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he industrial connector space
has in the past sometimes
been defined more by what it isn’t
– communications, computing,
consumer,
aero/space/defence,
transportation etc - rather than what
it is. However, this is changing, for
a couple of reasons: firstly certain
areas such as robotics and industrial
automation with the advent of the
Smart Factory (sometimes called
Industry 4.0) are becoming ‘bigger
news’; and second because in some
segments, - oil and gas, industrial
vehicles, even medical which is
sometimes included under ‘industrial’
- the increasing use of electronics
systems has been a driver in connector
development.
Industrial applications are often also
termed ‘hi-rel’ - that is, any activity
where the connector cannot fail -
and usually involves applications in
environments that are subject to
harsh operating conditions, usually
resulting from shock, vibration and
temperature variation. Industrial
sectors which require very high
performance connectors include:
Robotics
Industrial & Factory Automation
(Smart Factory/Industry 4.0)
Industrial vehicles (off-road)
Oil & Gas
Marine & Undersea
Scientific Equipment
Test & Measurement
Metering
There is significant growth in all the
above sub-sectors. This is due to
a number of factors including the
increased use of electronic systems
that are being used for monitoring
and control, and also the emergence
of sophisticated robotics and metering
systems. Quite simple, electronic
systems are all-pervasive and almost
every piece of equipment used today
relies on them. This in turn means
that the components used must be
rugged and reliable.
Influencing factors
Connectors used in the industrial
market share many similar drivers
with other markets – size, weight,
cost are always important – but
industrial applications also tend to
put more stress on all types electronic
components that are used, and this
is especially true of connectors.
This is because as well as having an
electrical function (carrying the power
or signal) they also often make a
physical connection. Often, too, they
must be capable of being mated and
unmated many times. This is why, for
so long, some industrial users refused
to specify surface mount connectors.
Even today, hi-rel connector maker
Harwin offers through hole and
surface mount variations of its
Datamate, Gecko and M300 Hi-Rel
connector families, and also includes
different locking mechanisms for extra
security.
Size; Weight; Signal
Density
Looking more closely at the evolving
connector requirement we can identify
three common factors: size, weight
T
Connector selection crucial for high
performance industrial applications
Harwin
42 l New-Tech Magazine Europe