IEC 62196


IEC 62196 Plugs, socket-outlets, vehicle connectors and vehicle inlets – Conductive charging of electric vehicles is a series of international standards that define requirements and tests for plugs, socket-outlets, vehicle connectors and vehicle inlets for the conductive charging of electric vehicles. It is published by the International Electrotechnical Commission and is developed and maintained by its technical committee TC23 subcommittee SC23H.
Accessories together with their cable assemblies provide physical connections between electric vehicle supply equipment and electric vehicles.
Accessories have contacts that conduct electricity, and according to ISO62196 most connectors also provide additional contacts that support specific functions that are relevant to charging of electric vehicles, e.g. to ensure that power is not supplied unless a vehicle is connected and is immobilized.
Several parts of this series of standards have been published as European Standards, which in turn have been published as British Standards. Similar requirements are contained in SAE J1772, which is widely applied in the United States.

Published standards

The following parts of the IEC 62196 series have been published:
  • Part 1: General requirements
  • Part 2: Dimensional compatibility requirements for A.C. pin and contact-tube accessories
  • Part 3: Dimensional compatibility and interchangeability requirements for D.C. and A.C./D.C. pin and contact-tube vehicle couplers
  • Part 3-1: Vehicle connector, vehicle inlet and cable assembly for DC charging intended to be used with a thermal management system
  • Specification 62196-4: Dimensional compatibility and interchangeability requirements for DC pin and contact-tube accessories for Class II or Class III applications
  • Part 6: Dimensional compatibility and interchangeability requirements for DC pin and contact-tube vehicle couplers for DC EV supply equipment where protection relies on electrical separation
Specification 62196-7: Vehicle adapter is in development, as well as other specifications and updates.

IEC 62196-1 General requirements

Contents

IEC 62196-1 provides a general description of the interface between an electric vehicle and a charging station as well as general mechanical and electrical requirements and tests for plugs, socket-outlets, vehicle connectors and vehicle inlets that are intended to be used for EV charging. It does not describe specific designs, which can be found in the other parts of the standard.

History

The first edition, IEC 62196-1:2003, was published in 2003. This edition was applicable to plugs, socket-outlets, connectors, inlets and cable assemblies for AC and DC charging of electric vehicles with rated voltages and rated currents as follows:
  • AC: up to 690 V, up to 250 A
  • DC: up to 600 V, up to 400 A.
Typical connectors and inlets that were built according to this edition of the standard used spring-loaded butt contacts and were made by Avcon and Maréchal Electric.
The second edition, IEC 62196-1:2011, was published in 2011. One significant change was the increase of the maximum voltage of connectors, inlets and cable assemblies for DC charging to 1500 V. The development of this edition was coordinated with the first edition of IEC 62196-2, which describes several configurations of pin-and-sleeve contacts for AC charging.
The third edition, IEC 62196-1:2014, was published in 2014. One significant addition was the general description of a “combined interface” as used by the Combined Charging System. The development of this edition was coordinated with the first edition of IEC 62196-3, which describes connectors and inlets for DC charging.
The fourth edition, IEC 62196-1:2022, was published in 2022. This edition includes additional requirements for contact materials and plating, makes changes to the temperature rise test to include additional points of measurement, and includes additional tests for accessories to address thermal stresses and stability, mechanical wear and abuse, and exposure to contaminants. Rated AC and DC voltages and currents in IEC 62196-1:2022 are as follows:
  • AC: up to 690 V, up to 250 A
  • DC: up to 1,500 V, up to 800 A
The fifth edition, IEC 62196-1:2025, was published in 2025. This edition adds new tests for latching and retaining of connectors and type 4 accessories.

IEC 62196-2 Dimensions for AC accessories

Contents

IEC 62196-2 extends IEC 62196-1 and describes specific designs of plugs, socket-outlets, vehicle connectors and vehicle inlets that are intended to be used for AC charging of electric vehicles in the modes 1, 2 and 3 as described by IEC 61851-1. The specific designs are grouped into three configurations.
The designs are described with sufficient detail to allow compatibility between products of different manufacturers.

