FAKRA "FAchKReis Automobile" is an interface standard for the vehicle industry comprising of an SMB RF connector and colour-coded housing. FAKRA connectors are employed to support the complex communication and RF systems present in modern day vehicles. These systems include DSRC, GPS, WiFi, cellular, keyless entry, remote start, proximity sensors, and more. FAKRA is standardised under USCAR and ISO 20860 standards. The connectors are designed to fit 2.5 mm diameter cables such as RG174 and RG316, and 5 mm diameter cables such as RG58 and RG59.
History & Generations
FAKRA as a technology has evolved rapidly over the past few years, with each successive improvement considered a generation. Generational changes are outlined below:
- Generation 1.0: Consisted of a machined body and contact supplied with an unassembled housing. Hand tooled.
- Generation 2.0: Die-cast body, machined contact, and pre-assembled housing. Hand tooled.
- Generation 2.5: Die-cast body, stamped contact, and pre-assembled housing. Semi-automated tooling.
- Generation 3.0: Die-cast body, stamped contact, and pre-assembled housing. Automated tooling, some hand tooling remains.
- Generation 4.0: Fully stamped body, contact, and sleeve, supplied unassembled. Fully automated tooling.
Applications
The FAKRA interface standard assigns applications to a particular colour code, although as the number of communication systems inside modern vehicles far exceeds the number of colour codes available, the assignment is not strict. Applications include, GPS, DSRC, WiFi, GVIF, collision avoidance, LVDS, adaptive cruise control, remote technologies, and many more.
Variations
There are 14 different mechanical interfaces, each assigned a colour-code which corresponds to a particular application. All variations are provided in the below table.
Code | Application | Colour, RAL Code | Colour | Male (Plug) | Female (Jack) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
A | DAB/AM-FM | Jet Black, 9005 | |||
B | DAB with Power/AM-FM | Cream, 9001 | |||
C | GPS | TelematicsSignal Blue, 5005 | |||
D | Cellular | Claret Violet, 4004 | |||
E | TV/SDARS Terrestrial | Leaf Green, 6002 | |||
F | TV/SDARS Terrestrial/Camera | Nut Brown, 8011 | |||
G | Remote control/SDARS Terrestrial | Blue Grey, 7031 | |||
H | GPS Navigation | Heather Violet, 4003 | |||
I | Bluetooth/VPM | Beige, 1001 | |||
K | SDARS Satellite AM-FM | Curry, 1027 | |||
L | VPM | Carmine Red, 3002 | |||
M | RKE/TPMS | Pastel Orange, 2003 | |||
N | DSRC/VPM | Pastel Green, 6019 | |||
Z | Universal (Neutral) | Water Blue, 5021 |