Pre-leading contacts protect sensitive electronics in new HARTING har-flex variant

Angled male versions of HARTING’s miniaturized har-flex SMT connectors now can be ordered with pre-leading contacts, an option for manufacturers to protect sensitive electronics from damage during operational plugging and unplugging. This special-order variant addresses a particular risk associated with modifying modular electronic systems. End users often enhance such systems by adding function modules or replacing existing ones. Connectors provide a secure electrical connection between the main and smaller module boards. Sensitive electronics can be damaged if the end user, in adding or changing modules, neglects to first switch off the system and then plugs it in under load.

Device manufacturers can offer protection against such accidental damage by employing har -flex angled male connectors with pre-leading contacts. These connectors contain contacts of two different lengths. The pre-leading contacts are 0.3 mm longer in the mating face and ensure that functions like the grounding contact are the first to connect during insertion and the last to disconnect during unplugging. Thanks to flexible contact loading, these connectors also can be configured with lagging contacts that lose electrical contact before the other contacts when the board is being disconnected. A system with the appropriate logic can detect imminent contact disconnection and execute certain functions, like data backup.

har-flex connectors with pre-leading contacts are available in custom contact configurations. Like the entire HARTING har -flex series of 1.27-mm SMT connectors, they can be configured with pin points of 6-100 for maximum in-box design flexibility.

HARTING North America
www.harting.com