Hey everyone,

I'm working on an application for an induction heating circuit. I need to find a suitable three-connection plug / jack for a connection between the capacitors and the working coil.

There is one positive and two ground connections & the resonating frequency is about 225 khz. It also draws 5 to 6 amps, max. I was wondering if someone could tell me what the best-suited (& most compact) connector would be for this purpose. Here are a few preferences:
- Compact shape (1/2" diameter or less)
- $3 each or less (planning on ordering 50-100)
- 6 amps (ac) rating

I tried a 3.5mm stereo jack (3 connections) just for the hell of it, but I’m assuming the connections aren’t robust enough to handle the current. My next thought was possibly a mini xlr plug, but the ones I’ve seen are a little bulkier than I'd like (larger than .5" diameter & a little long), and somewhat expensive (more than $3). Any other ideas?

Thanks in advance.

 

http://www.cui.com/product/resource/pd-40s.pdf

This connector is pretty close to what you want. What voltage are you expecting?

 

I think for that application it is worth spending a little and go with Amp CPC series, you can get a bulkhead fitting and the mating cable connector.
They are the cheaper version of the MS connector.
Max.

 

First, thanks a lot for the replies. I appreciate any recommendations / help I can get.

http://www.cui.com/product/resource/pd-40s.pdf

This connector is pretty close to what you want. What voltage are you expecting?

That looks like a pretty good option, a pcb mounted connector might work well -- the connector will be protruding from the case so I might be able to glue some mounting structures on the pcb (to fix to the inside of the case). The PSU is 12v / 5-6a but I'm having some trouble determining if the voltage is the same between the capacitors and work coil -- I've read that it varies (and can spike to high voltages), but my multimeter only records 6 volts when I connect one lead to the center-tap and the other lead to one end of the coil (which is a bit perplexing). That sounded a little confusing, so here's a pic of what I mean: (this is my "pluggable" induction unit that I experiment with)

I think for that application it is worth spending a little and go with Amp CPC series, you can get a bulkhead fitting and the mating cable connector.
They are the cheaper version of the MS connector.
Max.

That looks like a good option as well -- seems like a solid connection if you were to screw it on like that. It seems like it'd be easy to mount to the case as well -- just (from the inside) poke it through the hole and thread a nut onto the protruding end to secure it.. Off the top of your head, do you know if they're (on average) much more than $3?

Thanks again for the suggestions.