News - UK Folding Plug concept could be best thing since electricity

[sleepyhead]

Originally Posted by dangel

Looks good - be interested to see if an actual prototype works and passes safety regs. Needs to have something to prevent fuse removal whilst plugged in...

Have the fuse so it comes out towards the pins? That way when it's plugged in, there is no way of getting the fuse out.

[slugs]

that looks really good, its certain to get killed by regulations

[keasla]

take it to dragons den

[Sumanji]

Awesome - what a great idea! Whilst we do have the safest plugs (probably in the world), their bulkiness does leave a lot to be desired...

[TheAnimus]

Originally Posted by Crevan

Can anyone tell me if the bulky British plugs are in any way better than the standard European ones?

Yes, they are.

First of they move less in the socket.

Second, as mentioned, they have a fuse.

Third they have an earth pin which is slightly longer than the live and return, this means that the socket has a plastic guard which gets pushed down, revealing the sockets for the live and return. The insulation paint on the plug prevents you from ever been able to brush live as a result.

Not to mention our sockets are switched!

Now, onto this concept, i love the idea of a smaller plug. That is good.

However this one, not so. The slide locking mechanisim wouldn't be very good for high current usage. Also i imagine it to be fidly.

But my main concern is the idea of having the live so close to the earth. There is a reason why all the plugs around the world have a decent sized gap ya know! I can't see someone providing adiquate room for all the metal and plastic in something that slim.

Next you look at the concept charger idea, again, no thought given to how to actually make it work, look at how big the apple usb charger is, look at how big hers is.

All style, not very pratical, absolutely no substane. And thats not just the air.

[Workaholic]

Now there are a few other safety aspects, towards the end they show the plug which folds out to cover the UK mains socket when used, if the plug is <1cm thick folded, then opened 3 ways this will be a lot smaller, is it safe for kids etc to use and how many insert/ejections etc will it last for before snapping and exposing the wiring within!?

The final demo looks good though, with 2 plugs and 1 double USB charger taking up the same space as a standard UK plug.

[rdhir]

European plugs have an earth pin configuration with a longer pin and a shield just like in the UK. Its just a little odd because the earth pin is on the socket not the plug. I know because I lived in Paris for a year and because I still have some.

However doesn't this miss the point. The vast majority of devices nowadays are not 3 pin at all. They are double insulated and have that two concentric squares symbol. That means they don't need three pins.

Think how many devices and bricks you have with plastic earth pins. Well guess what they don't need the earth connection!

There are also sound arguments to suggest that the fuse protects only the mains lead especially so is it really important!

You have to remember that european houses are star wired, not ring wired so that overloads are not so likely and the wire is effectively fused at the distribution unit.

Moreover I used to be able to buy mains extension leads in france that look just like the "extension plug" in the picture. They are a small square box with rectangular two pin sockets so they can only be used for two pin leads.

It strikes me as more economically viable if

a) We all used two pin european plugs when possible.
b) I think the plug extension socket idea is great but might be more practical if it were say a push on 8 2 pin socket device for a double socket uk pair along the lines of those 2 to 4 socket or 1 to 3 socket converters you find.
c) The real bane of my life is power bricks. Lets have a decent low voltage standardisation of both socket types and voltage. If you want to be green you can then stop selling lumps of metal and plastic in every damn gadget box

I think the cleverest bit of the demo, is making a two socket usb adaptor to fit in the form factor .

Rajiv

[Sumanji]

Originally Posted by rdhir

a) We all used two pin european plugs when possible.

Heresy!!!

Long live the Queen's 3-pin UK plug


Su

[peterb]

Originally Posted by Crevan

Can anyone tell me if the bulky British plugs are in any way better than the standard European ones?

That is a good question.

Prior to the introduction of the current square plug, British plugs were round pin. The same triangular configuration, and in three versions, a 15 amp, a smaller 5 amp and an even smaller 2 amp. These plugs were unfused.

