Published: 2025-08-05 13:33:12
In today's electrified era, cables are like the "neural networks" that operate in society, widely distributed across power transmission, communication links, industrial production, and many other fields, ensuring the stable operation of various equipment and systems.
But what is little known is that the origin of the cable can be traced back to a long time ago, and its development process is full of human wisdom and innovation.
Looking back at history, Franklin's "kite experiment" in the 18th century can be considered the early stage of cables. In that famous lightning weather experiment, Franklin tied metal wire to a kite and introduced it into the clouds, thereby confirming that lightning is an electrical phenomenon.
After that, he further experimented by fixing several-meter-long iron rods on the roof with insulating materials, connecting metal wires to the rods. When lightning struck, it was safely guided to the ground through the iron rods and metal wires, leaving the buildings intact. The metal wire in the experiment was the prototype of the cable, opening up the imaginative space for humans to use wires to transmit electrical energy.
Over time, the 19th century became a key period for the development of cable technology. In 1837, the British chemist Michael Faraday invented a wire that used copper wire wrapped around an iron core. Although the structure was simple, it was pioneering at the time.
However, these early wires suffered from frequent power outages and poor insulation performance. It was not until 1862 that French engineer Ernest Gagnière in London invented the first asbestos-insulated cable, greatly improving the safety and reliability of wires and marking a major breakthrough in cable technology.
Subsequently, more new insulation materials such as rubber, polyvinyl chloride, and polyamide were successively introduced, laying the foundation for improving cable performance.
The communications sector played a powerful role in the development of cables. In the 1850s, the first submarine cable was successfully laid to connect Dover in England and Calais in France for telegraph transmission, marking the beginning of transoceanic communication. Subsequently, as the number of telephone users in the city surged, symmetrical telephone cables capable of accommodating multiple pairs of wires emerged. In 1899, American M.I. Puppin invented the cable sensing coil, connecting the coil at intervals on the symmetrical cable core, increasing the call distance by 3 to 4 times and significantly expanding the communication range. By 1941, the United States had built the first 480-channel coaxial cable line, and thereafter, larger-capacity coaxial cable carrier telephone systems developed rapidly, meeting the demand for high-speed, large-capacity communication.
China's cable development also follows a unique trajectory. China's earliest communication cable lines were coastal submarine cables and urban telephone cables in major cities. In the 1930s, long-distance symmetrical cables capable of enabling low-frequency carrier telephones were laid in the Northeast. In 1962, 60 channels of carrier long-distance symmetrical cable, independently designed and manufactured by China, were put into use between Beijing and Shijiazhuang.
In 1976, the 1800 four-tube medium coaxial cable was successfully laid and put into operation between Beijing, Shanghai, and Hangzhou, demonstrating China's independent research and innovation capabilities in cable technology.
From the initial simple concept of metal wire to today's complex, diverse, and functionally diverse cable products, the development of cables has witnessed continuous technological advancement.
Nowadays, cables have become an indispensable part of modern society's infrastructure, playing a key role not only in daily power supply and communication, but also in high-end fields such as industrial manufacturing, aerospace, and navigation. With the continuous development of technology, cable technology will inevitably continue to innovate, injecting new vitality into the progress of human society.