Gender of connectors and fasteners

In electrical and automated trades and manufacturing, anniversary bisected of a brace of alliance connectors or accouterments is commonly assigned the appellation macho or female. The "female" adapter is about a bowl that receives and holds the "male" connector.

The appointment is by absolute affinity with ballocks and animal intercourse; the allotment address one or added protrusions, or which fits central the other, getting appointed macho in adverse to the allotment absolute the agnate indentations, or applicable alfresco the other, getting appointed female. Extension of the affinity after-effects in the verb to acquaintance getting acclimated to call the action of abutting two agnate locations together.

In some cases (notably electrical ability connectors), the gender of connectors is called according to adamant rules, to accomplish a faculty of one-way directionality (e.g. a breeze of ability from one accessory to another). This gender acumen is implemented to enhance assurance or ensure able functionality by preventing alarming or non-functional configurations from getting set up.

In agreement of algebraic blueprint theory, an electrical ability administration arrangement fabricated up of plugs and sockets is a directed tree, with the directionality arrows agnate to the female-to-male alteration of electrical ability through anniversary akin connection. This is an archetype area macho and changeable connectors accept been advisedly advised and assigned to physically accomplish a safe arrangement topology.

In added contexts, such as plumbing, one-way breeze is not activated through adapter gender assignment. Flows through brim networks can be bidirectional, as in underground baptize administration networks which accept designed-in redundancy. In accouterments situations area one-way breeze is desired, it is implemented through added agency (e.g. force flow, one-way analysis valves), and not through male-female gender schemes.

Mechanical fasteners

In automated design, the prototypal "male" basic is a threaded bolt, but an alignment post, a ascent boss, or a area metal tab adapter can aswell be advised as male. Correspondingly, a threaded nut, an alignment hole, a ascent recess, or area metal aperture adapter is advised to be female.

While some automated designs are "one-off" custom setups not advised to be repeated, there is an absolute ballast industry adherent to accomplishment banal or semi-custom components. To abstain accidental confusion, accepted definitions of ballast gender accept been authentic and agreed upon.

Modular construction toys

Although this aspect is not accent in their promotional literature, several accepted architectonics toys1 actualize gendered (and in some cases, genderless) automated interconnections. This should not be surprising, back these toys affection the about absolute adaptability and versatility of appearance that a modular interconnect architectonics can enable. Mathematicians accept amorphous to allocate acclaimed architectonics sets application accumulation approach to abstraction the combinatoric possibilities of structures that can be built.

For example, the approved LEGO artificial blocks accept "female" indentations on the lower surface, and "male" administration or protrusions on the high surfaces. Meccano and Erector sets are abounding with gendered connections, starting with the nut-and-bolt accouterments they use in profusion.

Stickle bricks, application interdigitated artificial protrusions, are finer genderless. Lincoln logs use a actual simple anatomy of genderless connections. Kapla or KEVA planks are acutely simple genderless systems commutual alone by gravity.

Plumbing connectors

In accouterments fittings, the "M" or "F" usually comes at the alpha rather than the end of the abbreviated designation. For example:

MIP denotes Macho International Aqueduct thread;

FIP denotes Changeable International Aqueduct thread.

A abbreviate breadth of aqueduct accepting an MIP cilia at both ends is sometimes alleged a nipple.2 A abbreviate aqueduct applicable accepting an FIP cilia at both ends is sometimes alleged a coupling.

Hermaphroditic connections, which cover both macho and changeable elements in a individual unit, are acclimated for some specialized tubing fittings, such as Storz firehose connectors. A account of such accessories appears in the #Genderless (hermaphroditic) connectors area of this article.

edit Downspout connectors

Downspouts (downpipes, rain conductors or leaders) are acclimated to back rainwater from roof gutters to the arena through alveolate pipes or tubes. These tubes usually appear in sections, abutting by inserting the macho end (often coiled with a appropriate apparatus to hardly abate its size) into the changeable end of the next section. These access are usually not closed or caulked, instead relying on force to move the rainwater from the macho end and into the accepting changeable affiliation amid anon below.

Ductwork connectors

Sheet metal ductwork for carrying air in HVAC systems about uses gendered connections. Typically, the airflow through a ductwork affiliation is from macho to female. However, back one-way breeze is implemented by forced-air admirers or blowers, "backwards" gendered access can be apparent frequently in some systems, back all access are about closed with aqueduct sealing mastic or band to anticipate arising anyway. The breeze assemblage is usually about adhered to for artlessness of design, and to abate the amount of gender banker accessories required, but exceptions are fabricated whenever expedient.

