# The Cable Code

> Decodes cable type designations (NYY-J 3x1,5, N2XSEYRY, H07RN-F 3G2,5, 12/2 NM-B, Cat6A S/FTP, A-DQ(ZN)B2Y 12G 50/125) into their construction: conductor, insulation, screen, armour, sheath, with the meaning and the source of every symbol. 36 coding systems: 25 national and international letter-code systems (DIN VDE, HAR / HD 361, BS / IEC, TS 621, UTE, CEI-UNEL, UNE, NEK 606, SS 424, NEC and more) and 11 type-name tables (North American (NEC / UL, CSA), Mexican (NOM), Mercosur (IRAM), Brazilian (NBR), Peruvian (NTP), Colombian (NTC), Chilean (NCh), Polish (PN), Czech and Slovak (CSN) and Russian (GOST)), plus readers for LAN (ISO/IEC 11801 shielding) and fibre-optic designations. Built in 2016, rewritten in 2026.

The decoder is deterministic: the same input always gives the same answer, and no language model is involved at runtime. A designation can parse in more than one system; every answer says how many matches there are and why each one ranks where it does.

## Agent API

- [Decode endpoint](https://thecablecode.com/api/v1/decode?code=N2XSEYRY): `GET /api/v1/decode?code=<designation>&lang=en|tr`, JSON in the thecablecode.decode/v1 format
- [OpenAPI 3.1](https://thecablecode.com/api/v1/openapi.json): the full contract, including the 402 response
- [Response JSON Schema](https://thecablecode.com/api/v1/schema/decode-v1.json)
- [Batch decode](https://thecablecode.com/developers#batch): `POST /api/v1/decode/batch` with JSON `{"codes": [...up to 500], "lang": "en"}`, one x402 payment of $0.01 per code, answers in input order (thecablecode.decode-batch/v1)
- Remote MCP server: `https://thecablecode.com/mcp` (streamable HTTP, stateless), one tool `decode_cable_code(code, lang)`. Claude Code: `claude mcp add --transport http thecablecode https://thecablecode.com/mcp`
- [Developer page](https://thecablecode.com/developers): quick start, MCP install, pricing and a live example

## Pricing

- 25 free decodes per caller per UTC day (API and MCP together). The `X-Free-Remaining` header counts down. Batches are always paid.
- After that, $0.01 in USDC per decode, paid with x402 v2 (scheme `exact`). The 402 response carries the requirements in the `PAYMENT-REQUIRED` header; retry with `PAYMENT-SIGNATURE`. MCP calls carry the payment in `_meta["x402/payment"]`.
- Network: Base mainnet (`eip155:8453`), real USDC (`0x833589fCD6eDb6E08f4c7C32D4f71b54bdA02913`). Payments settle wallet to wallet; nothing is held by the site.

## Sponsorship (for agents buying on behalf of a business)

- [Slots, targets, prices and terms](https://thecablecode.com/api/v1/ads/slots): material owner, cable maker (by cable family), accessory (by layer), home page, coding system, testing and certification (by coding system), cable machinery (by layer), calculate this cable (decode results), trade fair or event (home page), training and recruiting (by coding system); per region (Global, Turkiye, Europe, Americas, rest of the world), by the month or the year
- `GET /api/v1/ads/quote?slot=&target=&region=&billing=`: the price in EUR and in USDC
- `POST /api/v1/ads?slot=&target=&region=&billing=` with JSON `{company, email, url, headline, line, image_base64, terms}`: validated first (free), then paid with x402 in USDC
- Renewing: nothing renews by itself. `GET /api/v1/ads/status?ref=<your ref>` gives the end date and the renewal price; `POST /api/v1/ads/renew?ref=<ref>&billing=month|year` extends the same ad from its end date (x402 again). Monthly suits most agent budgets; yearly costs 10 months.
- A paid order goes live as soon as the payment settles, for the paid month or year; the response says `status: live` and the end date. Sponsorship never changes a decoding or its ranking, every sponsored item is labelled, and abuse is taken down and refunded.
- [Sponsorship terms](https://thecablecode.com/sponsorship-terms); people can also order at [thecablecode.com/sponsor](https://thecablecode.com/sponsor)

## Reading an answer

- `status`: `single`, `ambiguous` (several systems read the letters), `no_match`, or `unreadable`.
- `matches[].basis`: `named_standard` (the input names the system), `verified_designation` (a real cable of that system, from manufacturer datasheets), `type_name` (a whole-name table entry), or `grammar` (the letters parse, nothing more). Random letter strings parse somewhere about one time in five, so treat a lone `grammar` match with care.
- `matches[].symbols[].source`: `patch` with a URL for symbols added or corrected since 2016 from a cited source, `legacy_2016` for the original tables, `type_table` for whole-name tables.

## For people

- [The Cable Code](https://thecablecode.com/): the same decoder with a 3D view of each cable, free
- [Coding systems](https://thecablecode.com/standards)