Our team is trying to explore our possibilities, and by doing so we wanted to know if we could purchase and use MOLEX power connecters on our robot.
Are you asking the legality?
It might depend on what part of the robot you plan on using them on, whether or not they’re allowed, read the rules carefully. But generally you can add connectors. It’s pretty common for teams to use connectors on the wires from the speed controllers to the motors, for example, to allow quickly changing a motor or doing work on the transmissions.
The Anderson Power Pole connectors are popular for this
http://www.andersonpower.com/products/singlepole-connectors.html
They can be paired, in different orientations, and are available in several colors and sizes.
I generally talk teams out of easily available Molex connectors for use on FRC robots. They are finicky for crimping, spread open with repeated use and you need special types if using for motors due to the high currents.
cool thanks
i would say this is true for motors, but would you say this is still true for sensors? we have used similar connectors in the past with our sensors that needed a quick detach ability, with no problems
well we planned on using the industrial grade ones. similar to those in vending machines
I have seen teams use these for sensors and other low current applications. They seem to be OK but still suffer problems. I use them when I want a connector but will rarely take it apart. i.e. in a power supply connector. However, we stock an abundance of Power Product connectors and PWM style connectors (Molex also makes a connector family like these that are great) We use either of these for applications for sensors, pneumatic solenoids, data.
Crop, do you have a link or picture of the connector you are planning on using?
http://www.surplussales.com/computeraccess/Cinch-JonesInterconnect-3.html This is what we were thinking. We’re going to have drawers of electronics; the main power distribution/crio/battery on the bottom, motor controllers next, ect. We would like to be able to remove the drawers and have them interconnect by the molex connectors.
Molex is a company that makes a variety of connectors. Are you thinking about the ones inside desktop computers? If so, I don’t think they’re rated for particularly high currents, or very many insertion cycles.
Wow, I haven’t seen Jones connectors since I worked on tube gear…
We would like to be able to remove the drawers and have them interconnect by the molex connectors.
You might want to think about keeping the wiring simple, and easy to access, and not moveable. There’s really no need to add more potential problem areas.
Well due to space limitations, we are forced to have multiple electrical boxes.
OK. Just make it so they don’t have to be removed. Each connector is a problem waiting to happen, and power loss already happening.
Those are Jones plugs, and are not used much any more. Can you guess why?
Crop,
While the Jones plugs are an alternative, I would like to suggest (strongly recommend) that you rethink your design. We use Power Poles for interconnect but only to make exchanging devices easier. Every additional connector you add is a potential failure point and a drop in the possible current you can feed to a motor. I highly recommend to teams to place speed controllers close enough to the motors they are driving that the supplied motor wiring can be directly connected to the output of the speed controller. Remember that the PWM connection doesn’t care how long it is, CIM motor wiring does. Please remember when choosing connectors that they have to withstand the stall current of the motor they are feeding or the load they that are supplying. In the case of the CIM that is 133 amps. I haven’t seen a Jones plug capable of that current that I can remember. Of course you can use multiple pins but that brings it’s own set of problems.