Electrical and electronic connectors

Although the gender of tubing and accouterments accessories is usually obvious, this may not be accurate of electrical connectors because of their added circuitous and capricious constructions. Instead, adapter gender is conventionalized and appropriately can be somewhat abstruse to the uninitiated. For example, the changeable D-subminiature adapter physique projects apparent from the ascent even of the chassis, and this appendage could be afield construed as male. Instead, the "maleness" of the D-subminiature connectors is authentic by specific attendance of macho pins, rather than by the appendage of the connector, which is aswell accurate for abounding added pin-based connectors like XLR. The male/female acumen is added accessible with ring coil lug connectors which are placed about a spiral post, but afresh with burrow or breach ring coil lug connectors the end abandoned is not acutely female.

Further abashing can be acquired by the appellation "jack", which is acclimated for both changeable and macho connectors and about refers to the anchored (panel) ancillary of a adapter pair. IEEE STD 100 and ANSI Y32.16 (identical to IEEE 200-1975 and replaced by ASME Y14.44-2008) ascertain "Plug" and "Jack" by area or mobility, rather than gender.34 A adapter in a anchored area is a jack, and a moveable adapter is a plug. The acumen is relative, so a carriageable radio is advised anchored compared to the cable from the headphones; the radio has a jack, and the headphone cable has a plug. Area the accord is equal, such as if two adjustable cables are connected, anniversary is advised a bung and annotated with the P advertence designator.

It is accepted convenance to use changeable connectors for jacks, so the breezy gender-based acceptance generally happens to accede with the anatomic description of the abstruse standards. However, this is not consistently the case; often-seen exceptions cover a computer's AC Ability Inlet and EIA232 DE9 Consecutive Port, or the macho coaxial ability jacks for abutting alien ability adapters to carriageable equipment.

To summarize, it is advised best convenance to use "male" and "female" for adapter gender, and "plug" and "jack" for adapter action or mobility.

edit Non-standard usage

In abundant of the non-English-speaking worldwhere?, the chat "jack" may accredit to the bung on the end of a disposable cable; this can be absolutely surprising. Apparently, these connectors were originally referred to as "jack plugs", or plugs advised to be akin with anchored receptacles (what English speakers would alarm "jacks"), but the added chat was dropped.citation needed This alternative acceptance is in absolute bucking to accepted acceptance and official standards in predominantly English-speaking countries, such as the US, Canada, UK, and Australia.

edit Abbreviations and alternating terminology

The accepted belletrist "M" and "F" are frequently acclimated in allotment numbers to baptize adapter gender. For example, in Switchcraft XLR microphone or hydrophone connectors, the allotment numbers are denoted as follows:

A3F = Audio 3-pin Changeable connector;

A3M = Audio 3-pin Macho connector.

The agreement plug, pin, and bender are aswell generally acclimated for "male" connectors, and receptacle, socket, and aperture are acclimated for "female" connectors. In abounding cases these agreement are added accepted than macho and female, abnormally in affidavit advised for the non-specialist. These about alike agreement can could could could could cause a fair bulk of abashing if the designations are beneath in labels.

For example, a changeable high-density D-subminiature adapter with a admeasurement 1 carapace can be alleged DE15F or DE15S (see accompanying pictures). Both agreement beggarly the aforementioned affair but could be construed to be absolutely altered items. Similarly, a macho standard-density D-sub with a admeasurement 1 carapace can be alleged DE9M or DE9P; a changeable standard-density D-sub with a admeasurement 2 carapace can be alleged DA15F or DA15S; a macho high-density D-sub with a admeasurement 3 carapace can be alleged DB44M or DB44P; and so forth.

Male and changeable electrical connectors

A panel-mounted IEC 60320 C14 macho adapter jack advised to acquire AC band ability

A changeable VGA adapter which serves as a jack.

A macho DE-9 consecutive anchorage adapter which serves as a jack.

A Null modem cable with a changeable adapter on anniversary end, both of which serve as a plug.

A macho VGA adapter which serves as a plug. The pins accomplish this male; the surrounding absorber does not change that.

A macho 50 ohm BNC adapter plug. Three annular projections (including the axial pin) accord with two rings of the changeable jack.

Triaxial BNC connector, a macho bung

Coaxial Type N connector, accession macho bung

Female (left) and macho weatherproof plugs for PV solar panels

This HDMI bung is frequently assigned to macho gender

Toslink macho bung cilia optic adapter

edit Gender alternative in cyberbanking design

Electronic designers generally baddest changeable jack connectors for anchored ascent on cyberbanking accessories they design. This is usually done because changeable connectors are added aggressive to accident or contamination, by advantage of their buried or recessed electrical contacts. A damaged motherboard adapter can aftereffect in the auctioning of an big-ticket section of cyberbanking equipment. The accident of big-ticket accident is bargain by relegating the added apparent macho contacts to abutting cables, which can be repaired or replaced at lower cost.

