Time and cost-saving series of capped IDC connectors

Kyocera AVX has added four- and five-position models to its 9176-700 Series capped insulation displacement contact (IDC) connectors for 18–24AWG wire, which are engineered to meet the demanding needs of automotive, industrial, transportation, lighting, and medical applications.

The series provides a user-friendly, low-profile surface-mount form factor with an integrated termination/retention cap that enables users to insert a wire into the contact easily – no stripping necessary – and press it down to deliver a robust and reliable gas-tight connection to the PCB. This swift and efficient process does not need any tools or solder, which decreases complexity and cost compared to solder and crimp processes. The consequent connections have been tested to varied shock, vibration, and temperature cycling levels.

The series is offered in through-wire and wire-stop variants for maximum flexibility. Through-wire models permit wires to be terminated at any point, while wire-stop models terminate the end of the wire and have a stop face feature to shield the wire end. These connectors are offered with 1-5 positions able to terminate 18AWG stranded wire or 20-24AWG solid or stranded wire and are rated to 10A per position depending on wire size. Single-contact series connectors are rated for 600VACRMS or the DC equivalent, and two- through five-connectors are rated for 300VACRMS or the DC equivalent. The series is also rated for operating temperatures extending from -40C to +125C and storage temperatures from -40C to +70C.

Ideal applications for the series comprise connecting discrete wires to a PCB, bringing power and signal to a PCB, and daisy chaining PCBs together to produce a continuous string in electronic devices, including LED lighting, oil and gas detonators, disposable surgical tools, medical diagnostics, patient monitors, and automotive and transportation lighting, fuel control valves and modules, and door handles.

“Our 9176 Series surface-mount IDC connectors have been providing design engineers working in challenging industries with attractive size and performance options for reliable, discrete wire-to-board connections since their market introduction in 2007,” said Perrin Hardee, North American product manager, KYOCERA AVX. “They have been tested to various levels of shock, vibration, and temperature cycling to prove their reliability and robustness and field-proven in hundreds of applications ranging from smart meters to simple sensor terminations. Expanding our 9176-700 Series with new four- and five-position models allows us to meet the needs of evolving markets and applications and – by virtue of its unique integrated termination/retention cap, which serves as a wire location and insertion aid – to provide design engineers with even more opportunities to simplify and reduce the cost of bringing power and signal to a PCB.”

The connectors have glass-filled high-temperature UL94 V-0 nylon insulators and high-strength phosphor bronze contacts with pure tin over nickel plating. They also share a contact and footprint pattern with the rest of the series for full backwards compatibility.

White insulators are standard, but the whole series is also offered with black insulators. Also, single-position contacts are provided with blue, red, yellow, orange, green, and brown insulators by special order.