Chapter 2 – Electromagnetically compatible installation of drives and drive systems 
2-6 
 
Using EMC compliant cables 
In order to reduce electromagnetic emission caused by motor cables and to increase EMI immunity 
for control cables, shielded cables have to be used. Using this shielding can reduce the interference 
coupled into and out of the cable (please also refer to the previous chapter „Minimizing radiated 
interference“).  The  effectiveness  of  the  shielding  heavily  depends  on  the  construction  and  the 
material of the shielding. The screening effectiveness can be characterized by the so called transfer 
impedance. This effectiveness or performance can be improved by keeping the transfer impedance 
as low as possible. The transfer impedance is mainly affected by the following variables: 
  The cable covering, which is the cable area actually covered by the shielding. It is normally 
indicated as a percentage value and should be at least 85%. 
  The shielding‘s design. Possible design alternatives are  braided cables or shieldings made of 
metal conduit. These two types should be preferred when shielding is to be implemented. 
  The  contact  (or  transition)  resistance  between  the  individual  stranded  conductors  of  the 
shielding.  The  performance  of  the  shielding  improves  if  this  resistance  is  kept  as  low  as 
possible. 
The following diagram shows the transfer impedance for various cable types. By comparing the 
cables'  individual  design,  the  shielding  effectiveness  can  be  estimated  and  a  suitable  cable  be 
chosen.  
10
-3
10
-2
10
-1
1
10
1
10
2
10
3
10
4
10
5
0,01 0,1 1 10 100
Kopplungsimpedanz
m /m
Frequenz
MHz
1
2
3
4
5
6
Aluminium-Ummantelung
mit Kupferdraht
Gewundener  Kupferdraht oder
bewehrtes Stahldrahtkabel
Einlagiges Kupferdrahtgeflecht
mit schwankender prozentualer
Schirmabdeckung
Zweilagiges Kupferdrahtgeflecht
Zweilagiges Kupferdrahtgeflecht
mit magnetisch abgeschirmter
Zwischenlage
In Kupfer- oder Stahlrohr
geführtes Kabel
1
2
3
4
5
6
Bessere 
Schirmwirkung
 
 
Improving 
shielding 
performance 
Aluminum sheating with 
copper wire 
 
Meandering copper cable 
or armoured steel wire 
 
Single-layer copper wire 
braid with varying 
percentages of cable 
covering 
Double-layer copper wire 
braid 
 
Double-layer copper wire 
braid with magnetically 
screened intermediate layer 
 
Cable running in conduit 
made of copper or steel