Presentation on

COMMUNICATION
MEDIA

COMMUNICATION MEDIA
What is the requirement of communication in
CIM and how communication media forms a
part of communication?
CIM requires the engineering and manufacturing
information be communicated to proper points within
the operation.
Communication comprises of :
Representation of data.
The medium (through which data flows).
Networking (of the devices).

MEDIUM
A medium is that through which data is transmitted and the medium
links the sender with the receiver .

Communication media includes:

wire communication path
microwave
fiber-optic cable
satellite

WIRE COMMUNICATION PATH

(OR GUIDED MEDIA) 1. Open Wires : They have no covering and are

usually attached to ceramic insulators fixed on

poles. They are suitable for low traffic (data rates)
only.
2. Twisted Cables : In this copper wire insulated from
each other are twisted in pairs . The twisting
o.
Minimizes the effect of electro-magnetic
interference.
o. The
electro-magnetic field from one wire
counterbalances the field from the other wire.

WIRE COMMUNICATION PATH

These twisted pair wires can be of two
types Shielded (conductive material) : the cables
are
shielded
from
electro-magnetic
interference in both directions from inside as
well as outside.
Insulated (non- conductive material) : the
cables are provided with plastic casing . It is
not a shield but insulation against electric
shock.
3. Coaxial Cables : As the name indicates in this
the copper conductor and outer covering
have same axis with insulator and shield
provided in between along it. These can be

1
.

2
.
3. Coaxial Cable

CHARACTERISTICS AND
APPLICATION OF TWISTED CABLES
Cheap
Easy to install.
Compared to coaxial cables, twisted pair wires

have a lower bandwidth.

Extensively used in Phone lines telecommunication
LANs.
A LAN to be configured with twisted pair requires a
hub
a hub implementation is prefered because it is easy

CHARACTERISTICS AND
APPLICATION OF COAXIAL CABLES.
Relatively cheap compared to fiber-optic cables.
Wider bandwidth compared to twisted pair wires.
Good transmission characteristics.
Used in high-speed synchronous transmission.
Supports broadband communication.
Can be tapped for multi-drop connection.
Avoid the risk of crosstalk since they have a grounded

shield around the conductor.

Used in : Ethernet bus LANs , Telephone trunks ,
mainframe networks and cable TVs.

FIBER OPTIC CABLE

In this , a strand of glass with a diameter as thin as
that of human hair is used to transmit data. It can
carry high bandwidth signals, since it is immune to
noise and distortion. Light travels along the path of
the fiber by bouncing around its edges.
Its types are :
- Regular glass fibers.
- Plastic fiber cable.
Plastic fiber cables are cheaper than glass fiber
cables.

Propagation methods used in it are:

1.Multi-mode step index.
2. Single mode.
3. Multi-mode graded index.

CHARACTERISTICS OF FIBER OPTIC

CABLE
Very broad bandwidth.
Higher transmission speeds are possible.
Signals travel a longer distance.
No Electro-magnetic field

- No interference.
- Signals are difficult to tap.
Smaller size
- Multiple fiber strands can be included in a cable
of very small diameter.
Purer the fibers the better the transmission
characteristics.

MICROWAVE TRANSMISSION
It uses very high frequency radio waves in

the range of

4.6-12.0 GHz.

Propagation

- Over space.
- Requires line-of-sight at high frequencies
the waves tend to behave like light waves .

CHARACTERISTICS OF
MICROWAVE
Advantages

- Cable laying is not

required.
Disadvantages
- Can easily be tapped.
- Encryption is one
way of securing the data
from eavesdropping.
- Repeater is used
every 30 miles to
transmit to next
receiving station.

Application Areas

- used extensively for

telecommunications.
- LAN used for wireless connections.
- WANs benefit from microwave.

SATELLITE COMMUNICATION
Satellites work as relay stations. A device called
transponder receives signals at one frequency
and transmits them at another frequency to avoid
interference with the incoming signals.
It requires line-of-sight propagation.

APPLICATIONS OF
SATELLITE
COMMUNICATION
Telecommunications
- especially for inter-continental
communication.
TV broadcast
- usage is increasing
Navigation and other similar local
applications GPS
Manufacturing companies engaged in
world wide operations use satellite

CHOICE OF COMMUNICATION
MEDIA
The influencing factors involved are :
COST
ERROR RATE
SECURITY
SPEED
For CIM, coaxial cables provide a balance
between cost and benefits, though fiber-optic
cables are the medium of the future.

thank
You