View source for IEC 60906-1

{{Short description|International AC power plug standard}}
{{About|part one of IEC 60906|IEC 60906-2, the 100–130 VAC mains plug|NEMA connector#NEMA 1|and|NEMA connector#NEMA 5|IEC 60906-3, the extra low voltage connectors|DC connector#IEC 60906-3:1994}}
{{Use Oxford spelling|date=March 2025}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}}

[[Image:IEC60906-1-plug.svg|right|thumb|upright=0.85|IEC 60906-1 plug]]
'''IEC 60906-1''' ([[International Electrotechnical Commission|IEC]] designation "Type N")<ref name=":0" /> is an [[international standard]] designed "to provide a standard for a safe, compact and practical 16&nbsp;[[Ampere|A]] 250&nbsp;[[volts|V]]&nbsp;[[alternating current|AC]] system of plugs and socket-outlets that could be accepted by many countries as their national standard, even if not in the near future."<ref name ="IEC60906-1">{{cite web | title=IEC system of plugs and socket-outlets for household and similar purposes – Part 1: Plugs and socket-outlets 16 A 250 V a.c. | url=https://webstore.iec.ch/preview/info_iec60906-1%7Bed2.0%7Db.pdf | date=2009 | publisher=IEC | access-date=14 January 2018 | archive-date=14 January 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180114184744/https://webstore.iec.ch/preview/info_iec60906-1%7Bed2.0%7Db.pdf | url-status=dead }}</ref> The standard was originally published by the [[International Electrotechnical Commission]] in 1986; the current edition is ed2.0 published in 2009. Although it is almost identical to the Swiss [[SN 441011]] T12 plug for 10 A 250 V a.c. standardized in 1937, its dimensions are slightly different and its polarization is flipped. (If the IEC 60906-1 socket has the protective/earth conductor at the top, the live conductor is on the right and the neutral one is on the left.)

{{As of|2025|03}}, only [[South Africa]] and [[Paraguay]] have introduced standards based closely on IEC 60906-1, and only in South Africa the installation of sockets of this type has become mandatory. [[Brazil]] used it as the basis for its NBR 14136 standard, but this is not fully compatible with IEC 60906-1.  In 2017 the [[European Union]] (EU) published recommendations advising against the harmonization of domestic plug and socket systems in the EU.<ref name="REFIT">{{cite web |url=https://ec.europa.eu/info/files/refit-platform-recommendations-internal-market-xii24a-plugs-and-sockets_en |title=REFIT Platform Recommendations – Internal Market: XII.24.a - "Plugs and sockets" |website=European Commission |access-date=12 January 2018}}</ref>

==Features==
[[File:SANS 164-2 plug 04.jpg|thumb|SANS 164–2 three-pin plug, fully compliant with the international IEC 60906-1 standard]]

IEC 60906-1 plugs and socket-outlets are rated 16&nbsp;A, 250&nbsp;V AC and are intended for use on distribution systems having nominal voltages between 200&nbsp;V and 250&nbsp;V AC. IEC 60906-1 defines both 3-pin connectors for [[Appliance classes|Class&nbsp;I]] appliances and 2-pin versions for [[Appliance classes|Class&nbsp;II]] appliances. (Additional oval-shaped 2-pin connectors for [[Appliance classes|Class&nbsp;0]] appliances defined in the first edition of the standard were never implemented and no longer appear in the current second edition.)

The IEC 60906-1 plugs are smaller than any other European plug with 16 A rating, being only slightly larger than the 2.5&nbsp;A [[Europlug]] and providing much more reliable contact. The sockets are small enough that two can be installed in the space taken by a single [[Schuko]] or [[BS 1363]] socket.

The socket has either a 10&nbsp;mm deep recess or a 12&nbsp;mm high rim, to exclude incompatible plugs. It ensures that the protective-earth pin establishes contact before the live and neutral pins. Sockets are required to have shutters for the live and neutral apertures.

As it uses the same 19&nbsp;mm pin spacing as most existing European systems (Schuko, etc.), it would be possible to design sockets that can accept both the traditional plug as well as the IEC 60906-1 Class I and II plugs, thereby enabling a smooth transition to the new system. However, the IEC 60906-1 standard explicitly discourages the use of multi-standard sockets, claiming that such sockets are likely to create safety problems when used with plugs from other countries.

