All You Need to Know About Power Cord Connectors

A power cord also known as a line cord or main cable which connects an appliance to the main electricity supply through a wall socket or extension cord. They come handy generally when you use them for cables with a power plug to connect with the single-phase altering current power source at the local voltage. They allow electronic gadgets to connect with accessible electrical plugs.

The power links can render either Alternating Current or Direct Current. AC force is passed through standard plugs at homes and offices whereas DC force is given by a normal battery. There are a few different sorts of connectors and interfaces which are used everywhere in the world.

Structure

They come in variations in terms of temperature and quality of the stream. When it comes to power cords there are various connectors available in different shapes and capacity. Their structure variations make sure that the power links don’t get substituted with a lower temperature or current rating. Even if the link has been misrepresented, it is possible to use it.

Talking about its build, ropes have various sorts of coats to suit natural variables like temperature, dampness, oils, dirt, adaptability, and overwhelming wear. For example, warming equipment may have a rope to withstand incidental contact with warm surfaces. A power cord contains a retaining clamp. It’s a mechanical device which prevents the power cord from being pulling or shaking.

Industries including medical, lighting and computing equipment have the highest usage of power cords. In certain devices such as construction machinery, emergency medical equipment, electrical power tools, etc. extension cords come handy to source the electric current up to hundreds of feet away from an outlet.

Connectors

There are various types of cords available in the market to suit the different needs. They differ from the data center server rack to laptop charging blocks. Here are the most common in-use cords:

1. C13 Power Cord
2. C19 Power Cord
3. C7 Power Cord
4. C5 Power Cord

C13 Power Cords:

These power cords are generally found on PCs and peripherals. However, they are wrongly known as "kettle cord". Generally, kettle requires C15/C16. Hence, it is just a term used for C13 Power cords. The C13 socket’s perfect connector is the C14 plug. This C14 plug connector can be mounted on the recessed frame on computer power supplies.

C19 Power Cords:

C19 power cords are standard for enterprise-class servers and datacenter rack-mounted force dispersion units, Cisco 6500 series power suppliers, Late 2005 PowerMac, Nexus 700 series core router supplies, Late 2005 PowerMac G5. They are also an important part of Cisco MDS9700 arrangement rack-mounted SAN switches. These cords are a High-temperature variation of C19/C20.

C7 Power Cords:

C7 is the two-pronged non-polarized connector. They have 2 prongs side-by-side. C7 Power cords are typically used to power low voltage appliances such as portable CD players, laptop power supplies, video/audio equipment, etc. On the other side, C8 cords are 10mm dense. C8A and C8B channels are 15.5 mm thick. C8 cords, in comparison to C7 cords, are energized connector with one squared size.

C5 Power Cord:

Funnily, the structure of the three prongs on the C5 power cord resembles the famous character of Disney, Mickey Mouse. Hence these cords are also known as Mickey Mouse cords. C5 has the polarized power socket like the ones found on the notebook computers. These cords are widely used as the replacement cords for many laptops. Also, they are laptops, projectors, and such gadgets.

Power cords come in both detachable and non-detachable structure. You can select the power cords as per your usage and specifications which renders the best use of it. It is important to pick the efficient power cord connector to ensure the smooth working of your device with maximized safety.

Jennifer Truong is the owner of SF Cable, a california based online retailer of all kind of Computers, electronics, electrical accessories, networking accessories, cables, wires. Jennifer has extensive experience in the Electronics industry and blog.