Engineering Definitions
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Board Mount Shrouded Header
Shrouded Header. [Box Header] A male connector having exposed pins surrounded by side walls which are molded onto a plastic base. Shrouded Headers are produced in either single row or double rows having a minimum of two pins. A 1-pin header would just a test-point. Common Headers are 0.1 inch spacing, pin-to-pin. Female connectors having the same pin spacing are used as an interface. Headers are common in PC motherboards, and are very common as Jumper blocks.
Additional names used to describe a header include; Pin strip header, pin header, ribbon cable headers, box header, or pin receptacle.
Headers height may be high Profile or low profile.
Headers protection may be an Un-Shrouded Header or may be a
Shrouded Header, with side walls [shown below].
Headers Pin separation may have 0.1 inch separation [shown below] or 2mm separation.
Pitch [all styles] .200" (5.08mm), .156" (3.96mm), .100" (2.54mm), .079" (2mm), .050" x .100" (1.27 x 2.54mm),
.050" x .050" (1.27 x 1.27mm), .0394" (1mm), .0315" (.8mm), .0197" (.5mm) pin pitch.
Also see Header Manufacturers
Dual Row Through-hole Vertical Header
Dual Row Header is the most common styles. The Dual Row Header may be used as a male terminal for a connector or a Jumper block. Although Shrouded Headers are never used as a jumper block.
Shrouded Header
Personal Computers use Vertical Shrouded Headers as peripheral device connections, as in CD drives and Disk drives. The three Shrouded Headers shown below are Mother-board connectors for two Hard Disk Drives [blue] and a Floppy disk drive [black]. While Un-Shrouded Headers are used for jumpers, power or fan connections. Some headers are color coded to donate functions.
Shrouded Headers
The board side header is always a male connector, as shown in the attached pictures. While the cable side is always a female connector as shown in the graphic to the right. The cable side may be a discrete wire cable attachment or an IDC Header which accepts a ribbon cable.
Note that the cable end [female-header] of this particular mate is not keyed, as shown with the cut-outs on the male headers depicted.
Dual Row Through-hole Right Angle Header
Right angle headers may be dual row or single row components.
A Through-hole header is shown below, but surface mount headers are possible.
Keyed Right Angle Header
Additional possible header features;
Suppression plates [Ferrite slabs] help reduce EMI/RFI interference [located between the PCB and header].
Insulator standoffs to rise the body of the header just above the PCB surface [for easier cleaning].
Locking bars to clamp the cable to the connector [graphic right].
Most headers will also have a mark to indicate pin 1, as seen with the arrow on the header above.
Reduction of hazardous metals RoHS
 Straight locking Header | MIL-DTL-83503C; covers the cable or board side. |
MIL-DTL-83503 General Specification for Nonenvironmental Flat Cable, and/or Printed Wiring Board Electrical Connectors
MIL-DTL-83503/6 Dual-in-Line Plug connector for Terminating Flat Cable Round Conductors on .050 Centers for Mating with Standard Dip Sockets, .100 x .300 Contact Spacing, .100 x .400 Contact Spacing, and .100 x .600 Contact Spacing
MIL-DTL-83503/7 Connector Plug with Dual Polarization, Rounded, Insulation Displacement, Non-Removable Socket Contacts (.100 x .100 Spacing), Flat Cable
MIL-DTL-83503/20 Flat Cable Header, Right Angle (.100 Spacing) with Polarizing Feature Solderless Wrap-post or PWB Termination
MIL-DTL-83503/21 Flat Cable Header, Straight Thru (.100 Spacing) with Polarizing Feature Solderless Wrap-post or PWB Termination
MIL-DTL-83503/22 Flat Cable Connector Socket Insulation Displacement
MIL-DTL-83503/23 Flat Cable Connector, Printed Wiring Board Solder Transition for Terminating Round Conductors on .050 Inch Centers
MIL-DTL-83503/24 Flat Cable Four Wall Header, Right Angle (.100 Spacing) with Polarizing Feature Solderless Wrap-post or PWB Termination
MIL-DTL-83503/25 Flat Cable Four Wall Header, Straight Thru (.100 Spacing) with Polarizing Feature, Solderless Wrap Post or PWB Termination
