Cable assembly having shielded conductor and method and apparatus for

Abstract

A shielded conductor is formed by bonding a thin layer of conductive material to the outer surface of an insulated wire. The bonding may be achieved by coating the outside surface of the insulated wire with a metallic particle and solvent solution, and then heating the coated wire to flash off the solvent. A grounding conductor is disposed adjacent to the outer conductive layer and is in electrical contact therewith. The grounding conductor may take the form of a center ground wire surrounded by a semiconductive material whose outer diameter is substantially the same as that of the shielded conductor. One or more unshielded insulated conductors may also be provided within the cable assembly which is particularly designed to be terminated in a miniature, modular plug. The cable assembly may also include a plurality of shielded conductors disposed in laterally adjacent relationship. Conductive coatings on adjacent shielded conductors are in electrical communication. Accordingly, all of the conductive coatings can be grounded through a single connection. The single connection may be effected by stripping back the conductive coatings on all but one of the shielded conductors. The conductors may then be terminated in a standard, miniature modular plug which utilizes insulation-piercing conductive terminals, in which one of the terminals pierces the unstripped conductor coating to define the grounding conductor.