An OPGW cable was patented by BICC in 1977 and installation of optical ground wires became widespread starting in the 1980s. In the peak year of 2000, around 60,000 km of OPGW was installed worldwide. Asia, especially China, has become the largest regional market for OPGW used in transmission-line construction. OverviewAn optical ground wire (also known as an OPGW or, in the IEEE standard, an optical fiber composite ) is a type of cable that is used in. Such cable combines the functions of. Several different styles of OPGW are made. In one type, between 8 and 48 glass optical fibers are placed in a plastic tube. The tube is inserted into a stainless steel, aluminum, or aluminum-coated steel tube, with some slack lengt. Optical fibers are used by utilities as an alternative to private point-to-point microwave systems, or communication circuits on metallic cables. OPGW as a communication medium has some adva.
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