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This article is just a stupid hit piece. A USB cord is not responsible for detecting short circuits. That's the job of the charger not the cord. The best cord

by ars 6y ago

This article is just a stupid hit piece. A USB cord is not responsible for detecting short circuits. That's the job of the charger not the cord. The best cord in the entire universe cannot prevent short circuits.

ctrl-j 6y ago
A short circuit is usually a wiring issue. A poorly manufactured USB cable can certainly cause a short circuit. Fire investigators are also well versed in the forensic investigation of these scenes. If his expert analysis determined the cord was at fault, there's a good chance it was the cable and not the device.
- sigstoat 6y ago
  > A short circuit is usually a wiring issue. A poorly manufactured USB cable can certainly cause a short circuit. yes. also extremely high quality cables which have been damaged in the field can develop a short. power supplies intended for use by users who cannot/will not inspect their cabling for damage (morally) should detect that the output is shorted and stop applying a voltage. they're the only device in the "charger, cable, chargee" chain that can do anything about the situation.
Someone1234 6y ago
It is a 5000 word article that talks about multiple classes of products, contextualizes the problem (regulations, competition, history, etc), and discusses possible mitigations. It is a huge mischaracterization to suggest that this is a hit piece about "USB cords." That was one of half a dozen different electrical products they discussed, and only the jumping off point into a much larger discussion.
argb 6y ago
But the USB charger manufacturers could do better by shutting down the output should arcing/sparking be detected. We already have this for 120V AC supplies, and it should be doable for 5V DC. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arc-fault_circuit_interrupter https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arc-fault_circuit_interrupter
- smileypete 6y ago
  >But the USB charger manufacturers could do better by shutting down the output should arcing/sparking be detected. A poor connection at a plug can (or will?) cause a hot spot without arcing, and for a long thin cable a short may not even trigger the overcurrent protection of a high power charger. Best to buy a cable with a decent 'AWG rating' eg 24AWG, either from a reputable brand like Tronsmart, or a specialist supplier, in the UK there's Kenable: https://www.kenable.co.uk/en/ https://www.kenable.co.uk/en/

by ars 6y ago

ctrl-j 6y ago

A short circuit is usually a wiring issue. A poorly manufactured USB cable can certainly cause a short circuit. Fire investigators are also well versed in the forensic investigation of these scenes. If his expert analysis determined the cord was at fault, there's a good chance it was the cable and not the device.

sigstoat 6y ago
> A short circuit is usually a wiring issue. A poorly manufactured USB cable can certainly cause a short circuit. yes. also extremely high quality cables which have been damaged in the field can develop a short. power supplies intended for use by users who cannot/will not inspect their cabling for damage (morally) should detect that the output is shorted and stop applying a voltage. they're the only device in the "charger, cable, chargee" chain that can do anything about the situation.

Someone1234 6y ago

It is a 5000 word article that talks about multiple classes of products, contextualizes the problem (regulations, competition, history, etc), and discusses possible mitigations. It is a huge mischaracterization to suggest that this is a hit piece about "USB cords." That was one of half a dozen different electrical products they discussed, and only the jumping off point into a much larger discussion.

argb 6y ago

But the USB charger manufacturers could do better by shutting down the output should arcing/sparking be detected. We already have this for 120V AC supplies, and it should be doable for 5V DC. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arc-fault_circuit_interrupter https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arc-fault_circuit_interrupter

smileypete 6y ago
>But the USB charger manufacturers could do better by shutting down the output should arcing/sparking be detected. A poor connection at a plug can (or will?) cause a hot spot without arcing, and for a long thin cable a short may not even trigger the overcurrent protection of a high power charger. Best to buy a cable with a decent 'AWG rating' eg 24AWG, either from a reputable brand like Tronsmart, or a specialist supplier, in the UK there's Kenable: https://www.kenable.co.uk/en/ https://www.kenable.co.uk/en/