==Dimensions==
IEC 60906-1 plugs are similar in size and shape to the [[Europlug]], with the front profile being a flat hexagon. They are 35.5&nbsp;mm wide. The 3-pin Class I plug is 17&nbsp;mm high, whereas the 2-pin Class II plug is 14&nbsp;mm high (similar to the Europlug). The parallel side faces are 26&nbsp;mm apart, and the two pairs of side faces are orthogonal to each other. Like Schuko and Europlug, the live and neutral pin are 19&nbsp;mm long and on centres spaced at 19&nbsp;mm.<!--Yes, for Europlug, this is approximate.--> The pins have a diameter of 4.5&nbsp;mm, intermediate between Schuko (⌀4.8&nbsp;mm) and Europlug (⌀4.0&nbsp;mm). In common with the Europlug there is an insulating sleeve around the base of the live and neutral pins. The 3-pin version has a round protective-earth pin of the same length and diameter as the live and neutral pins, but with no insulating sleeve. The protective-earth pin's centre is offset 3&nbsp;mm from the centre point between the live and neutral pin.

== Adoptors ==
=== South African SANS 164-2 standard ===
{{more|SANS 164}}
South Africa was the first only country to have incorporated IEC 60906-1 plugs and sockets into its own national standards, as SANS 164–2. SANS 164-2 was made the preferred standard in 2013, replacing the older SANS 164-1 (based on [[BS 546#BS 546|BS 546]]) but according to the South African Bureau of Standards (SABS) electrotechnical standards development manager, the new plugs and sockets would have ''"a long, long phase-in period, more than 20 years".''<ref>{{cite news |first=Sue |last=Blaine |date=28 January 2014 |title=SA to switch to new, safer plugs |url=http://www.bdlive.co.za/business/energy/2014/01/28/sa-to-switch-to-new-safer-plugs |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141022130218/http://www.bdlive.co.za/business/energy/2014/01/28/sa-to-switch-to-new-safer-plugs |archive-date=22 October 2014 |journal=Business Day Live}}</ref>
{{Clear}}

<gallery>
SANS 164-2 sockets.jpg|South African SANS 164–2, quadruple socket
SANS 164-1 & 164-2 sockets.jpg|South African SANS 164-1 (old) & SANS 164-2 (new) sockets in a single plate
Old, old and new za plug, and new za plug.png|'''Left''': Old outlet and plug, '''Middle''': Old and new (multi-standard socket), '''Right''': Socket for new plugs only
SANS 164-2 plugs 01.jpg|Two SANS 164–2 plugs
</gallery>

=== Brazilian NBR 14136 standard ===
{{see also|AC power plugs and sockets#Brazilian standard NBR 14136}}
According to the [[National Institute of Metrology Standardization and Industrial Quality]] in Brazil, the [[Brazilian National Standards Organization|Brazilian Association of Technical Standards]] ''"began discussing the creation of a standard for plugs and sockets ... in the 1980s, based on the draft international standard based on IEC 60906-01. It was concluded with wide participation of the manufacturers of plugs and sockets and of electrical and electronic equipment, in July of 1998, with the publication of the norm ABNT NBR 14136."''<ref>{{cite web | title = Padrão Brasileiro de Plugues e Tomadas | url = https://translate.google.co.uk/translate?sl=pt&tl=en&js=y&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&u=www.inmetro.gov.br%2Fqualidade%2Fpluguestomadas%2Fbase-normativa.asp&edit-text=&act=url| date = 2011| publisher = Innmetro| access-date = 6 September 2017 }}</ref>   
  