Configurations

IEC 62196-2 describes three different designs with different configurations and dimensions which support:
  • single-phase charging at up to 16 A, without control pilot contact,
  • single-phase charging at up to 32 A,
  • three-phase charging at up to 63 A.
Each design includes male and female connectors, generally arranged as
  1. a socket-outlet on the electric vehicle supply equipment
  2. a plug on one end of the cable
  3. a connector on the opposite end of the cable
  4. a vehicle inlet on the EV itself
The EVSE may be a tethered station, in which case the cable is permanently attached and only the latter two interfaces are relevant. In Europe, untethered stations may be offered, where the cable is detachable and all four interfaces are present.

Type 1

This configuration consists of a vehicle coupler.
Because the original design was made by the manufacturer Yazaki and first published in SAE J1772, it is colloquially known as the Yazaki connector or J1772 connector.
It features a round housing, which has a notch on the vehicle inlet for proper orientation, with five pin-and-sleeve contacts for two AC conductors, a protective conductor and two signal pins that are used for the control pilot function and for proximity detection. When inserted into the vehicle inlet, the connector is held in place by a mechanical latch, which is part of the connector.
IEC 62196-2 describes this configuration with an operating current up to 32 A, allowing a maximum current of 80 A only for applications in the US, where this higher operating current is also described by SAE J1772.
This configuration only supports single-phase charging. It is widely used in the US and Japan.

Type 2

This configuration consists of a plug and socket-outlet that support charging in mode 3, as described in IEC 61851-1, and a vehicle coupler, consisting of vehicle connector and vehicle inlet, that supports charging in modes 2 and 3.
Because the original design was made by the manufacturer Mennekes, it is colloquially known as the Mennekes connector. It features a round housing, which is flattened on one side for proper orientation, with up to seven pin-and-sleeve contacts for up to four AC conductors, a protective conductor and two signal pins that are used for the control pilot function and for simultaneous proximity detection and current coding. By design, the contacts can not be touched by the standardized test finger. Since the second edition of the standard, additional touch protection of the contacts can optionally be provided by shutters. When inserted into the inlet, the connector is held in place by the locking mechanism, which is attached to the inlet. The same concept is used by the socket-outlet to hold the plug in place.
IEC 62196-2 describes this configuration with operating currents up to 63 A, allowing a maximum current of 70 A only for single-phase applications.
Configuration type 2 differs from the first proposal by Mennekes that was presented in the German standard VDE-AR-E 2623-2-2 that was published in 2009 and withdrawn in 2012, when the German version of IEC 62196-2:2011 became available. Pins and sleeves were swapped between the inlet and the connector and the dimensions were slightly changed.
Another similar but different design is described by the Chinese standard GB/T 20234.2.
Within the European Union, regulation requires all public AC charging stations to be equipped with a type 2 socket-outlet or a type 2 connector.

Type 3

This configuration generally consists of a socket-outlet and plug.
Because the original design was made by the manufacturer Scame, it is colloquially known as the Scame connector. Typically, Type 3C is encountered on charging infrastructure because it provides a shutter to prevent touching the contacts, which is a requirement for publicly-accessible EVSE in 12 European countries.
It features an oval housing, which is flattened on two sides for proper orientation, with up to seven pin-and-sleeve contacts for up to four AC conductors, a protective earth conductor and one or two signal pins that are used for simultaneous proximity detection and current coding and, where present, for the control pilot function. When inserted into the vehicle inlet, a lug on the connector is held in place by the cap covering the vehicle inlet, similar to the mating of IP44 IEC 60309 connectors. The same concept is used by the socket-outlet to hold the plug in place.

History

The first edition, IEC 62196-2:2011, was published in 2011.
The second edition, IEC 62196-2:2016, was published in 2016. The most significant change was the introduction of optional shutters for configuration type 2.
The third edition, IEC 62196-2:2022, was published in 2022. Interchangeability requirements were removed from the title and the standard was aligned with new editions of IEC 62196-1, IEC 62196-3 and IEC 61851-1.
The fourth edition, IEC 62196-2:2025, was published in 2025. Tests for latching devices were added and standards sheets were corrected.