Connectors for Patient Monitoring Applications Product Roundup

By AJ Born | August 31, 2021

This week’s Product Roundup highlights connectors for medical applications and patient monitoring from leading suppliers.

Connectors for Patient Monitoring Applications

Allied Electronics & Automation supplies the Clincher connector family from Amphenol ICC. Clincher includes single-row pin and receptacle connectors designed for termination to flat flexible circuitry. Products are available for flat flexible cable (FFC), flexible printed circuit (FPC), and conductive ink circuitry (CIC). The connectors include features that optimize reliability at the termination and disconnect interfaces. The “Clinch” cable termination produces gas-tight, contamination-free connections to each conductor, making it suitable for patient monitoring applications. The receptacle connectors utilize FCI’s proven and highly reliable Mini PV contact design. Complementary shrouded PCB headers provide options for latching and proper connector alignment. Contacts are pre-loaded to connector housings, enabling mass termination to unprepared cable. The CLINCHER connector mass termination design accelerates cable assembly processes and reduces costs.

BizLink’s Thermistor Detector for patient monitoring is reusable and convenient to use. The coil cable is highly flexible and has a high-quality tactile coating. The Thermistor Detector features compact volume, tailor-made high life cycle performance, high cleanability, and is plug-and-play. BizLink is a reliable custom medical cable manufacturer with decades of experience developing advanced wires and cables for the medical equipment industry. During the development and approval stages, BizLink can accelerate time to market by delivering high-quality medical cables and wires on schedule.

I-PEX MINIDOCK Series connectors are optimized for use in rugged docking applications and ruggedized applications with low-insertion-force cable plug terminations, like the cable plug mating end in ultrasound probe assemblies. They have rugged die-cast bodies with generous lead-in, integrated guidance hardware, and optional sealing against moisture intrusion, and they support up to 20,000 mating cycles.

The REDEL SP connectors from LEMO are plastic push-pull connectors offering an ergonomic grip and a variety of colors enhancing usability. The latch sleeve is recessed into the connectors body, ensuring greater shock resistance. The outer shell in proprietary sulfone PPSU material (FDA approved) enables extensive sterilization cycles and high chemical resistance. The use of a rectangular insert conveniently provides a larger area for higher contact density. Contact configurations are available in solder, crimp, and print options. The complete connector can be easily assembled from spare parts (even the contact configuration), offering flexibility in stock-keeping. These circular plastic connectors are especially adapted for medical instrument devices, as well as applications in automotive and test & measurement.

The Smiths Interconnect HyperGrip is a circular plastic, user-configurable, color-coded connector with push-pull latching design that allows for one-hand disconnect. HyperGrip is designed to meet medical industry requirements such as finger-proofing to IEC60601 and flammability rated to UL94 V0. The HyperGrip series is compatible with most sterilization requirements.

The PL Series of plastic push-pull interconnects from ITT Cannon is a high-quality, versatile, and cost-effective solution for challenging medical applications and industrial applications where miniaturized, lightweight, and durable connectors are critical to operating performance. The PL Series is available in 2- to 14-way variants, with durability that exceeds 2,000 mating cycles. With six keying options and seven color codings, these connectors are an extremely versatile solution for a wide variety of disposable and reusable applications.

The ELC male cable connector from binder is a snap-in locking system with snap hooks. It is DEHP-free, shock and vibration rated to DIN EN 60601-1-11, drop-test rated to DIN EN 60601-1, biocompatibility rated to DIN EN ISO 10993-5, and FDA compliant for aqueous foods to meet regulation EG596/2009. Clearances and creepage distances are available on request. For use in medical applications.

