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What types of Cables and Connectors does Rockwell offer

Overview of Rockwell Cable and Connectors

 Rockwell Automation (under the Allen-Bradley brand) offers a wide variety of industrial cordsets designed to reliably connect sensors to controllers. 

Cable Jacket Materials

Different environments (oil, heat, moving parts) require different cable coatings (jackets) to prevent failure.

  • PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride): The most common, cost-effective, general-purpose cable. Good for standard indoor environments.
  • PUR (Polyurethane): Highly flexible; ideal for moving machine parts. Also excellent in environments with harsh oils or cutting fluids.
  • TPE (Thermoplastic Elastomer): Highly resistant to extreme heat, cold, and weld slag.
  • Toughlink: A rubber-like, heavy-duty material built to handle severe impacts and abrasion.
  • Toughweld: Coated with a special shielding material that resists burning from weld spatter in automotive and assembly settings. 

 Connector Styles

Different sensors require different connector sizes depending on the space available and the electrical load.

  • DC Micro (M12): The industry standard for proximity, limit, and photoelectric sensors. Available in 2- to 8-pin versions. Rockwell offers Quick-Connect versions that reduce connection time by up to 80%. 
  • Pico (M8): Smaller than the M12, ideal for very tight, compact spaces on a machine. 3- and 4-pin configurations are most common. 
  • AC Micro: Similar in shape to the DC Micro but with different internal pinning to handle AC power. These often use a yellow cable jacket.
  • Mini (7/8-inch) & Mini-Plus: Larger, heavier-duty connectors. Often used to provide power to the sensor or in larger control devices.
  • DIN Valve: Specialized rectangular connectors molded specifically to plug into hydraulic or pneumatic solenoid valves.
  • M23: High-density, multi-pin connectors often used to gather signals from multiple sensors or complex devices

 Splitters, Adapters, & Cable

TypesTo save space and wiring time, Rockwell offers specialized cable shapes and junctions.

  • Cordsets: Have a connector on one end and loose "pigtail" wires on the other (to wire into a terminal block).
  • Patchcords: Have connectors on both ends (e.g., M12 on both sides) to bridge a sensor directly to a distribution box.
  • V- and Y-Cables: Split one cable connection into two. They allow you to plug two different sensors into a single port on a control module. 
  • Field-Attachable Connectors: Empty connector housings that allow an engineer to cut a raw spool of cable to the exact length needed and screw/crimp the wires in on-site.