molex Guide on How to Find Tooling Instructions

Guide on How to Find Tooling
Instructions

Guide on How to Find Tooling

A Guide on How to Find Tooling on www.molex.com

Step 1
Go to www.molex.com.
Step 2

Enter the connector part number into the search area.

• Enter the part number and hit the “GO” button.

Step 3

Review the product page.

• Review the tooling link(s) on the right of the page and double-click the red link.

Step 4

Review the application tooling specifications.

• Application tooling specification sheets contain all tooling information: terminals used in the tool, crimp height, pull force, perishable tool kits, repair kits, how to measure go/no-go, list of products processed, new product number, old product number, wire strip length, part list for tooling components, exploded view of installation, and maintenance and warranty information.

Review the application tooling manual.

• The tooling manual includes all the basic information regarding the tool. Not all tools have a manual.

Step 5

Review the tooling page Industrial Crimp Book.

• The Industrial Crimp Book contains all the basic information regarding a proper crimp. Open barrel (CPD) and closed barrel (TBO) have their own quality manuals linked on the website. There are English and Spanish versions of both manuals.

Step 6

Review other information on the page.

• The tooling page shows all the web-published terminals that the tool will run.

Introduction to Crimp Technology

Developed to reduce the need to solder terminations, crimping technology provides a high-quality connection between a terminal and a wire at a relatively low applied cost. The methods for applying crimp terminations depend on the application and volume, and range from hand-held devices to fully automated systems. The application methods include a basic hand tool, a press and die set, a stripper crimper, and a fully automatic wire processing system. But no matter what method is used, it is important to set up each tool correctly to achieve a quality crimp.
Website: Please visit the Molex website to view the most current application tooling information. The Molex website is continuously updated with the latest information. (www.molex.com)

Terminology
Bell mouth (Flare)
The flare that is formed on the edge of the conductor crimp acts as a funnel for the wire strands. This funnel reduces the possibility that a sharp edge on the conductor crimp will cut or nick the wire strands. A general guideline: The conductor bell mouth needs to be approximately one to two times the thickness of the terminal material.*
Conductor Brush
The conductor brush is made up of the wire strands that extend past the conductor crimp on the contact side of the terminal. This helps ensure that mechanical compression occurs over the full length of the conductor crimp. The conductor brush should not extend into the contact area.
Conductor Crimp
The conductor crimp provides the metallurgical compression of a terminal around the wire’s conductor. This connection creates a common electrical path with low resistance and high-current-carrying capabilities.
Conductor Crimp Height
The conductor crimp height is measured from the top surface of the formed crimp to the bottom-most radial surface. Do not include the extrusion points in this measurement (see Figure 1). Measuring crimp height is a quick, non-destructive way to help ensure the correct metallurgical compression of a terminal around the wire’s conductor and is an excellent attribute for process control. The crimp height specification is typically set as a balance between electrical and mechanical performance over the complete range of wire stranding and coatings,

and terminal materials and plating. Although it is possible to optimize crimp height for individual wire stranding and terminal plating, a single crimp height specification is normally created.
Cut-off Tab Length
This is the material that protrudes outside the insulation crimp after the terminal is separated from the carrier strip. As a general rule, the cut-off tab is approximately 1.0 by 1.5 times the terminal material thickness.* A cut- off tab that is too long may expose a terminal outside the housing, or it may fail electrical spacing requirements. In most situations, a tool is set up to provide a cut-off tab that is flush to one material thickness.
Extrusions (Flash)
These are the small flares that form on the bottom of the conductor crimp, resulting from the clearance between the punch and anvil tooling. If the anvil is worn or the terminal is over-crimped, excessive extrusion results. An uneven extrusion may also occur if the punch and anvil alignment is not correct, if the feed adjustment is off, or if there is insufficient/excessive terminal drag.
Insulation Crimp (Strain Relief, Figure 2)
This is the part of the terminal that provides wire support for insertion into the housing and allows the terminal to withstand shock and vibration. The terminal needs to hold the wire as firmly as possible without cutting through to the conductor strands. The acceptability of an insulation crimp is subjective and depends on the application. A bend test is recommended to determine whether or not the strain relief is acceptable for each particular application.
Insulation Crimp Height
Molex does not specify insulation crimp heights because of the wide variations in insulation thickness, material and hardness. Most terminals are designed to accommodate multiple wire ranges. Within the terminal’s range, an insulation diameter may not fully surround the diameter of the wire. This condition will still allow for an acceptable insulation crimp for most applications.

• A larger insulation should firmly grip at least 88% of the wire.
• A smaller insulation should firmly grip at least 50% of the wire and firmly hold the top of the wire.

To evaluate the insulation section, cut the wire flush with the back of the terminal. Once the optimum setting for the application is determined, it is important to document the insulation crimp height. Then, as part of the setup procedure, the operator can check the crimp height.
Insulation Position
This is the location of the insulation in relation to the transition area between the conductor and insulation crimps. Equal amounts of the conductor strands and insulation need to be visible in the transition area. Using the correct insulation position ensures that the insulation is crimped along the full length of the insulation crimp, and that no insulation gets crimped under the conductor crimp. The insulation position is set by the wire stop and strip length for bench applications. For automatic wire processing applications, the insulation position is set by the in/out press adjustment.
Process
The process is the combination of people, equipment, tooling, materials, methods and procedures needed to produce a crimp termination. Process control is used to track attributes over time to aid in the detection of changes to the process. Detecting a process change when it happens helps prevent many thousands of bad crimps.