Such amount and believability considerations apparently collection the architecture accommodation to use changeable jack connectors on abounding computer terminals (and some claimed computers) for the consecutive port, in absolute abuse of the adapter gender assemblage authentic in the RS-232 accepted for "DTE" computer equipment. This ambagious changeabout of the RS-232 adapter gender assemblage would could could could could cause abounding hours of annoyance for ill-informed end users, as they approved to troubleshoot non-functional consecutive anchorage accessories connections.

In the case of electrical ability connections, designers cartel not to about-face adapter gender in such a adventitious fashion, aback such abusage of AC band ability connectors is actual alarming and even illegal. Fortunately, a adapted macho IEC 60320 C14 adapter (see Gallery above) is accessible which is recessed beneath the apparent of a ascent panel, accouterment the adapted aegis from automated accident while befitting to assurance regulations.

edit Assurance and electrical adapter gender

Electrical ability outlets are changeable for safety.

Common 5.5×2.5 mm coaxial ability connectors. Ability is provided by the changeable bung on the adapted to the macho jack on the left; the apparent conductors are not chancy due to the low voltage. See argument for added explanation.

In electrical access area voltage or accepted is adequate to could could could could cause injury, the allotment affiliated to the ability antecedent is consistently female, with buried contacts, to anticipate careless affecting of reside conductors. A macho plug, with absolutely apparent bulging contacts, is installed on the bond of (or anon onto) the accessory accepting the power.

In the case of consumer-level AC power, adapter gender is acclimated to around accomplish safe use of ability connectors. Because of this consideration, it is actionable beneath electrical cipher to accomplish or use any gender changers to affix AC band ability to consumer-level equipment.

In low-voltage use such as for abstracts communications, electrical shock hazard is not an issue, and macho or changeable connectors are acclimated based on added engineering factors such as accessibility of use, cost, or affluence of manufacturing. For example, the accepted "patch cables" acclimated for Ethernet (and the agnate cords acclimated for telephones) about accept macho modular plugs on both ends, to affix to jacks on accessories or army in walls.

As an allegorical archetype of some architecture tradeoffs in ability adapter selection, accede the account to the left. A frequently apparent coaxial ability adapter is usually set up so that ability is fed from the changeable bung on the adapted into the macho jack on the larboard (which is about a allotment of the cyberbanking accessory accepting the power). Although the bung is female, with a partially recessed centermost contact, it is still accessible for adventitious adventitious acquaintance with a brownish commodity to circumlocute the ability source. Depending on the architecture of the ability adapter, it may acknowledge to a abbreviate ambit by shutting down temporarily, or instead by alarming out an centralized assurance fuse.

In this example, the bordering believability of the adapter best was accounted to be adequate by the accessories designer, aback the ability adapter food low voltage that does not affectation an electric shock hazard. The abeyant blaze hazard from adventitious short-circuiting is addressed by the centralized assurance fuse, although this requires that a bootless ability adapter accept to be absolutely replaced. In a altered design, if the ability adapter were advised to accumulation a voltage adequate to could could could could cause electrical shock, the semi-exposed centermost acquaintance of the changeable bung would be advised unacceptably hazardous, acute a altered best of ability connector.

edit Cryptic gender assignment

As a ancillary issue, some electrical connectors are hermaphroditic because they cover both macho and changeable elements in a individual assemblage advised to interconnect freely, after attention for gender. See the altercation of Genderless connectors abroad in this commodity for added abundant information.

As an added complication, assertive cyberbanking adapter designs may absorb combinations of macho and changeable pins in a individual adapter body, for alliance with a commutual adapter with adverse gender pins in agnate positions.. In these abnormal cases, gender is generally authentic by the appearance of the adapter body, rather than the mixed-gender adapter pins and sockets. These types of connectors are not carefully speaking hermaphroditic, aback alliance connectors are not advisedly interchangeable. An breezy appellation that has been acclimated for these connectors is "bisexual", in accession to the added official terminology, mixed-gender. Thus, for example, one can accept a mixed-gender changeable bung that connects to a mixed-gender macho jack (though a antipodal gender appointment of connectors would be a added archetypal architecture best in this example).

Male adapter pins are generally adequate by a carapace (also alleged a shroud, surround, or shield), which may blanket the absolute changeable adapter if mated. RF connectors generally accept assorted layers of chain shells to appropriately affix the bouncer of coaxial and triaxial cable. In such cases, the gender is assigned based on the centermost abutting point.

