concatenation shall be used) .

– 6 – IEC 60794-1-24:2014 © IEC 2014
3.2.1.2 One sample test method
The sample, at least 10 m long, shall be terminated at each end with suitable fittings. One or
more thermocouples shall be inserted through the strands of the OPGW onto the surface of
the optical unit to monitor the optical unit temperature. One or more thermocouples shall be
attached to the wires of the OPGW to monitor the OPGW temperature. Fibre optical
attenuation shall be measured using a light source and power meter connected to each end of
the test fibre. The test length of the optical fibre shall be a minimum of 100 m. (when the
sample is shorter than 100 m, concatenation shall be used).
3.2.2 OPAC testing
A typical arrangement for testing OPAC is shown in Figure 2.
The OPAC test sample, at least 10 m long, is attached to the agreed messenger wire with
suitable fittings. Thermocouples shall be attached to the messenger wire to record the
temperature achieved during the test. In addition, a light source and power meter shall be
connected to each end of the test fibre in the OPAC to measure the relative attenuation level.
The test length of optical fibre shall be a minimum of 100 m (when the sample is shorter than
100 m, concatenation shall be used).
3.3 Apparatus
A
B
IEC  1563/14
Key
1  thermocouples
5  recorder
- armour temperature is measured
6  fibre looped
- optical core temperature is measured
A, B  test samples
2  thermocouple recorder
3  light source
4  power meter
Figure 1 – OPGW short-circuit test arrangement

B
A
IEC  1564/14
Key
1  thermocouple
5  recorder
- messenger temperature is measured
6  fibre looped
2  thermocouple recorder
A  attached cable
3  light source
B  messenger
4  power meter
Figure 2 – OPAC short-circuit test arrangement
3.4 Procedure
3.4.1 OPGW testing
The general test conditions are as follows:
– Tensile load: 15 % ± 5 % of RTS (rated tensile strength)
– Sample length: > 10 m
– Fibre test length: > 100 m
– Initial sample temperature: as agreed between customer and supplier
– Fault current intensity: as agreed between customer and supplier
– Fault current duration: as agreed between customer and supplier
– Number of pulses: 3 minimum
rd
– Waveform: to be symmetrical after the 3 cycle
The current pulses shall be applied with the metallic cables being allowed to cool down to
within 5 °C of the initial temperature between each pulse.
Optical attenuation of the test fibres shall be monitored continuously for at least 2 min before,
until at least 5 min after each current pulse.
The temperature of the OPGW and the optical unit shall be monitored.
3.4.2 OPAC testing
The general test conditions are as follows:
– Tensile load: agreed between customer and supplier
– Sample length: > 10 m
– Fibre test length:> 100 m
– Initial sample temperature: as agreed between customer and supplier
– Messenger maximum temperature: refer to the detail specification

– 8 – IEC 60794-1-24:2014 © IEC 2014
– Fault current duration: refer to customer specification
– Number of pulses: 3 minimum
rd
– Waveform: to be symmetrical after the 3 cycle
The initial messenger wire temperature shall be mutually agreed between the customer and
the supplier. The current pulses shall be applied with the messenger wire being allowed to
cool down to within 5 °C of the initial temperature between each pulse.
Optical attenuation of the test fibres shall be monitored continuously fromr at least 2 min
before, until at least 5 min after each current pulse. The temperature of the messenger wire
shall also be monitored.
3.4.3 Common procedure for OPGW and OPAC
The OPGW and OPAC shall be dismantled after the short-circuit current test. Each
component of the cable shall be separated and inspected for excessive wear, discoloration,
deformation or signs of breakdown. Attention should be made to the sections of the cable
nearest to the terminating hardware and at mid-point of the span.
3.5 Requirements
The acceptance criteria for the test shall be as stated in the detail specification.
On completion, the maximum temperature reached by any component in the OPGW shall be
within the allowed temperature range specified by the supplier for this component.
During the test the messenger wire that the OPAC is attached to should attain the
temperature lower that the maximum specified by the customer.
Excessive wear, discoloration, deformation or breakdown shall not be observed by the
inspection after the exposure to the current pulse.
3.6 Details to be specified
3.6.1 OPGW testing
– Procedure used (one sample or two samples test method)
– Initial sample temperature
– Fault current intensity
– Fault current duration
– Number of pulses
3.6.2 OPAC testing
– Messenger tensile load
– Initial sample temperature
– Maximum temperature to be reached by the messenger wire
– Fault current duration
– Number of pulses
4 Method H2: Lightning test method for optical aerial cables along electric
power lines (OPGW and OPAC)
4.1 Object
This test is intended to evaluate the impact of a lightning strike on an OPGW or OPAC.