Pull Force Testing
Pull force testing is a quick, effective way to evaluate the mechanical properties of a crimp termination. When making a crimp, enough pressure must be applied to break down the oxides that build up on the stripped conductor and the tin plating on the inside of the terminal grip. This is necessary to provide good metal-to-metal contact. If this does not occur, resistance can increase. Over-crimping a crimp termination will reduce the circular area of the conductor and increase resistance.

Pull force testing is also a good indicator of problems in the process. Cut or nicked strands in the stripping operation, lack of bell mouth or conductor brush, or incorrect crimp height or tooling will reduce pull force. Wire properties and stranding, and terminal design (material thickness and serration design), also can increase or decrease pull force levels.
Shut Height
This is defined as the distance, at bottom dead center on a press, from the tooling mounting base plate to the tooling connection point on the ram of the press.

Strip Length
The strip length is determined by measuring the exposed conductor strands after the insulation is removed. The strip length determines the length of the conductor brush when the insulation position is centered.

Terminal Position
The terminal position is set by the alignment of the terminal to the forming punch and anvils, and the carrier strip cut-off tooling. The tool setup determines conductor bell mouth, cut-off tab length and terminal extrusions.

Associated Materials

Caliper
This is a gauge consisting of two opposing blades used for measuring linear dimensional attributes.

Eye Loop
This is a magnification tool, normally 10 times the power or greater, which is used to aid visual evaluation of a crimp termination.

Crimp Micrometer
This is a micrometer specifically designed to measure crimp height. The measurement is taken in the center of the crimp so it is not influenced by the conductor bell mouth. It has a thin blade that supports the top of the crimp while a pointed section determines the bottom-most radial surface.

Ruler (Pocket Scale)
This is used to estimate the 5-piece measurement of bell mouth, cut-off tab, conductor brush, wire position and strip length. The recommended maximum resolution is 0.50 mm (.020”).

Pull Tester
This device is used to determine the mechanical strength of a crimp termination. Most pull testing is done with a device that clamps the wire, pulls at a set speed and measures force by means of a load cell. A pull tester also can be as simple as hanging fixed weights on the wire for a minimum of 1 minute.

Toolmaker’s Microscope
This is used for close visual evaluation and statistical measurement of bell mouth, cut-off tab, conductor brush, wire position and strip length.

IDT Tooling Introduction

Insulation displacement technology (IDT), is a wire termination technique in which an insulated wire is pressed into a terminal slot smaller than the conductor diameter, displacing the insulation and forming an electrical contact between the terminal and conductor.

Insulation displacement offers three major advantages over other termination techniques:

• Electrical connectors are supplied to the customer with the terminals loaded into their final positions. This feature results in customer labor savings, as additional operations are not required to complete assembly.
• Hourly production rates are maximized through the simultaneous mass insertion of wires into multiple connectors.
• IDT allows for multiple connectors to be placed along a harness assembly (daisy chain) without the need to double-terminate circuits.

Molex offers a full line of IDT terminating equipment ranging from simple hand tools to fully automatic cable and discrete wire harness assembly machines. All tools are designed and manufactured using the latest technologies to ensure high-quality tool performance and product production.

IDT Terminating Equipment
Hand Tools
Low-volume users can choose from a range of snap-on modules that mount to a common pistol or bench-mounted holder. These modules can be easily changed to accommodate various connector styles. Typically, these tools yield production rates of approximately 300 terminations per hour.
Manual Press Tools
For medium production volumes, Molex offers a variety of manual press bench tools designed to process cable or discrete wire to further increase productivity. For tools in this category, production rates of up to 250 assemblies per hour for cable or 500 terminations per hour for discrete wire are not uncommon.
Semiautomatic Bench Tools
For higher production volumes, Molex offers a variety of semiautomatic bench tools to increase the end users’ productivity. For tools in this category, production rates of up to 900 assemblies per hour for cable or 1,200 terminations per hour for discrete wire are normally realized. In addition to inserting wires into terminals, selected machine models are equipped to:

• Automatically unload connectors from packaging such as extruded tubes, mylar film, etc.
• Perform secondary operations such as carrier strip break off, terminal insertion or product marking.

Fully Automatic Machines
For large production requirements, Molex offers its customers fully automatic modular assembly machines. This modular concept allows machines to be designed and built to meet specific customer requirements. Additionally, this concept enables customers to add options at a future date as production needs change. In general, machines in this category produce 10,000 terminations per hour or more. All machines are designed with fully integrated PLC controls that include “user friendly” self-diagnostic software features to minimize setup time and maximize machine up time and system utilization.
Special Machines
Molex can quote special machines upon request, with optional features that parallel the Phoenix™/Eagle™ series. In general, these machines differ in the methods they use for connector termination and wire handling. Additionally, daisy chain and different connector orientations can be accomplished.

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Molex is a registered trademark of Molex, LLC in the United States of America and may be registered in other countries;
all other trademarks listed herein belong to their respective owners.
Order No. 987652-5181
©2022 Molex

Documents / Resources

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References

• molex.com/product/apptool/

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