The selection of terminal plating must be tailored to the specific connectors and application requirements. For equipment demanding high performance-such as airbags, ABS systems, and ECUs-gold-plated terminals should be prioritized to ensure safety and reliability. However, for cost-efficiency purposes, selective gold plating may be chosen as long as the requisite performance standards are met.
The specific selection principles are as follows:
Ensure proper compatibility between the terminal and the selected connector.
Select a terminal appropriate for the specific wire gauge being crimped.
For single-cavity waterproof connectors, select terminals featuring a rear section capable of crimping a waterproof seal.
Ensure connection reliability. When selecting terminals, it is essential to guarantee excellent contact with both the electrical component and the mating connector to minimize contact resistance and enhance overall reliability. For instance, surface contact is preferable to point contact, and a pin-and-socket configuration is preferable to a blade-and-spring configuration. During the design phase, priority should be given to connectors featuring a dual-spring clamping structure, which yields extremely low contact resistance.
Impedance Matching. Certain signals-particularly RF signals-are subject to strict impedance matching requirements. Impedance mismatches can lead to signal reflection, thereby compromising signal transmission integrity. Therefore, when selecting terminals, it is imperative to choose those that provide the necessary impedance matching.
