Make First, Break Last - Power Triple Lock Connector

Make first, break last (MFBL) connector offers application-specific grounding components; Power Triple Lock connector design facilitates secure connections in appliances and commercial building equipment.

TE Connectivity (TE), a world leader in connectivity, now offers a connector with make first, break last (MFBL) functionality as part of its Power Triple Lock connector product line. The new MFBL connector’s application-specific grounding design permits the ground connection to be established before power connections are made, and maintains the connection until the power connections are broken. This capability fulfills a key application requirement of a variety of mid-range power connections for appliances and commercial building equipment.

Utilizing TE’s proven Power Triple Lock connector design, the MFBL connector can facilitate easier assembly and more secure connections than other pin-and-socket connector solutions. The three-position, wire-to-panel or wire-to-wire MFBL connector is based on a 6.0 mm centerline pitch. Like other Power Triple Lock connectors, it is rated for 600 volts AC or DC, although the MFBL connector is limited to 12 amps maximum current as its contacts accept wire no larger than 16 AWG (1.3 mm2).

Power Triple Lock connectors offer: polarization and keying to help prevent connector mis-mating, an anti-snag design to help keep wires from snagging on the contact and housing, a locking mechanism to help secure connections when the cap and plug latch together, and a low insertion force design to ease the assembly process.

For additional reliability, an optional TPA (terminal position assurance) device helps ensure that contacts are fully seated in the housings, and an optional CPA (connector position assurance) device helps prevent the connector from being mistakenly disengaged. “For design engineers who require grounding and need a wire-to-panel or wire-to-wire connector approach for their application, the new MFBL connector provides an effective solution,” said Angie McMillin, power interconnect global family leader of TE Appliances. “With a Power Triple Lock platform, the MFBL connectors also offer exceptional reliability assurance and assembly ergonomics benefits compared to existing products in the market today.”

The MFBL connector’s new housings are slightly longer than those of standard Power Triple Lock connectors. It is glow-wire-test compliant and is designed for operating temperatures from minus 55 up to 105 degrees Celsius. Its contacts are tin-plated copper alloy and include a new, longer receptacle; it has a new, extended length tab for the ground connection; and it utilizes existing, standard-length Power Triple Lock connector tabs for the power connections.