An investigation of the electrical contact failure of JPT electric connectors used in automobiles under multiple stresses

The primary mode of failure in electric connectors is contact failure, one of the reasons is which occurs as a result of external vibrations in the environment. This failure arises due to the reduction in positive pressure on the electric connector terminal caused by the vibration, leading to fluctuations in the electrical contact resistance (ECR). When both vibrational stress and plug/pull stress is simultaneously present, the contact area of electric connectors experiences fretting wear and shear stress, resulting in a more intricate failure mechanism for the electrical connector. Thus, this study presents an accelerated degradation testing method designed to investigate the reliability of the junior power timer (JPT) electric connector employed in automobiles. A temperature resistance test, plug/pull test (sliding wear) and vibration test (fretting wear) were conducted for the JPT electric connector. The electrical contact failure mechanism of the JPT electrical connector was analyzed, with specific focus on its correlation with the concentration of oxides in the contact area.