What kind of connector can handle harsh environments?

The wide application of connectors has brought many benefits such as economy, flexibility, and scalability to electronic systems. At the same time, as an intermediary for signal and power connections between different components, the reliability of connectors is particularly important, especially for those facing harsh environmental applications such as extreme temperatures, shocks and vibrations, liquid and dust intrusion, chemical contamination, etc., the reliability challenges of interconnections are even more severe. Harsh environment connectors are an effective solution to this challenge.

Harsh environment connectors can be understood as improvements based on standard connectors in order to meet the requirements of special application environments. These special application environmental requirements usually include: durability, compliance with safety specifications such as fire protection, ability to withstand contamination and invasion by corrosive substances such as water, dust, or chemicals, resistance to mechanical shocks and vibrations, ability to provide more stable mechanical connections Adapt to extreme temperature ranges, and impact from temperature changes Can avoid or reduce EMI interference in complex electromagnetic environments Compatible with special requirements in product manufacturing (such as welding) and application processes (such as sterilization)

1. What are the selection elements of connectors in harsh environments? ：

To meet the above requirements, the optimization of connectors must be all-round and leave no dead ends. Therefore, for end users, the selection of connectors in harsh environments also requires comprehensive consideration from many aspects. # Materials In order to adapt to the requirements of special environments, the material selection of connectors in harsh environments from the inside and outside will be more sophisticated. For example, the shell material of the connector will be die-cast metal shell to provide strong and stable protection against the influence of external environment such as impact and vibration; The insulation layer between the connector housing and the contacts generally needs to be made of materials with higher fire rating (such as UL940V-0); Gold plating is also used on the mating area of the phosphor bronze contacts inside the connector to ensure more reliable electrical connection performance. # Sealing For connectors in harsh environments, sealing is a very important indicator. The definition of sealing performance usually follows the IP (Ingress Protection) rating specified in the IEC 60529 standard. In order to meet such sealing requirements, the connector needs to adopt internal and external sealing structures made of special flexible silicone rubber. # EMI Protection In addition to water and dust, harsh environment connectors may also be invaded by electromagnetic interference (EMI) radiation, interfering with device functions, or emitting electromagnetic waves outward to cause interference to other devices. At this time, the metal housing and conductive gasket can provide additional electromagnetic interference resistance to the connector, so this will also be an option in harsh environment sensor products. # Special mechanical structure In order to provide a more reliable and stable connection, the harsh environment connector will also add a special locking or screw locking mechanism to the housing to resist possible mechanical shocks and vibrations. Some connectors will also be optimized in the design of internal contact structure to provide multiple guarantees. # Meet space requirements The above series of measures are mostly based on additions to standard connectors, but this often increases the overall dimensions of connectors. In practical applications, connectors in harsh environments will also be strictly constrained in space. On the one hand, the shape of the connector itself in harsh environments should be as compact as possible; On the other hand, products should also fully consider the actual scenarios of interconnection with the system, and provide diversified product configuration options (such as providing flexible options that can seal the connector into the panel or place it in front or behind the housing) to ensure the flexibility of design engineers in the overall design. In order to objectively evaluate the results of optimized design, connectors in harsh environments will follow industry standards for reliability testing, among which the EIA-364 series reliability test standards for electronic connectors and sockets are more representative (as shown in Table 1). In addition, some connector manufacturers will conduct some additional tests on their products to demonstrate the special "skills" of their connector products and meet the requirements of special applications.

Part of EIA-364 test standards have passed comprehensive optimization and strict reliability testing, so such a product can be regarded as a qualified connector for harsh environments. Powerful connector manufacturers usually "upgrade" standard connector products in a planned way according to market needs to form a complete series of harsh environment connectors.

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