Method for determining the shielding effect of a shielded cabling path

Abstract

A method for determining the shielding effectiveness of a shielded and, particularly, permanently installed cabling path wherein the cabling path has an inside conductor connected via a patching cable at a first end to a transmitter which emits an electrical test signal. One pole of the transmitter output is applied to ground potential and the other pole is conductively connected to a patching cable. At a second end of the cabling path the shielding is applied to ground potential and conductively connected to the inside conductor via a terminating impedance. The shielding of the cabling path is connected to that pole of the transmitter output applied to ground potential. It is connected thereto by a return line which is connected to the first end of the cabling path at a differential current intensity of the currents flowing through the patching cable and the return line is converted into a measured value using a measuring device. Thereafter, such measured value is compared to either a theoretical reference value for a corresponding cabling path with interrupted shielding or a second measured value for the same so as to determine the associated shielding effectiveness of the cabling path.