Electrical Connectors Specifications

The maximum current or maximum voltage defined by an approval organization may differ from the supplier's maximums. In many cases, the product can be used safely at an unapproved level. Check with the supplier for specific usage details.



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	Audio / Video Connector		Audio and video connectors are used in audio, microphone, video and other related systems.
	Automotive Connector		Connectors mainly used by the automotive industry.
	Board Mount Connector		Board mounted connectors or circuit board connectors are connectors that can be used as components embedded on a computer board.
	Board-to-Board Connector		Board-to-board connectors are used to connect printed circuit boards (PCB). Each terminal connects to a PCB.
	Card Edge Connector		Edge card connectors are edge-on PCB connectors for single or double-sided PCBs. Examples include PCI and ISA bus connectors. The edge card, the portion of the PCB used to provide external electrical connection, is normally gold plated.
	Centronics Connector		Centronics connectors are standard parallel interface devices for connecting printers and other peripherals such as portable disc drives, tape backup drives and CD-ROM players to computers. Centronics connectors, which are also known as blade connectors, are the standard connector for the Hewlett-Packard interface bus (HPIB). They are generally available in 50 and 68 pin varieties.
	Circular / Cylindrical Connector		Circular connectors and cylindrical connectors are multi-pin connectors used primarily for external interfacing. In general, they are used in military applications and comply with military specifications. Their design takes into account the need to protect the connection from environmental factors, which allows them to be used in military and aerospace applications.
	Coaxial Connector		Coaxial cables are composed of an insulated central conducting wire wrapped in another cylindrical conductor (the shield). The cable is usually wrapped in another insulating layer and an outer protective layer. Coaxial cables have the capacity to carry vast quantities of information. They are typically used in high-speed data and CATV applications.
	DIN Connector		DIN connectors are high-frequency, multi-pin, electrical connectors that meet standards established by Deutsches Institut für Normung (DIN), a German national organization for standardization. The ends of DIN connectors are round, notched and protected by a metal skirt to ensure that pins line up correctly. Both male and female DIN connectors are available. Male connectors plug into receptacles, jacks and outlets and contain three to fourteen pins ranging in size from approximately 5/8 in to just under 1 in diameter. Female connectors contain sockets for pins from other devices. The number of pins or sockets in a DIN connector corresponds to the number of wires in the coaxial cable. Often, DIN cables are referred to numerically so that, for example, a four-wire DIN cable is called a “DIN 4”.
	D-Sub		D-subminiature (D-sub) connectors have a mating face that is shaped like the letter D. This shape provides polarization since D-shaped male and female connectors fit together in only one way.
	Fibre Channel Connector		Connector used in Fibre Channel systems. Fibre Channel technology uses optical fibers to connect computers and peripheral devices that require high bandwidth. It functions via a serial data transfer architecture that is compatible with SCSI. The most prominent Fibre Channel standard is Arbitrated Loop (FC-AL), which can support full-duplex data transfer rates of 100 MBps.
	IEEE 1394FireWire® (IEEE 1394)		IEEE 1394, or FireWire®, is an interface standard adopted by IEEE for fast digital data transfers such as streaming video. IEEE 1394 connectors are used to transmit and receive data among FireWire devices, and are designed to replace external high-speed peripheral connections to personal computers, including hard disks, CD-ROMs, DVDs, graphics cards, high-speed scanners, direct video and monitors. Tiny, robust FireWire connectors will also become important parts of home entertainment, communication and appliance networks. FireWire is a registered trademark of Apple Computer Inc.
	Gender Changer		Gender changers are connectors that make it possible to change the end of a cable into another type. Simply put, they are double-ended connectors that enable converting a male connector into a female connector, and vice versa.
	Hospital Grade / Medical		Conforms to rigorous safety standards associated with official hospital grade certification; testing includes prevention of inadvertent plug disengagement from outlet and increased shock and impact ratings.
	Micro Connector and Nano Connector		Microconnectors and nanoconnectors exhibit contacts with a pitch of 0.05 in. (micro) and 0.025 in. (nano), respectively.
	Military Connector		Military connectors (MIL-SPEC) are shell-type connectors built in accordance with military specifications. Their design protects the connection from environmental factors, allowing them to be used in military and aerospace applications.