4.2 General
Lightning test should be carried out only for comparison between different OPGW designs.
In the case of OPAC cables, the cable shall be installed on the messenger so as to simulate
as closely as possible a real installation, and the lightning test should be carried out to
determine that the sheath is not severely damaged.
4.3 Sample
The test shall be performed on the mid-point of an OPGW sample or an OPAC sample
attached to the agreed messenger.
The sample shall be at least 1 m long between the anchoring clamps.
4.4 Apparatus
A typical test arrangement which can be used for the lightning test is shown in Figure 3.
+ −
l
6 4
A
l/2
l/2
7 1
3 2
−
IEC  1565/14
Key
1  thermocouple
5  electrode with plane surface preferring Wolfram-Copper
2  insulator
6  metal fuse for ignition
3  anchoring clamps
7  tension meter
4  symmetric earthing connectors
8  gap between electrode and cable surface = 6 cm
A test sample (including OPAC messenger wire)
Figure 3 – Lightning test arrangement
The electrode, consisting of a copper or iron rod, shall be positioned above the metallic cable.
The electrode and metallic cable shall be connected between themselves by metal fuse. The
applied tensile load on the metallic cable sample shall be EDS (every day stress), 15 % to
25 % of the RTS (rated tensile stress). If mutually agreed between the customer and supplier,
other tension loads may be applied.
When testing an OPAC, a metal fuse shall be connected as closely as possible to a point
where the OPAC and, where applicable, the lashing binder is in contact with the messenger.

– 10 – IEC 60794-1-24:2014 © IEC 2014
4.5 Procedure
The sample shall be subjected to a simulated lightning strike, which causes melting effects.
Table 1 – Test parameters
Class 0 Class 1  Class 2  Class 3

Current (A) 100 200 300 400
Duration (s) 0,5 0,5 0,5 0,5
Charge transfer (C) 50 100 150 200

The test parameters are chosen between class 0 and class 3 according to Table 1 or can be
agreed between the customer and the supplier, depending on the construction characteristics.
The initial temperature of the cable should be about +23 °C ± 5 °C. The test shall be repeated
5 times under the same conditions on different samples.
4.6 Requirements
On completion of the test, the following criteria shall be considered:
a) Any permanent or temporary increase in optical attenuation greater than the specified
value shall constitute a failure (OPGW/OPAC).
b) For OPGW, if any wires are found to be broken, then the residual strength of the OPGW
shall be calculated for the remaining unbroken wires. If the calculated residual strength is
less than 75 % of the original declared RTS, then this shall constitute a failure.
4.7 Details to be specified
Test conditions: Class 0, Class 1, Class 2, or Class 3.
5 Method H3 – Electrical continuity test of cable metallic elements
5.1 Object
The electrical continuity test is to verify that cable metallic elements are electrically
continuous throughout the cable. Electrical continuity is important for bonding and grounding,
toning for location, and other related system issues, and may represent a “goodness of
manufacture" criteria. Typically, the test is one of continuity and carries no resistance or
conductivity requirement. The metallic elements may be tested individually, or may be tested
as a total group. Since this latter criterion is frequently the case, all elements are to be
measured as a group unless specified otherwise.
NOTE Detail specifications may allow such elements as strength members to be non-continuous throughout the
cable. This is a special case, and attention is directed to the detail specification.
5.2 Sample
The sample is an entire c
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