The Dossert MICON is the basic element of a connector assembly for joining 2 to 18 or more electrical cables where a fully insulated, watertight electrical connection is required. It is essentially a pre-insulated bus bar to which cables are connected by means of mechanical cable receptacles in such a manner as to facilitate insulating the joints and making future changes. Its use lies mainly with secondary distribution networks but is not limited to this application. Use of the MICON eliminates considerable field labor. More reliable connections are obtained as cable crotches are eliminated.

The body of the MICON is a copper bus bar of hard drawn high strength copper having an electrical conductivity of not less than 98% I.A.C.S. The bar is of hexagon shape having drilled and tapped holes with contact faces at each outlet position. The bus or core of the connector is covered with a high quality molded rubber insulation without seams and with a minimum insulation thickness of 0.220 inches. Holes in the insulation with molded tubular projections are provided at each outlet position. The cable receptacle, either type MA or CKS is inserted through the tubular projection and screwed into the bus core making contact on the threads and on the contact face. The tubular projections permit easy taping with a simple winding motion and, this can be done directly over the cable receptacle or over a telescoping sleeve.

The component which attaches the cable to the MICON is called the cable receptacle. The most popular type, is type NA which is a mechanical connector that is screwed into the body of the MICON and which receives and connects the cable. The cable clamping element is a tapered sleeve which compresses on the conductor as it is driven into the matching tapered hole in the body of the connector as the gland nut is tightened. There is a tremendous overall mechanical advantage in this connector because of the compounding of the mechanical advantage in the screw of the gland nut with the low angle taper of the sleeve. The result is an extremely secure and reliable joint.

The tapered sleeve is slotted in such a way to provide minimum resistance to compression and to assure even radial contact pressure on the conductor. The slots are numerous and of narrow width so that a single strand cannot be caught in a slot and prevent proper compression. The inside of the tapered sleeve has carefully designed serrations for maximum efficiency electrically and mechanically. Each sleeve is used for one conductor size only. A broad range of conductor sizes are available and only the tapered sleeve need be changed to accommodate a cable within the range of conductor sizes for a given MA unit.

To install the type MA cable receptacle it is necessary to connect the MA body to the MICON. This is accomplished by inserting the threaded stud of the MA body into the tapped hole in the MICON id tightening with an ordinary wrench. The cable is then connected to the cable receptacle. This is usually done by placing the gland it and the tapered sleeve on the conductor after the insulation has been stripped. The end of the conductor is then placed in the socket and the gland nut is tightened. It is very important that the tapered sleeve be positioned flush with the end of the conductor. If space does not permit this method of assembly the tapered sleeve and gland nut can be assembled in the connector and the gland nut screwed in ntil it is just finger tight. Then the end of the conductor is placed in the socket and the tapered sleeve. The cable is measured so that the end will come flush with the end of the tapered sleeve. 'he gland nut is then tightened with a wrench.

An alternate method of connecting the cable to the MICON is by use of the type CKS compression cable receptacle. Similar to the type MA receptacle, the type CKS has a threaded stud which screws into the MICON body. The other end, however, is a compression sleeve in which the cable is inserted and indents made with a standard compression tool. As with all other compression connectors the type CKS cable receptacle cannot be reused or readjusted after the indents have been made.

The MICON is furnished in six basic styles - MC, MCA, MCB, MCC, MCD,, and MCE each with current ratings of 1500, 2000, 2500, and 3000 amperes. The ampere ratings are based upon the maximum current permitted to pass through the minimum cross section of the MICON conducting body. The minimum cross section of the MICON would constitute that section which would be formed if one were to take a saw cut directly across the MICON at the center of one of the outlet positions. By proper orientation of the line and load cables, current carrying capacities considerably greater than the ampere ratings of the MICON can be obtained. The ideal arrangement of cables would be to have a line cable feed an outlet and have a load cable, on the same center line but in the directly opposite, adjacent outlet, conducting current away from the MICON connector. Any arrangement approximating this arrangement will still permit a current carrying capacity in excess of the MICON rating. The least desirable arrangement would be to have the feeder and load cables oriented in such a manner so as to cause

total current to pass through the minimum cross section of the MICON. Under such an arrangement the total current must not exceed the MICON rating.