One of the emerging leaders in Ultrasound diagnostic equipment approached Smiths Interconnect as they were witnessing field failures due to bent contacts during mating causing the expensive ultrasound systems to be line down in the hospitals. The systems were then sent back to the customer for repair which was a very expensive, inconvenient and costly affair to the end user. The connector that was used to mate the complex transducers to the Ultrasound system “cart” had cheap bifurcated contacts. With the excellent technical support provided by the Smiths’ team, the customer’s concerns were put to ease and the solution provided peace of mind to all the stakeholders.
The Solution - Eclipta™ ECL Series
The manufacturer chose the standard Eclipta connector because its form, fit, and function were ideal for their application – simple to use and easy to incorporate into their handle design. And the cost of the disposable connector was very cost effective, compared to competitive designs. Specifically, utilizing the end of the pc board (which was already required inside the handle) as the “contacts” in the connector, reduces both the connector and assembly costs, because the fine wires on both sides of the connector can simply be mass terminated to the pc board, rather than requiring them to be individually soldered to discrete contacts.
View ProductCustomer Advantage:
- Reliable: Medical spring probe contacts extend the Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF) of the system with 100,000 mating cycle life
- Rugged: Eliminates bent pin damage due to excellent tolerance absorption properties
- Low Force: Easy and quick to mate and unmate in stressful situations