Where found:
American Samoa, Anguilla, Antigua, Aruba, Bahamas, Bangladesh,
Barbados, Bermuda, Bolivia, Brazil, Cambodia, Canada, Cayman Islands, China (without
holes in blades and slightly shorter blades), Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, El
Salvador, Guam, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Japan, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia,
Maldives, Mexico, Micronesia, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, Nicaragua, Niger, Okinawa, Panama, Peru,
Philippines, Puerto Rico, St. Vincent, Saudi Arabia, Tahiti, Taiwan,
Thailand, United States,
Venezuela, Vietnam, Virgin Islands (U.S.& British), Yemen.
Commentary:
- This plug and receptacle
are technically known as NEMA 1-15 (North American
15 A/125 V ungrounded).
Standardized by
the U.S.
National Electrical Manufacturers
Association[7]
and adopted by 38 other countries, this
simple plug with two flat parallel pins, or
blades, is used in most of
North America and on the east coast of
South America on devices not requiring a
ground connection, such as lamps and
"double-insulated" small appliances. NEMA
1-15 sockets have been prohibited in new
construction in the United States and Canada
since 1962, but remain in many older homes
and are still sold for replacement use only.
Type A plugs are still very common because
they are compatible with type B sockets.
Early designs
could be inserted either way, but some
modern plugs make the neutral blade wider
than the live blade; so that a polarized
plug can be inserted only one way. New
polarized plugs will not fit in old type A
sockets, but both old and new type A plugs
will fit in new type A and type B sockets.
- A
similar plug and receptacle commonly
foundin Japan is technically known as
JIS C 8303, Class II (Japanese
15 A/100 V ungrounded).
The Japanese
plug and socket are identical to NEMA 1-15.
However, the Japanese system incorporates
stricter dimensional requirements for the
plug housing, different marking
requirements, and mandatory testing and
approval by Japanese standards agencies.
Some older
Japanese outlets and multiplug adapters are
non-polarized -- the slots in the sockets
are the same size - and will only accept
non-polarized plugs. Japanese plugs should
be able to fit into modern North American
outlets without trouble, but North American
appliances with polarized plugs may require
adapters or replacement non-polarized plugs
to connect to older Japanese outlets; or
even replacement of the wall socket itself.
Type B - North American 3-pin
Flat blades with round grounding pin
Where found:
All of the above noted for Type A except Bangladesh,
Bolivia, Cambodia, China, Dominican Republic, Korea, Liberia, Maldives, Peru, St. Vincent, Tahiti,
Thailand, Vietnam, Yemen.
Also found in Azores, Belize, Trinidad and Tobago.
Commentary:
- This plug and receptacle
are technically known as NEMA 5-15 (North American
15 A/125 V grounded)
The type B plug has two flat
parallel blades like type A, but has a round ground or earth
pin. It is rated for 15 amperes at 125 volts. The ground pin
is longer than the live and neutral blades, so the device is
grounded before the power is connected. The neutral blade in
the Type B socket is wider than the live one to prevent
polarized Type A plugs being inserted incorrectly. Type B
plugs often have both pins narrow since the ground pin
enforces polarity.
Looking directly at a type B
outlet with the ground at the bottom, the neutral slot is on
the left, and the live slot is on the right. They may be
installed with the ground at the top or on either side. In
new residential construction since about 1992, a 20-amp
receptacle with a T-slot for the neutral blade allows either
15-ampere parallel blade plugs or 20-ampere plugs to be
used.
Japan also uses a Type B plug
similar to the North American one.
However, it is less common than its Type A
equivalent.
http://kropla.com/!ab.htm
-- Updated
28 June 2008
Copyright © 1996-2008 Steve Kropla
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