Waterproof connectors are used as waterproof quick connectors for connecting wires and cables in new optoelectronic technology products such as LED and guardrail tubes. They are mainly used for outdoor waterproofing and moisture-proof. Waterproof connectors can be applied to environments with water, and under certain water pressure, they can ensure the normal use of internal mechanical and electrical properties of the connectors to ensure safe electricity use for equipment interconnection.
In industrial environments, such as LED lighting fixtures, urban outdoor lighting engineering, lighthouses, cruise ships, aviation, industrial equipment, cables, sprinkler trucks, etc., waterproof connectors are required. Due to strict application requirements in the military field, waterproof connectors are widely used, such as those for submarines and submarine launched missiles.
Firstly, compliance with relevant electrical, installation, connection, insulation, protection and other technical standards is the basis for selection.
Secondly, we should not only focus on standards, but also go beyond them and pay attention to the situations encountered in practical applications.
Because some of the standards used in the design and production of connectors in the LED industry are actually borrowed from other industries, and the industry has a relatively short application time, many terms do not meet and meet the rapidly changing requirements of the LED industry. For example, the assessment of aging resistant materials is only stated to be suitable for outdoor engineering use. However, how to define it depends on whether it is based on UL yellow cards or testing. Whether the service life of outdoor engineering is based on the commercial contract of the project manufacturer or a widely recognized "technical service life" directly affects the selection and design of product materials, and is also the reason for the variety of LED connector materials.
In addition, the requirements of certain standard clauses are relatively low, which means that the quality threshold is very low, resulting in various home workshops being able to produce at will. Some testing standards are tested in "standard static environments", and often after engineering accidents, retesting connectors reveals that they are still qualified according to the standards. Why? Because laboratory tests have chosen standard clauses and environments, and the application site environment varies greatly. For example, the cable fixing head at the end of the connector has requirements for cable gripping force and torque resistance. The standard only states that the tensile strength reaches 60N, and the torque resistance value is greater than 0.3N. m, but in actual use, connectors may have artificial strong pulling and twisting, so the actual data may be far apart. The standard value, and this force is maintained between two connectors for a long time. After long-term outdoor use, it eventually causes the connector to be waterproof or have poor contact, resulting in a circuit breaker.
Thirdly, check the production quality control system of the connector manufacturer.
It is easy for a connector company to provide testing for a pair of connectors, and you can also get good test scores. However, when you arrive at the factory, you will find that there are no inspection standards for raw materials, no necessary testing procedures for finished products, and no procedures for repairing and testing unqualified products, all of which affect the overall quality of the product. In other words, only 100% of the products are qualified, and not 1000% or 10000% of the products are qualified. In the long run, a good quality system control is even the most important reference factor for lamp manufacturers to choose connector manufacturers, otherwise it will be "losing out on small things". Overall, enterprises with larger production scales and technical testing equipment have a higher level of product quality control and stability.
Fourthly, looking at the principle of structural design, structural design is very important.
If the principles of waterproofing, connection, and other designs are more advanced, they are already superior. If outdated structural principles are chosen for design, even if the quality control in the production process is good, they are often not as reliable as the innovative generation of products in terms of reliability and long-term outdoor weather resistance.
Fifth, check the tolerance dimension control accuracy of the assembly parts.
Because connectors often involve connections, waterproofing, and male female contact fit, high precision requirements are required for size. High end and low-end connectors may have similar appearance and structure at first glance, but if you spend some time carefully measuring the fit size of multiple pairs of connectors with calipers, you will find that the fit size of poor quality connectors varies greatly, which means that the stability of the connection is not guaranteed, and the consistency of batch products is poor.
Various parameters of waterproof connectors
Material
Housing: Nylon Nylon
Connector: Copper Brass
Rated power: 24A 450VAC
Protection level IP code: IP68
Wiring core: 2P/3P/4P/5P
Working temperature: T105
Rated connecting capacity: 0.5~4.0mm2
Applicable cable diameter (Rubber): 4-8mm 6-11mm 10-14mm
Waterproof testing: 20M 150 hours
Certification: KEMA, ENEC, CE, CB, SAA, ROH