METZ CONNECT’s M12 industrial connectors (PC board jacks and inserts) are used at the field level and in industrial Ethernet. The circular connector has a metric thread, which was developed in several variants and codings for different protection types. Fully shielded, EMC-compatible versions are available for applications in an electrically sensitive environment. The contact carrier is surrounded by a metallic shield sleeve, which is connected on one end to the cable shield and on the other end to the locking screw. This ensures that the shield connection is routed to the device housing via the connector. In addition, another property is the high mechanical strength and resistance to mechanical influences and vibrations. These connectors are used in automation technology and sensor technology. In medical applications, they are suitable for use in respiratory monitors, defibrillators, imaging systems, and ventilators. They are used for the transmission of data, signals, and field buses.

JAE has launched the RK01 Series of home washable connectors that are ideal for smart textiles used for wearable clothing devices. This product is compatible with JIS L 1930 (C4G) test for washing clothes. In addition, it features a unique structure that allows for one-action easy attachment and detachment of the connectors, even with high pin counts. It also adopts a snap-button-type structure, which is widely used in apparel products, making it an easy to handle and user-friendly connector. At the same time, the contact area has been optimized for high contact reliability, which is difficult to achieve with the conventional snap-button-type contacts. These features enable stable measurements by devices such as electrocardiography, electromyography, respiration, bioimpedance, and motion sensors. In addition, combining general-purpose contacts and custom insulators results in a highly versatile solution that can be customized to suit a variety of smart textile materials and pin count requirements. The RK01 Series contributes significantly to the miniaturization and sophistication of smart textile products.

PEI-Genesis offers LEMO’s B-Series push-pull connector, a secure, push-pull latching system with high-density panel spacing, 360° EMI shielding, and quick mating or unmating connector for medical applications. This LEMO push-pull connector series is designed for indoor or vacuum-tight applications, making it an ideal choice for medical devices, test & measurement instrumentation, research, audio/video, and applications where a highly reliable, quick-mating connector is needed. Modular insert configurations include a wide range of high-density or hybrid electrical contacts, including solder, crimp, PCB straight or elbow, fiber, coax, thermocouple, pneumatic, fluidic, or high voltage contacts. LEMO’s proprietary keying system allows for a higher contact density while preventing mismating. This LEMO push-pull connector series includes the family size range of 0B to 5B, as well as the 00 multipole and 2G (shortened version of the 2B series). PEI-Genesis’ Value Add Services are available for the LEMO B-Series with rapid turnaround.

Ex-Eltronics offers customized connector products, through their representation of IEH. These tailored solutions feature hyperboloid contact technology, providing the superior performance desirable for use within high reliability medical applications. The Hyperboloid contact is an advanced design that satisfies performance requirements previously considered impossible. The distinguishing feature of the hyperboloid socket is the hyperboloid-shaped sleeve formed by straight wires strung at an angle to the longitudinal axis. When the pin is inserted into this sleeve, the wires stretch, well within elastic limits, to accommodate it. In so doing, the wires wrap themselves around the pin, providing several continuous line contact paths. IEH products support surgical, medical monitoring, and imaging equipment where failure is not an option for surgeons when they operate. Engineers designing medical devices rely on hyperboloid contact technology for its high current-carrying capacity, small footprint, and low resistance. These features are critical for use of these connectors in medical applications such as defibrillators, ambulatory cardiac monitoring, wireless tools for small bone surgery, and cardio-respiratory ventilation.

Phoenix Contact board-to-board connectors from the FINEPITCH 0.8 series offer reliable high-speed data transmission, thanks to their innovative double contact system. They are the ideal solution for robust PCB connections suitable for medical device applications and industrial use. The shielding provides very good EMC protection against interference.

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AJ Born

Associate Editor at ConnectorSupplier.com

AJ (Amy J.) Born first landed in the engineering space writing and editing for IEEE GlobalSpec (Engineering360.com). In addition to engineering, her published articles cover topics as diverse as HVAC, small business, mental health, and spirituality/personal growth. At Connector Supplier AJ combines her writing and marketing expertise as associate editor. She has a bachelor’s degree in English from the University at Buffalo and an MBA from the University of Colorado Boulder. AJ can be reached at [email protected].