The 5 amp was compatible with a two pin plug where an earth wasn't required. That 2 pin plug was not polarity keyed. Also at that time houses were star wired with each circuit going back to a (rewiirable) fuse panel. The fuse was rated at 15, 5 or 2 amps. The fuse protected all the wiring up to any internal fuse in the equipment.

The introduction of the ring main changed the concept, in that the ring main was fused at 30 amps - certainly in excess of the current carrying capacity of the equipment cable, even if that was connected to a 15 amp plug, let alone a 5 or 2amp version. Generally they didn't have shutters, so the live pins could be seen.

The solution was to introduce a fused plug, and to make it incompatible with existing wiring, the pins were made square. Apart from anything else, that gave the pin the strength to open the new shuttered socket.

That square form factor is not necessarily better. A round pin, with a slit up it makes extremely good contact with a round pin receptacle. If you look at an industrial connector (blue for 240V, yellow for 115V also a BS standard) the pins are round, and almost all high current connectors are round pin for that reason, lower contact resistance and less heat. (And versions carry 30 amps at 440V - same form factor - round pin, different spacings or keyways)

The square form factor is not so easy to make a good contact, and usually contact is only made on two of the faces, and the size of the pin means that the receptacle is not a single piece of metal. The pin is solid, so there is no springiness in that, and it is quite common to see discoloured socket (or plug) that has overheated, particularly for high current appliances like washing machines.

So on balance, sadly, the square p[in plug is generally inferior, and a round pin fused plug would be better. That rules out the european shuko plug, because they are unfused, and even if a fused version was produced, it couldn't be used because of the risk of using an unfused version.

Couple of other issues. Another form factor is the flat blade, like that used in the US. That can be made to give a good contact, although there are some really cheap and nasty US plugs available!) They are also available in two pole versions, and are nominally polarised.

Why the concern over polarity? It is less of an issue now, but again in the early days of bvalve radio (and televisions up to about the 1980s) there was no mains transformer in the set. The valve heaters were connected in series so that they could take 240 v applied directly to the caian (valves were designed to take a constant current - 300mA IIRC) and the HT supply was taken by rectifying the mains input. This meant that the chassis was directly connected to mains neutral - or if the polarity was wrong, mains live! Not a problem when the cabinet was fitted, but if not... and some valve radios (notably suitcase portables that were designed to be mains or battery powered) had a similar arrangement.

End of history lesson

Plus points for UK - Fuse and shutters

Minus points - poor contact performance, leading to risk of overheating, bulky.

PS There was (again iirc) talk of a new, pan-European plug, but don't hold your breath!

[Powderhound]

I thought they'd found a way to put F@H clients in plug sockets.

[CrazyMonkey]

Originally Posted by keasla

take it to dragons den

You post what i think... it's scary.

[duc]

Nice concept.

Probably only suitable for low voltage appliances, ie iPod chargers. Considering that plugs do get warm/hot when the appliance is in use, the live/neutral contacts within the pivot do look awfully close to each other on the video.

[Faiakes]

It would be nice if we followed the european plug and save ourselves the hussle and the environment a bit (given manufacturers wouldn't have to make an additional cable).

[ScottyMcLeod]

I cannot wait for this to be made available, I'll definately buy one or maybe 3 go with the great space saving idea

[shaneyp]

Looks to be a very promising idea, i hope that it passes the safety regulations as it would remove my huge fire hazard that is the plaug arrangement on my desk/room xD - they just dont give you enough sockets

[ChickPea]

Originally Posted by Faiakes

It would be nice if we followed the european plug and save ourselves the hussle and the environment a bit (given manufacturers wouldn't have to make an additional cable).

Trouble with the Euro plugs is that they have two sorts- earthed and non-earthed. Because the earth pin is in the socket, you end up with the ludicrous state of affairs that you can plug an appliance that requires an earth into an unearthed socket, but not vice versa.