There are a number of non-compliance issues with IEC 60906-1. Brazil uses both 127&nbsp;V and 220&nbsp;V mains supplies, and in many cases these are available in the same city and even the same household; so rather than using the IEC 60906-2 standard for the lower voltage it uses NBR&nbsp;14136 for both, as many devices in Brazil support both 127&nbsp;V and 220&nbsp;V, either automatically or via toggling a switch.  Whereas IEC 60906-1 specifies a single 16&nbsp;A rating with 4.5&nbsp;mm pins, NBR&nbsp;14136 has both 10&nbsp;A and 20&nbsp;A ratings, the 10&nbsp;A plug has a pin diameter of 4&nbsp;mm, and the 20&nbsp;A plug is 4.8&nbsp;mm.  NBR 14136 does not require shutters on the apertures, a further noncompliance with  IEC 60906-1. The 10&nbsp;A socket will accept only 10&nbsp;A plugs, and [[Europlug]]s, while the 20&nbsp;A socket will accept both 10&nbsp;A and 20&nbsp;A plugs, plus Europlugs.
{{Clear}}

<gallery>
File:NBR 14136 plugs and outlet.jpg|Two-pin charger, three-pin 10 A plug and 10 A socket-outlet conforming to Brazilian Standard NBR 14136.
Tomada_Brasileira_-_NBR_14136,_20A,_250V.jpg|A 20&nbsp;A Brazilian socket based on the IEC 60906-1 standard.
Brazilian plug.svg|Diagram of the a Brazilian NBR 14136 plug with insulated pins.
</gallery>

=== Paraguay ===

In November 2022, the National Institute of Technology, Standardization, and Metrology (INTN) of [[Paraguay]] adopted the IEC standard as national standard PNA-IEC 60906-1.<ref>{{cite web |title=PNA-IEC 60906-1 |url=https://erp.intn.gov.py/shop/product/pna-iec-60906-1-ctn-02-8224 |website=Instituto Nacional de Tecnología, Normalización y Metrología |access-date=24 March 2025 |language=es |date=November 2022}}</ref> Initially its application is voluntary, but it is planned to make it mandatory at some point in the future. Like South Africa, Paraguay adopted the IEC standard without any changes, hence there is only one size of sockets and plugs rated for 16&nbsp;A and sockets must have shutters for the live and neutral pins.<ref>{{cite web |title=INTN presentó norma de los nuevos tomacorrientes que deberán utilizarse en Paraguay |url=https://amigocamionero.com.py/intn-presento-norma-de-los-nuevos-tomacorrientes-que-deberan-utilizarse-en-paraguay/ |website=Amigo Camionero |access-date=24 March 2025 |language=es |date=25 November 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Vicesar |first1=Brian |title=¿Cambiaremos los tomacorrientes y 'enchufes' por un nuevo modelo? |url=https://www.hoy.com.py/nacionales/cambiaremos-los-tomacorrientes-y-enchufes-por-un-nuevo-modelo |website=Diario Hoy |access-date=24 March 2025 |language=es |date=20 November 2022}}</ref>

{{As of|2025|03}}, there is no indication that sockets of this type are commonly installed in Paraguay.

=== Possibility of acceptance in European Union ===
[[File:Map of current European mains electricity plug types.png|thumb|right|Currently used AC mains plugs in Europe.
{{legend|#0000ff|Schuko ([[AC power plugs and sockets#Type F|Type F, CEE 7/4 plug]], [[AC power plugs and sockets#CEE 7/7 plug|CEE 7/7 plug]])}}
{{legend|#ff0000|French ([[AC power plugs and sockets#Type E|Type E, CEE 7/6 plug]], CEE 7/7 plug)}}
{{legend|#ff9100|British ([[BS1363|Type G, BS 1363]])}}
{{legend|#ff00ff|Swiss ([[SN 441011|Type J, SN 441011]])}}
{{legend|#00ff24|Danish 107-2-D1 ([[AC power plugs and sockets#Type K|Type K]])}}
{{legend|#46ffff|Italian CEI 23-50 ([[AC power plugs and sockets#Italy (Type L)|Type L]])}}
]]
In the 1990s the EU requested [[CENELEC]] to devise a harmonized plug and socket system for Europe.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.iec.ch/worldplugs/history.htm |title=Brief history - International standardization of electrical plugs and sockets for domestic use |website=IEC |access-date=13 January 2018 |archive-date=12 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180812205914/http://www.iec.ch/worldplugs/history.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> In 1995 that attempt was abandoned as it was not possible for CENELEC delegates to agree an acceptable solution, CENELEC forecast that converting European households, offices and factories to a common standard would cost about $125 billion.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/06/12/style/12iht-post.t.html |title=A Single Plug? Discovering Electricity Was Easier |work=The New York Times |date=12 June 1995 |access-date=13 January 2018 |last1=Kroon |first1=Robert }}</ref>

