Connector system with connection sensor

A connector comprising:

• a conductive contact;
• a receptacle shell having a mating end;
• at least one keyway in an outer surface of the receptacle shell, wherein the keyway is configured to receive a corresponding key of a corresponding connector;
• a sensor connected to a sensor lead termination, wherein the sensor is configured to generate one or more output signals triggered by a sensor trigger of the corresponding connector;
• and
• a sensor lead connected to the sensor lead termination, wherein the sensor lead is configured to communicate one or more of the output signal generated by the sensor to a controller.

A connector comprising:

• a conductive contact;
• a plug connector shell having a mating end;
• at least one key that is integral to the plug connector shell, and wherein the key is configured to operatively engage with a corresponding keyway of a corresponding connector;
• and
• a sensor trigger located within the key, wherein the sensor trigger is configured to trigger a sensor of the corresponding connector to generate one or more output signals.

A method of controlling signal distribution through a connector system, comprising the steps of:

• mating a first connector with a second connector, wherein the first connector includes a sensor, wherein the second connector includes a sensor trigger, and wherein mating the first connector with the second connector establishes a conductive connection between a first connector conductive contact and a second connector conductive contact;
• locking the first connector with the second connector;
• detecting a locked configuration of the connector system with the sensor and the sensor trigger;
• and
• controlling distribution of a signal between the first connector and the second connector.