	Modular Connector and RJ Connector		Modular connectors and registered jack (RJ) connectors are similar, yet distinct types of connectors. Modular connectors and RJ connectors are plug-in units used in many networking and telecommunications applications. In general equipment is said to be modular when they consist of plug-in units that can be added together to make the system larger or to improve its capabilities. Registered Jack (RJ) connectors are one type of modular connectors. RJ is a telephone and data jack standard and application registered with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The names of devices such as RJ-11 and RJ-45 are widely misused in the telecommunications industry. A more precise way to identify a jack is to specify the number of positions (width of opening) and the number of conductors. Examples include eight-position, eight-conductor or six-position, four-conductor. Some jacks have protective capabilities such as integrated filters to protect against unwanted signals or some type of magnetics to provide filtering signal conditioning, and isolation.
	PC Card Connector		PC cards are credit card-sizes peripherals that add memory, mass storage and I/O capabilities to computers in a rugged, compact form factor. Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) is a non-profit trade association and standards body that promotes PC card technology, miniature cards and SmartMedia® cards by defining technical standards. In the past, PC cards were known as PCMCIA cards. Now, the industry refers to products based on this technology as PC cards, PC card hosts and PC Card Software. Only the association itself is referred to as the PCMCIA. SmartMedia is a registered trademark of Toshiba Corporation.
	Phone Jack / Plug		Phone jacks (female) and phone plugs (male) are connectors used for telephone installations. They are also known as modular jacks and modular plugs. Modular refers to a phone construction format introduced by AT&T in the 1970s that allowed installers to assemble phones at customer locations by selecting specific components that plugged together, instead of needing hard wiring.
	Rectangular Connectors, Heavy Duty		Heavy-duty rectangular connectors are designed to accommodate large electrical loads and direct signals under a multitude of operating conditions.
	RF and Microwave Connector		Connectors are used in RF and microwave applications.
	USB Connector		Universal serial bus (USB) connectors support USB standard ports. USB is an external bus standard that supports data transfer rates of 12 Mbps in version 1.1 and 480 Mbps in version 2.0. A single USB port can be used to connect up to 127 peripheral devices, such as mice, modems and keyboards. USB also supports both plug-and-play and hot plugging.
	Wire-to-Board Connector		Wire-to-board connectors are used to interconnect printed circuit boards (PCBs) by using connectors attached to wires.
	Wire-to-Wire Connector		Wire-to-wire connectors are used to connect two wire-terminated connectors.
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	Coupling / Adapter		The device is a coupling or adapter. A coupling connects to another connector, or connects to a panel-mounted base. An adapter can connect two cables with different-style connectors.
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	Gender
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	Male / Plug		Male connectors or plugs are often referred to as header or free connectors. In coaxial RF connectors, the plug is normally the movable portion and is usually attached to a cable or removable sub-assembly. In shell-type, multiple-contact connectors, the plug usually contains the socket contacts and is mounted on the "hot" (rack) side of the system. Plugs mate with receptacles, jacks, outlets, etc.
	Female / Jack		Female connectors or jacks are connecting devices into which plugs are inserted to make circuit connections.
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	Geometry
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	Straight		The connector does not bend.
	Right Angle		The connector is bent at a right angle.
	Other		Other unlisted geometry.
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	Contact Size (AWG)		An electrical contact is the termination of an electrical wire in the connector's pin or socket. Contact size, also referred to as termination size, is the maximum diameter wire the connector can accommodate. Wire size is measured according to the American Wire Gauge (AWG) standard. In North America, wire area is measured by the American Wire Gauge (AWG) to indicate conductor size. The AWG is used to measure certain conductors including copper. The higher the AWG number the thinner the wire. This is because AWG stems from a measurement that represented the number of times the copper wire was run through a wire machine that reduced the diameter of the wire. Thus 24-gauge wire went through the machine 6 more times than 18-gauge wire.
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	Voltage Rating		Voltage rating is the maximum operating voltage.
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	Current Rating		Current rating is the maximum, recommended, continuous flow of electrical current.
	Search Logic:		User may specify either, both, or neither of the "At Least" and "No More Than" values. Products returned as matches will meet all specified criteria.

Electrical Connectors Specifications

Connector Type:

Coupling / Adapter?

Gender:

Geometry:

Contact Size (AWG):

Voltage Rating:

Current Rating:

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