In response to a suggestion that the [[European Commission]] introduce a common system across the whole of the EU, the commission's Regulatory Fitness and Performance (REFIT) programme issued recommendations in 2017.  REFIT found that "the harmonisation of plug and socket outlet systems in Europe, by introducing changes in national wiring legislations (would have) important transitional periods (above 75 years)", and that the cost to "replace the old socket-outlets (and the corresponding plugs of the appliances being used)" was estimated at 100 billion Euro, "generating a huge environmental impact, producing some 700&nbsp;000 tons of electrical waste".<ref name="REFIT" /> REFIT does not recommend harmonizing the plugs and socket-outlet systems in Europe.

==Comparison with traditional systems==
[[File:Schuko & BS 1363 Longwell Plugs.jpg|thumb|right|BS 1363 (upper) & Schuko (lower) plugs – both much larger than IEC 60906-1 plugs]]
Modern [[injection moulding]] technology enables robust and safe plugs to be smaller than the [[Schuko]] and [[BS 1363]] systems, which were designed in the early- and mid-20th century respectively.<ref>{{cite web |title=Power plug & outlet Type N |url=https://www.worldstandards.eu/electricity/plugs-and-sockets/n/ |website=WorldStandards |access-date=23 February 2025}}</ref>

===BS 1363===
The IEC 60906-1 and [[BS 1363]] systems have some common safety features in that plugs and sockets are polarised, and that sockets are required to have shutters for the live and neutral pins. The IEC 60906-1 plugs are rated for up to 16 amperes, while the BS&nbsp;1363 plugs—which are larger—are rated for 13 amperes. The unfused IEC 60906-1 is incompatible with UK law which requires an appropriately-rated fuse in the plug to protect the attached flexible cord.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.beama.org.uk/asset/FEAC8E4C-F8BD-4B1D-9251BB1065347271/ |title=Guide to Low-Voltage Switch and Fusegear Devices, page 8 |website=BEAMA |access-date=13 January 2018}}</ref>

===Schuko===
[[File:Schuko plug inserted in CEE 7 1 ungrounded socket.jpg|thumb|right|Schuko plug partially inserted into a CEE 7/1 unearthed socket. The live pins are in contact while exposed. There is no connection for the earthing contact.]]
The IEC 60906-1 system also has advantages over the [[Schuko]] and [[CEE 7 standard AC plugs and sockets#CEE 7/5 socket and CEE 7/6 plug (French; Type E)|French systems]] currently used in most of Europe and large parts of Asia:

* The Schuko plug is larger; its face going into the socket has approximately twice the area of the IEC 60906-1 plugs (ca. 10&nbsp;cm<sup>2</sup> for the Schuko vs. ca. 4.6&nbsp;cm<sup>2</sup> for the earthed IEC 60906-1 plug and 3.8&nbsp;cm<sup>2</sup> for the non-earthed IEC 60906-1 plug).<ref name ="IEC60906-1"/>
* Shock hazard can occur due to mateability of the Class I (earthed) equipment with Schuko plugs being inserted into commonly used two pin (unearthed) sockets that lack protective-earth contacts. This can for instance be the case with the [[CEE 7 standard AC plugs and sockets#CEE 7/1 unearthed socket and CEE 7/2 unearthed plug|CEE 7/1 unearthed socket]], which has been or is currently being phased out in most countries, as well as with sockets that remain standard in some countries such as Denmark,<ref>{{cite web |title=Power plug & outlet Type K |url=https://www.worldstandards.eu/electricity/plugs-and-sockets/k/ |website=WorldStandards |access-date=23 February 2025}}</ref> India,<ref>{{cite web |title=Power plug & outlet Type D |url=https://www.worldstandards.eu/electricity/plugs-and-sockets/d/ |website=WorldStandards |access-date=23 February 2025}}</ref> Israel,<ref>{{cite web |title=Power plug & outlet Type H |url=https://www.worldstandards.eu/electricity/plugs-and-sockets/h/ |website=WorldStandards |access-date=23 February 2025}}</ref> and Thailand.<ref>{{cite web |title=Power plug & outlet Type O |url=https://www.worldstandards.eu/electricity/plugs-and-sockets/o/ |website=WorldStandards |access-date=23 February 2025}}</ref>

