I've been developing a project with a sensor and an arduino. The sensor is at the end of a 6ft bit of wire. So far in my prototypes I've just been soldering wires straight to the board. Now that I am ready to produce 10 or so of these, I'd like to have the sensor wire be removable from the arduino and its shields (just in case I need to switch out an arduino without disturbing the sensor).
I'm looking for suggestions on what would be the best type of connector for a situation like this. I've got multiple setups, where the sensor has 2 wires, 3 wires and 4 wires, but ideally I'd like to use the same solution for each.
I've used JST connectors in the past, and I like them, but they are a pain in the a** to put together yourself, and I can't find anywhere cheap to buy some pre-made.
I've also considered using 3.5mm stereo plugs, but these aren't going to solve my conductor situation I don't think.
Anyway, any suggestions would be great (and where I could source them...cheaply!!).
Thanks, going to go with RJ-11 for the time being. Crimper looks reasonably priced, parts easily (and locally) available, and pre-made cables easy to get.
Rj-11 is a great option. Just be aware that the quality of your crimp connection CAN negatively impact your readings.
As an aside, note that because of the identical wire gauge, you can use ONE rj45 on your arduino, ONE cat5-6 cable then terminate at the other end with 1-4 sensors. You can also easily terminate with an rj-45 into a home made breakout box that has 1-4 rj-11 jacks for adding more sensors on the fly or connecting longer cables. You can google for low voltage amplifier circuits and throw one of those in the breakout box so you can add distance without reducing the sensitivity of your sensors!
Be aware that pre-made RJ cables come in two varieties, "flipped" (or "rolled") and "straight through"
This is an issue when daisy chaining, using junction boxes etc.
I've just settled on using RJ11 6/6 for a network with nodes that have two sockets for easy daisy chaining, I have decided that the nodes have to be polarity independent otherwise there's too much scope for a stuff up.