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Connectorization vs Hardwiring

Why Some Manufacturers Choose Hardwiring

When connecting an application, there are two methods: hardwiring/lugging and connectorization.

Hardwiring/lugging is defined by its permanence. The individual wires within a cable are individually connected directly to a terminal block or PCB. The intention is that the cable will never be disconnected from the application. This is because of the difficulty of uninstalling individual wires and then reinstalling them correctly.

Connectorization adds a quick way to connect and disconnect between the two points. Connectorization is so common in the consumer electronics space that it is almost invisible.

Let’s compare these two methods through applications used in everyday life: light switch panels (hardwiring) and coffee makers (connectorization).

A light switch panel is hardwired into your house, i.e. wires are connected directly to the back of the panel. If you’ve never changed a light switch panel out in your home, you can search online for a 16-step wikiHow tutorial. This tutorial includes steps such as “label the wires so you do not mix them up.” You need a screwdriver and wire cutters. Due to the complexity and time required, many homeowners opt to schedule an expensive electrician to come to their house rather than deal directly with rewiring their light switch.

Now let’s compare plugging in a coffeemaker. The plug on the end of the cable plugs into a wall out. One second and it’s ready to go. It’s so easy and intuitive that there is no need for a wikiHow tutorial. This is because connectorizing is so easy and intuitive, and therefore invisible.

The same concepts discussed above can be applied to industrial applications.

Hardwiring/lugging is inconvenient. It is inconvenient for anyone who needs to install, troubleshoot, test, or maintain an application. However, for the manufacturer who designs the application or installs it once, hardwiring/lugging is a bit less expensive. The ability to connect/disconnect via a connector adds an initial labor step and a bit of material. Manufacturers who are looking to shave as much as possible off the cost to produce a product may choose to hardwire/lug.

The problem is that for anyone who uses that product, or even for the manufacturer when they install it on-site, the consequences of hardwiring have an additional, real and volatile cost. And the one who pays that price tends to be the end user. First, the manufacturer has an electrician disconnect each wire, and then when it arrives at the end user, another electrician must come in to painstakingly connect each wire again. It

is also so easy to miswire, which results in expensive troubleshooting costs.

Remember the light switch example above? In the tutorial, it states the importance of labeling the wires. In the case of a light switch, there are only three wires. Now imagine a machine with tens or hundreds of wires. If anything is miswired, troubleshooting must occur, and the end user eats the cost.

Hardwiring is frustrating. It is outdated.

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Today Connectors Are King

Industrial Connector Case Studies

In the past years there has been a monumental shift away from hardwiring toward connectorization. As machines and devices become more complex and as our world demands better efficiency and less downtime, there is no room left for the inconvenience of hardwiring.

Connectorization is time and cost-efficient during all aspects of an application’s life cycle from installation to maintenance and even relocation. Each of these activities is a time where a hardwired solution would be impractical, require a skilled electrician, and open up a company to unplanned, unpredictable troubleshooting costs. Connectorization, in contrast, does not require on-site skilled labor and eliminates unplanned troubleshooting.

Hardwired components have to be assembled on-site, which requires specialist electrical contractors and a lengthy testing process to ensure the wiring has been connected correctly. Plug & Play connectors can be easily linked to each other and machinery, resulting in a simple, flexible and versatile installation experience.

Paper Conveyors Automated Precision Welding Machines Conveyor Systems Acoustic Microscopes

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A manufacturer of paper conveyors for commercial printing presses had been hardwiring over 200 wires to the control box of each unit prior to final testing. This process could take up to four work days per unit.

A builder of large, automated, precision-welding machines was hardwiring over 300 contacts per unit. It took a week to build and test one, then several days to dismantle it and another week to re-assemble it at the customer’s location.

A producer of conveyor systems needed a solution that was suitable for the food and beverage sector. They needed a solution where installation of the conveyor was quick and downtime was minimized. At the same time, the solution needed to be an IP69K-compliant product that could withstand harsh conditions like high-pressure steam cleaning during wash-downs.

The maker of acoustic microscopes for analyzing the integrity of semi-conductors was planning a new model requiring 120 leads of varying voltages. The goal was a machine with a small footprint, but engineers ran out of interior space for such an elaborate power distribution.