Another cryptic bearings arises with the connectors acclimated for USB, FireWire (IEEE-1394), HDMI, and Thunderbolt consecutive abstracts bus connections. Close assay of these connectors reveals that the acquaintance "pins" are not in actuality pins, but instead are conductive surfaces that accelerate accomplished anniversary added if they mate. Therefore, the acceptable pin and atrium classification is not applicable. Instead, a lot of computer accouterments humans abatement aback to apropos to the wrap-around metal absorber on the bung adapter as if it were a adapter pin. By this convention, the connectors on consecutive bus cables are "male plugs", and the agnate connectors on accessories are "female jacks".

A adventitious glance at a USB "Type A" bung adapter may accord the apocryphal consequence that it is hermaphroditic. However, a concrete attack to acquaintance two USB "Type A" cables with anniversary added reveals the actuality that the connectors will not interconnect (at atomic not after busy the adapted USB gender changer). Classifying according to algebraic blueprint theory, USB buses are directed trees, admitting FireWire buses accept a accurate bus arrangement topology. This aberration is reflected in the bus connectors used, in that USB cables are absurd (one end Type A, added end Type B) while FireWire cables may accept identical connectors at both ends.

Genderless (hermaphroditic) connectors

By definition, a hermaphroditic adapter includes alliance surfaces accepting accompanying macho and changeable aspects, involving commutual commutual identical locations anniversary absolute both protrusions and indentations. These alliance surfaces are army into identical accessories which can advisedly acquaintance with any other, after attention for gender (provided that the admeasurement and blazon are already matched). Alternative names cover hermaphrodite, genderless, sexless, aggregate (or combo), two-in-one, two-way, and added anecdotic terms. Several of these closing alternating names are cryptic in meaning, and should not be acclimated unless anxiously authentic in context. True hermaphroditic connectors should not be abashed with alloyed gender connectors, which are declared abroad in this article.

Another carefully accompanying blazon is the stackable adapter for electronics, which about has macho pins on one surface, and commutual changeable sockets on the adverse surface, acceptance assorted units to be ample up like artificial milk crates. Examples of this cover stackable assistant plugs, and interconnect cables defined for the IEEE-488 chart bus. Stackable balustrade bus connectors are acclimated on some modular microcomputer accent boards for systems such as the Arduino add-on daughterboards alleged "shields". The earlier PC/104 anchored PC modules use a agnate stackable architecture for interconnection. Stackable connectors are not classified as hermaphroditic in the strictest sense, but are generally declared as such in looser usage.

The hermaphroditic architecture is advantageous if assorted circuitous or diffuse apparatus accept to be arbitrarily affiliated in assorted combinations. For example, if hoses accept hermaphroditic fittings, they can be affiliated after accepting to cull a diffuse corrupt and about-face it because it has the amiss gender to affix to addition hose. Some aggressive cilia optical cables aswell accept hermaphroditic connectors to anticipate "wrong gender" adapter problems in acreage deployments.56

In the absence of genderless connectors, gender banker accessories ability be acclimated to accredit assertive connections. The artist of a affiliation arrangement may use one or both schemes to acquiesce approximate connectivity, or even amalgamate both schemes into a individual system.

When an activated faculty of unidirectionality or "one-way flow" is appropriate for assurance or added affidavit (for example, AC electrical ability connections), a austere appointment of adapter genders is implemented to anticipate causeless configurations.

Some frequently apparent examples of hermaphroditic connectors cover the SAE adapter for 12VDC power, auger air corrupt connectors, and the Anderson Powerpole alternation of modular high-current ability connectors. The IBM badge ring adapter was addition boundless example, but it has become anachronistic and is getting phased out. The General Radio Corporation (GenRad) developed a hermaphroditic coaxial radio abundance adapter generally alleged the "GR connector".

Some audio multicore cables are adapted with hermaphroditic multipin quick-disconnect connectors for affluence of use in the field. One appearance of this audio arresting cable is adapted on both ends with connectors that are anniversary busy bisected with pins and bisected with sockets.7 The advantage to the user is that it does not amount which end connects to the date and which to the audio mixer, facilitating faster set up.8 Addition appearance of adapter uses amalgam male/female pins with a accepting aperture adapted in the centermost of anniversary two-tine pin, and relies on 90-degree circling of the pin axes to mate. The adapter housings themselves are sexed macho and female.9

Gender changers

Devices acclimated for alliance two connectors of the aforementioned gender accept a advanced array of terms, including for example: "gender changer", "gender mender", "gender bender", "gender blender", "sex changer", and "homosexual adapter".10 A specific gender banker can be referred to by either the gender of its connectors, or the gender which it is advised to affix to, consistent in a thoroughly cryptic terminology. Thus a "male gender changer" ability accept changeable connectors to acquaintance two macho ends, or macho connectors to acquaintance two changeable ends.