The French system (Type E) shares both these problems.<ref>{{cite web |title=Power plug & outlet Type E |url=https://www.worldstandards.eu/electricity/plugs-and-sockets/e/ |website=WorldStandards |access-date=23 February 2025}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; float:right; margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 9px;"
|+ Socket forms from SN 441011
|-
! !! Single phase,<br/>Earthed !! Three-phase,<br/>Earthed
|-
! 10 A
| [[File:SEV 1011 Typ 13 Steckdose einfach.jpg|rahmenlos|104x104px]]<br/>Type 13 || [[File:SEV 1011 Typ 15 Steckdose.jpg|rahmenlos|104x104px]]<br/>Type 15
|-
! 16&nbsp;A
| [[File:SEV 1011 single Type 23 wall socket.jpg|rahmenlos|104x104px]]<br/>Type 23 || [[File:SEV 1011 Typ 25 Steckdose.jpg|rahmenlos|104x104px]]<br/>Type 25
|}

===Swiss plug===

The earthed IEC 60906-1 plug (IEC designation "Type N")<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |url=http://www.iec.ch/worldplugs/typeN.htm |title=IEC - World Plugs: Plug Type N |access-date=17 April 2018 |archive-date=21 October 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131021004613/http://www.iec.ch/worldplugs/typeN.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> looks similar to the Swiss [[SN 441011]] type 12 plug (IEC designation "Type J") designed in 1937. However, the latter has smaller diameter pins (4.0&nbsp;mm), the earth pin is offset more (5&nbsp;mm), it is only rated for 10 A and the polarization is flipped. Therefore, there is no compatibility between these earthed 3-pin plugs.

The two types of plug systems also differ in that IEC 60906-1 plugs (both 2 pin unearthed and 3 pin earthed) always have been defined to have partially sleeved live and neutral pins, while the Swiss type 11 (unearthed) and type 12 (earthed) plugs formerly were allowed to be without partially sleeved pins. However, since 2013, only type 11 and 12 plugs with partially sleeved live and neutral pins are allowed to be imported and distributed in Switzerland to reduce the risk of electrical shocks.

===Italian plug===
{{multiple image
 | total_width = 200
 | image1=Italian socket P 11.jpg
 | image2=Brazilian 3-pins socket.jpg
 | footer=Side by side comparison of a reversible Italian CEI&nbsp;23-50 10&nbsp;A socket (left) and a non-reversible NBR&nbsp;14136 10&nbsp;A socket (right).
}}
The IEC 60906-1 is similar to the Italian plug CEI 23-50 10 A ("Type L"), with the same front profile shaped as a flat hexagon and the same position of the live and neutral pins (the centres spaced 19&nbsp;mm apart). However, the pins of the Type L 10 A are 4&nbsp;mm in diameter (as in the [[Europlug]]) and the earth pin is aligned with the two others (no offset is present), making the Italian plug unpolarised. Moreover, the Italian plug is rated for up to 10 amperes (although a 16-ampere version exists with different and incompatible size), while the IEC 60906-1 plugs are rated for 16 amperes.

==See also==
* [[AC power plugs and sockets]]
* [[Europlug]]
* {{slink|DC connector#IEC 60906-3:1994}}

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
*[https://webstore.iec.ch/publication/3882 IEC 60906-1] IEC system of plugs and socket-outlets for household and similar purposes - Part 1: Plugs and socket-outlets 16 A 250 V a.c.
* Brazilian Standard NBR 14136, July 2001.
* South African Standard SANS 164-2:2006.

== External links ==
* [http://www.iec.ch/worldplugs/ World plugs - information on the plugs, sockets and voltage used around the world] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130128184653/http://www.iec.ch/worldplugs/ |date=28 January 2013 }}, IEC
{{List of IEC standards}}

[[Category:Mains power connectors]]
[[Category:IEC 60906]]