IEC or the International Electrotechnical Commission developed Power cord standards for the European Union and other countries. Consumer Power cords here in the US were generally designed for the US market only. US companies in the equipment business sought entry into the foreign markets and foreign companies wanting to tap the vast N. American markets had the problem that almost every country had its own wall plug & voltage system. Internal power supplies were no problem as they were easily designed for a voltage range that covered 100-120V and/or 200-240V. The US has had to think globally so the IEC is playing a greater role in our designs. IEC Cord Set specification 60320 became the way to harmonize equipment cords by using equipment mounted connectors that accept interchangeable power cords. IEC Cord sets have socket end that matches the equipment connector while the Plug end matches the power outlets in the country of use. Equipment connectors are selected by the manufacture for the max. current expected. Manufactures no longer had to install a specific cord for each country but just use the universal equipment mounted socket. Much easier to supply the correct cord than make each machine dedicated to a country. Cord sets used here in the US use one of the standard NEMA (National Electrical Manufactures Association) male plug: 1-15P, 2 wire with parallel flat blades (non-grounding), 2 wire, 2 Parallel Flat blades with 1 Blade wider (Wide blade always Neutral) or 5-15P, 3 Wire, 2 Flat blades & 1 round Pin (Grounding). The opposite end commonly has one of the standard IEC connectors. IEC Cord Sets with the C-13 is rated at 15Amps (3 wire Grounding) and mates to the C-14 on the equipment. The IEC with a C-7 is rated at 2.5A (2 wire non grounding) and mates to the C-8 on the equipment and is used on Desktop power supplies and some Home entertainment equipment. The IEC cord sets with the C-5 connector is rated 2.5/3A (3Wire Grounding) and mates to the C-6 on the equipment and is sometimes called the “Mouse Ears” connector. US Power cords have 2 or 3 wires where one is known as the “Line” the second is the “Neutral” the third is the “Ground” and; with few exceptions (stoves, AC & dryers units) are 115V. With 115V You will always have the Line & Neutral. Cord color code is Black for Line (the “Brass” colored screw on receptacles), White for Neutral (The “Silver” screw), green for ground. Foreign cords (with a few exceptions) are 220V. Cord color code is Brown for Line 1, Blue for Line 2 (Used for Neutral in the US) and Green/Yellow for Ground.
IEC Power Cords, Equipment Cords, IEC Power Sets
We care various IEC Power Cords of various lengths and styles. In our broad selection of IEC Power Cords, you will find the Cord Set for your equipment.
IEC Power Cords, Equipment Cords, IEC Power Sets |