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Switching to six modular connector assemblies in a plug-and-play solution reduced that by as much as 2½ days. The connectors cost $1,400 per unit, but the savings of $3,500 in labor and time enabled them to increase their production rate and reduce overhead.

Switching to pluggable connectors cut wiring time dramatically, saving extensively on labor cost. Now, each step that used to take a full week is performed in less than a day.

Adopting a connector-based assembly in place of hardwiring allowed them to reduce install time and maintenance downtime and increase the throughput of the conveyor by 15%, with cost savings going directly to their bottom line. The connector was IP69K rated making it compliant for food and beverage applications.

By switching to two heavy-duty connectors with 60 pins each, they were able to streamline interior wiring, achieving the desired footprint, capturing cost savings, eliminating internal wiring bundles and requiring less metal paneling.

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All connectors are made up of a mated pair (commonly referred to as the plug and receptacle). Each half is equipped with pin (male) and socket (female) contacts. Contacts are made of a conductive metal. The contacts are housed in a dielectric insulator (typically called an insert). The insert with contacts is then housed in a protective enclosure (hood and housing) that protects the electrical components and inserts from environmental damage and corrosion.

All industrial connectors have these features and can be generally categorized into two basic shapes: rectangular and circular. The shape of the connector plays a massive role in its usability.

History of Circular and Rectangular Connectors

Small pin count favors circular, while rectangular works better for large pin counts

Circular connectors were initially developed in the 1930s and were adopted by the U.S. Department of Defense for use in the extremely harsh aeronautical and tactical service applications. These connectors, along with their evolutionary derivatives, are commonly called “Military Standard,” “Mil-STD,” “MIL-SPEC” or “MS” connectors.

Today, they are used in a wide variety of industrial applications beyond the military. A traditional circular connector is mated by threading on the plug and receptacle that hold the connector in place. Rectangular industrial connectors were invented by Wilhelm Harting in 1956 as a direct response to circular MIL-SPEC connectors.

Rectangular connectors offer the same reliability in an extremely harsh environment. They can be installed close together and are typically locked with levers (although internal locking mechanisms are possible).

The number of pins plays a big role in the size of the connector. When the pin count in a specific connection point is low (3-5), a circular connector tends to be smaller. As the pin count grows, so does the radius of the connector, making it larger in all directions.

In contrast, a low pin count rectangular connector tends to be larger than a circular one with the same pin count. However, once more than five pins are needed, a rectangular connector is smaller because the shape can be expanded in one direction.

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If panel density is important, rectangular connectors tend to win

Circular is ideal for single-use low-power connection points, while rectangular connectors are perfect for high-power or multi-use connection

Specific environments demand specific shapes

The Future of Connectivity: The Right Shape for the Right Application

Panel density refers to how close connection points need to be to one another. If an application requires many connections in a small area, connectors that offer high panel density are required. Determining how many connectors can fit in a specific area means looking at two things: the size of the connector and the space needed around the connector for locking.

While a circular connector may be smaller, typically additional space is required for a hand to twist it into space. Rectangular connectors with double latches can be placed next to one another on the panel making more connections in a specific place possible.

For some applications, each connection point needs to be separate. This could be because the connection points perform a single low-power function and are connected to different periphery devices. In this case, an M8, M12 or M23 circular connector does the job.

When higher power is needed or if an engineer wants to combine power, signal or data in one connection point, rectangular wins out. Modular rectangular connectors enable the combination of power, signal and data into one connector using off-the-shelf modules.

Hybrid circular connectors do exist, but they tend to be custom products with long lead times.

Connector shape can play an unexpected role when considering the environment that the connector will be in. One of the clearest examples is in washdown environments in the food and beverage industry.

It is common knowledge that machines in food and beverage processing must have components that are suitable for wash-down with high-pressure hoses (IP69K rating). However, it must be impossible for food to get stuck in crevices. Angles are a no-no in connectors for food and beverage, so a circular connector is required.

