TE Connectivity brings single pair Ethernet to the skies

As designers search for greater efficiency onboard aircraft, TE’s new Mini-ETH system offers them up to 73% weight savings in cables and up to 41% weight savings in connectors compared to standard eight-wire cables and rectangular connectors.

Using Ethernet over single pair protocols derived from the automotive market, the Mini-ETH system delivers its weight savings by employing a two-wire cable design, which was recently standardized under the ARINC 854 cabin equipment network bus standard.

Two-wire cables and corresponding 369 connectors help reduce termination time by up to 50% compared to standard quadrax connectors. The reduction in wires within TE’s Mini-ETH system can also simplify maintenance when compared to quadrax connectors.

These efficiencies come in a versatile package that is qualified to 100Mb/s with the ability to support up to 1Gb/s in future applications. The Mini-ETH system is currently designed for use in In-Flight Entertainment (IFE) systems, seat power and lighting controls.

“The Mini-ETH single pair Ethernet system adapts to what customers need from it, so they can retrofit an existing aircraft with Mini-ETH products to achieve savings or design it in to a future system as some customers are doing,” said Russell Graves, Global Aerospace Business Development Manager for TE’s Aerospace, Defense and Marine division. “TE is pleased to be one of the first manufacturers to offer an Ethernet over single pair solution for the commercial aerospace market.”

TE’s Mini-ETH system consists of a range of TE products, including:

• 369 shielded connectors
• DEUTSCH DMC-M connectors (EN4165)
• Cheminax twinax high speed copper cables
• End to End Ethernet assemblies