Redel latching system suitable for medical market

Compared with the existing Redel system, the nose of the plug no longer has latching windows and is much stronger when using the same material and thickness.

It was decided that the possible inclusion of a rectangular insert would increase the contact density.

The use of a rectangular insert also provides a large, flat area on which to locate the inner latching groove, which would have otherwise been much tighter on a circular inner groove, helping to make the latching mechanism more robust.

As a result of having a rectangular insert, the number of contacts feasible increases to a maximum of 22 contacts of 0.5mm nominal size from 14 contacts of 0.5mm for the existing Redel connector.

Contact configurations that have been developed for this connector are four-, six-, eight-, 10-, 13-, 16-, 18- and 22-way, in solder and crimp options.

PPSU material is the standard material of construction for the XP Series as it gives improved sterilisation resistance in comparison with PSU, which is the standard material for the Redel P series.

The development of a completely new series has also provided an opportunity to build in improvements sought by customers.

The XP Series has three keys as standard, which assists mating and particularly blind-mating of the connector.

In addition there are four keyway options, two for standard gender (male pins for plugs and female sockets for receptacles) and two for reverse gender.

However, the connector has been designed so that the inserts are completely interchangeable between plug and socket housings, which means that customers have the flexibility to reverse the gender to suit their purposes.

The outer shell of the XP series is ergonomically shaped to assist with connector mating and unmating.

Additionally, the thumb-grip location provides a highly visible guide for polarisation.

The linear pin arrangement of the contacts within the insulator along with the assembly process all assist speed of assembly of cable harnesses and sub-assemblies.

The collet now clips onto the back of the insert assembly, which further assists assembly by holding it together while locating into the connector.

Nevertheless the XP Series does retain some standard features from the original Redel 1P.

A range of coloured nuts form part of the range to assist with connector identification in applications.

The XP series has the same panel cutout dimensions as for the 1P series, which will assist those customers that wish to upgrade their product without re-engineering housings.