Electrical connector insertion and withdrawal forces

Customised engineering example

Push-fit electrical connectors with hole or dimple detents (also known as 'spade terminals') must offer a firm but practical fit. Where vibration is a factor, they must especially not work free, but for maintenance, they must be separable without being damaged.

BS5057 and IEC61210 are two standards which cover the cycle testing of insertion and withdrawal forces of such connectors.

The male tab and the female connector must be held securely in alignment, without applying any extraneous forces to the connection. Mecmesin designed custom fixtures for this client to hold a matched pair of a male tab and its female connector, in such a way that allowed for rapid exchange of samples to minimise wasted time in the set-up. 

The Mecmesin tensile tester was pre-programmed to slowly and steadily insert and withdraw the tab. It then calculated and displayed the required results for the maximum and minimum forces during the first insertion/withdrawal and the sixth withdrawal.