Finding the right connector for an application does not have to be a challenge. If you are starting a project or need help finding a connector, HARTING’s technical support team is here to help: techsupportus@harting.com

HARTING’s portfolio of rectangular and circular connectors means whatever the application, there is a solution from the world leader in industrial connectivity.

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Miniaturization at the Connector LevelThe modern world is driven by data. Everyone carries the internet in their pocket, connected, even wirelessly, to data. Many devices are connected and communicate with other devices or the internet. In the connectivity industry, data is being used to connect machines to produce data that can be used to create powerful insights that will drive smarter, faster and better business decisions. In general, the trend is to do more, in the same or smaller footprint. For example, cell phones have more functionality but are getting slimmer. This is only possible because of smart design and components that can do more with less space.

In Industrial Connectivity, Miniaturization can Mean Many Things

■ Smaller versions of standard connectors are available because the standard footprint is no longer ideal.

■ Connectors that allow the combination of multiple connection types into one connector.

■ Component shapes that efficiently utilize panel or device space.

■ Features that are more integrated, such as internal locking mechanisms that make connectors more space-efficient.

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Modularization Makes Flexibility EasyModularization refers to flexibility, the ability of an object to change or be modified quickly and easily. In manufacturing modular production floors, production floors that change completely depending on a specific job, are common. Modular robots that are moved daily or hourly now make up a significant workforce on the production line.

The building blocks of modularization is easy customization. A robot moving for a specific job, a manufacturing floor changing daily or weekly depending on the job, and even the ability to quickly customize components within standard lead times are expected within the idea of modularization.

In all of these instances, connectors are a key component that enables modularization. Hardwiring would make modular robots or production floors nearly impossible, very impractical and extremely expensive. Even at the component level, easily customizable, hybrid connectors that use standard parts are playing a key role in enabling modularization.

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Smart Connectivity Explained

Connectors are the door between the outside and the inside of an application, such as a machine. Historically, as long as a connector is mated, the door is open and the media - power, signal, data, air - passes through. In the past, the connector was not capable of doing anything with media, so whatever entered the connector was passed, as is, from point A to point B. This is changing as connectors can now take action on the media as it passes through. This is called Smart Connectivity.

Two key questions must be explored about Smart Connectivity.

■ First, why are these technologies necessary for modern applications?

■ Secondly, why is the connector the ideal place to integrate these technologies?

Smart Connectors Prevent DowntimeIndustrial devices - machines, turbines, trains, etc. are what the modern world is built on. As soon as they are turned on, they are expected to run. However, these applications are complex, and small issues can cause a massive shutdown. Monitoring items such as energy levels and preventing energy spikes ensure that the system will continue to run in non-ideal circumstances.

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Smart Connectors Improve Operational Efficiency and Reliability

Operational efficiency and reliability is key to success in the modern day. By being able to “take action” on data as it enters, it becomes possible for the application to react in the most efficient manner.

Modern applications rely on functioning and accurate components. Smart connectors can provide insight into the health of the application to prevent unplanned downtime. In addition, they can improve the performance of an application.

For example, the surge protection module ensures proper readings from sensors in applications such as wind turbines and industrial HVAC systems. Preventing a misreading caused by voltage spikes is critical to ensure applications are running at peak performance. Another example is the energy measurement module that provides insight into machine health and usage, allowing predictive maintenance models to be built.

The Connector is The Most Secure Location for IntegrationWhen adding these technologies, there are a couple of potential locations to consider; however, the best place is the connector.

Think of the application as the inside of a house. People do not stop an intruder after they have entered their house and get near their valuables. They stop the intruder at the door. The concept is the same with an industrial device. While it is possible to stop a large voltage spike with surge protection technology on the board of the PLC, it is significantly more difficult and riskier.

In addition, industrial connectors offer flexibility in the levels of protection they provide. Adding a smart module to a connector allows the smart module to have the same environmental rating as the connector hood - for instance, IP 65/7/8/9K.

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Adding to The Connector is Easy to Integrate

Han-Smart® allows easy implementation of these technologies, such as surge protection and energy measurement, into existing designs. Before Han-Smart®, a new design phase was necessary to add these technologies. Now the technologies can be added to the existing connector footprint already on the application.

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