Ask The Expert - Amphenol Surlok Plus

We recently had the chance to talk to Giangiacomo De Ambrosi from Amphenol Industrial. He was able to tell us more about the design of the RADSOK contact system and its advantages. We also looked at the latest Amphenol connector to use RADSOK, the Surlok Plus.

Join us as we take a look at how this advanced contact design is providing solutions for the EV and Energy Storage industry.

In today’s congestion, where the use of full-sized vehicles is impractical or even forbidden, traditional cars are being replaced with a variety of transport solutions to provide commuters with mobility for what is known as the last mile. This is the name given to the final part of any journey from the bus stop or subway station to the destination. These solutions range from electric scooters and bicycles, often known as e-scooters and e-bikes through to self-driving taxis and even aerial vehicles – electric vertical take-off and landing, known as eVTOL.

These new commuter solutions have taken advantage of the improved Li-ion battery technology. They offer the best combination of compact size, moderate weight, and energy capacity for the city environment. However, although these vehicles are intended for short urban journeys, their design must provide the same level of safety as traditional electric vehicles, especially when the time comes to charge their batteries.

Electric vehicle charging applications place great demands on the connectors that carry the current. Regardless of the time taken to charge the battery, the amount of energy being transferred remains the same. Fast charging requires a much higher energy transfer rate, and this is of particular concern when the time comes to plug the car into the charging station as the connector is one of the few components that drivers and operators will physically touch.

Every electrical circuit has resistance. The value may be small, but when passing power through that circuit, any resistance causes some of the energy to be converted into heat. With enough power, this can cause an increase in the temperature of the terminal, and therefore everything else around it. If this rise is added to the ambient temperature of 20°C (nominal room temperature), it is entirely possible for the connector’s temperature to reach 100°C. That is high enough to cause injury to unprotected skin. Connector manufacturers are therefore working hard to create solutions that are compatible with the demands for high energy transfer in fast charging stations.

Connector manufacturer Amphenol Industrial has many years of experience in developing connectors that can carry high power. Amphenol has developed a highly capable method of increasing the contact surface area is the use of a basket or lamella. The image below shows the Amphenol RADSOK® system with its cylindrical spring basket that can provide a much higher contact area than traditional terminal designs. Amphenol uses this technology in its extensive range of power connectors.