Smiths Interconnect announced today the addition of a new disposable option to its renowned Hypergrip® connector series for the medical market segment.
Medical disposables are essential products in the field of healthcare and the demand for single-use devices (including endoscopes, catheters and patient monitoring systems) has increased significantly even before the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure patient-specific care while reducing the risk of infection/contamination. To meet the market demand, Smiths Interconnect has developed a new disposable connector to complement its Hypergrip® Series of patented and proven high-reliability circular connectors specifically designed for medical applications.
The new disposable connector plug leverages the versatility of the Hypergrip® Series to deliver a reliable interconnect solution for single or few uses, ideal for applications that don’t require high cycle life but still require a premium disposable connector mated with a high cycle receptacle. Available in 2 sizes of 12 and 33 contact positions, the new plugs maintain the premium look-and-feel, reliability, compliance with medical industry standards, and ease of use of the standard HyperGrip® connectors and are designed to support overmoulding and high volume production. They offer the proven electrical performance of the standard plugs in terms of insulation resistance, Dielectric Withstand Voltage, Current Carrying, Low Level Current Resistance, and at least IPX4 with potting or overmolding.
“The new Hypergrip® disposable option embeds all benefits of the existing Hypergrip® Series within a cost-effective design for single or few-use applications” says Mark Kelleher, VP and General Manager of the Connectors Business Unit at Smiths Interconnect. “Our new solution offers a four-piece modular design that allows customers to buy only what they need, saving money and reducing inventory”.
Smiths Interconnect HG2 and HG4 disposable plugs meet the medical industry requirements in terms of finger-proofing to IEC60601, flammability rated to UL94 V0, and compliance with most sterilization methods.
The new plugs have been designed and tested to provide:
- Longer cycle life than current disposable plugs in the marketplace (industry standard cycle life of at least 30 cycles).
- Colour coding for visually intuitive mating to receptacle.
- Crimp and poke pin design for ease of installation and plating optimized for disposable applications.
- Backwards compatible with unshielded HG2 and HG4 Hypergrip® receptacles with support for all 6 standard keying options
- Mateability with standard non-disposable receptacles
- RoHS III compliant materials