User`s manual

NetDoc™ User’s Manual B-1 Rev B
Appendix B - Glossary of Terms
Air-Blown Fiber (ABF)
Air-blown fiber-optic cabling systems deliver all the benefits of fiber-optic transmission without
the high infrastructure investment and ongoing maintenance costs of conventional fiber
systems. ABF systems are typically less expensive to upgrade or reconfigure as the network
evolves and requirements change.
A flexible tube cable (conduit) can contain up multiple fiber-optic tube cells, which can be
joined in tube distribution units (TDUs), or junction boxes. TDUs replace conventional fiber
splice hardware at tube-cable transitions and branching locations to provide point-to-point
connectivity between the computer room or network hub and the application.
Once the tube-cable infrastructure is installed, bundles of optical fiber are blown through a
predefined route on a stream of nitrogen, using specially designed equipment. The fiber path
may traverse outdoor, riser, and plenum tubes in a single run. Since the fibers are blown
rather than pulled, installation damage is not an issue.
Network expansion can be done quickly by extending tube cables from the nearest TDU. Fiber
bundles can be upgraded or replaced by blowing cable through unused cells or by blowing out
old fiber and blowing in new-all without disrupting the existing network.
Space is also maximized, since ABF bundles are significantly smaller than conventional fiber
cables.