Interconnection
Matching industrial power connectors to application requirements
By Rolf Horn, applications engineer at DigiKey P
owering industrial equipment, whether on the factory floor, at a construction site, or in a data centre, requires cable connectors designed to meet the specific needs of each installation, ensuring safe, reliable, and long-lasting connections. Specific installations may require resistance to water or industrial chemicals, as well as protection against dust or ultraviolet light. Connectors must withstand the mechanical stress of repeated connection and disconnection cycles, where contacts may be exposed to contamination. At the same time, they must ensure the safety of users and equipment.
For designers, the primary challenge is understanding the nuances of these requirements for each situation and finding a trusted connector source to help reliably address them.
This article provides an overview of the connectivity challenges designers can expect to encounter in industrial applications. It then introduces pin and sleeve industrial plugs and sockets from Amphenol Sine Systems, showing how they facilitate safe and reliable connections and disconnections of industrial equipment.
The power connector environment The environments in which power connectors are used can vary greatly, from cool and dry data centres to hot and humid factory floors, or even wet food processing plants. Connectors can be required to carry single-phase AC voltages, three-phase AC voltages in Wye or Delta configurations, or a range of AC and DC power. Connectors are also needed to carry power from wall- mounted power outlets to panel-mounted machine connectors (Figure 1). There may also be a need for inline plug and socket pairs to meet power configuration requirements, such as phase inversions or cable extensions.
Power connectors require anywhere from three to five conductors, or poles. For example, three-conductor connectors are
48 October 2025
Figure 1: The range of connector application configurations in an industrial environment includes inline, panel, and wall mount connectors. (Image source: Amphenol Sine Systems)
Figure 2: The IEC 60309-2 or UL/CSA “clock” diagrams indicate the location of the ground pin within the connector, which codifies the configuration of the connector and its voltage rating. (Image source: Amphenol Sine Systems)
necessary for single-phase AC power and ground. Four-conductor cables are needed for Delta-configured three-phase power, which includes the three-phase signals and a ground wire. Wye-configured three-phase power requires conductors for each phase, a neutral, and a ground, for a total of five. Conductor and connector sizes vary with the current they are rated to handle.
Components in Electronics
The connector type selected varies with its intended use. The power entry point generally requires a wall-mounted connector, while the powered device usually needs a panel-mounted connector. Of course, inline connectors join cables in between fixed terminations to allow insertion of extensions, phase inverters, or other mid-run connections.
Preventing misconnections Designers should also consider that most installations include multiple machines; this can result in a larger number of power cables and a higher possibility of misconnections. International standards, such as IEC 60309-2 and UL/CSA, specify the connector wire/pole layout based on the type of power being carried (Figure 2),
www.cieonline.co.uk
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