What are the functions of color code inductors?
Manufacturers produce color-coded inductors that can color-code wires to identify their functions, voltage ratings, polarity, phase, or the circuit they are used in. The wire insulation can be securely colored, or additional trace stripes can be added for more combinations. Certain wiring color codes are set by national regulations, but typically, color codes are specific to manufacturers or industries.
Building wiring under the National Electrical Code of the United States and Canada is identified by color coding to indicate live and neutral conductors, grounding conductors, and phase identification. The United Kingdom and other regions use different color codes to identify building wiring or flexible cable wiring.
The main wiring on buildings and equipment was once typically red for hot, black for neutral, and green for ground, but this has changed due to the danger it poses to color-blind individuals who might confuse red and green; different countries have different conventions. Red and black are often used for the positive and negative terminals of batteries or other single-voltage DC wiring.
Thermocouple wires and extension leads are identified by the color code of the thermocouple type; exchanging thermocouple with an incompatible extension lead will compromise measurement accuracy.
Automotive wiring is color-coded, but the standards vary by manufacturer; there are different SAE and DIN standards.
Modern personal computer peripheral device cables and connectors are color-coded to simplify the connection of speakers, microphones, mice, keyboards, and other peripherals, typically following the PC99 scheme.
Standard conventions for wiring systems in industrial buildings are as follows: black jacket - AC voltage below 1,000 volts, blue jacket - DC or communication, orange jacket - medium voltage at 2.300 or 4.160 volts, red jacket - 13.800 volts or higher. Red jacket cables are also used for fire alarm wiring at relatively low voltages, but they look quite different.
Local area network cables can also have non-standard jacket colors, such as, to identify process control networks with office automation networks, or to identify redundant network connections, but these codes vary by organization and facility.
