Belden 8723 and equivalent shielded cables are often used for the power and data links to keypads, zone expanders and other data-line peripherals on intruder alarm systems. The cable consists of two shielded (foil wrapped) twisted pairs of stranded core wires and an uninsulated drain wire that has direct connection to the shielding foil.
Cable Specifications
Conductors: Tinned annealed flexible copper
Insulation: Polypropylene (PP) or Low Smoke Zero Halogen (LSZH)
Core identification colours: 4 Core (two pairs): Red, Black / White, Green. Drain wire is un-insulated.
Cable Sheath/Jacket: Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)
Sheath Colour: Grey
Operating temperature: Minimum -20°C, Maximum 75°C
The wire conductors are made up of 7x 30 AWG (American Wire Gauge) wire strands, creating an overall conductor size of 22 AWG. These cables are intended for SELV (0-50 volt) use.
For Intruder Alarm Systems, this cable is used mainly for the wiring links between the intruder alarm control panel and the remote keypad or zone expander, with one pair carrying 12 volt power and the other carrying data (usually a form of RS-485 data) with the drain wire tied to earth at one end (usually at the control panel).
The cable cores are stranded to make them more flexible in service, and to resist breakage when terminated in screw terminals.