IEC 60320 C15

IEC 60320 Appliance couplers for household and similar general purposes is a set of standards from the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) specifying non-locking appliance and interconnection couplers for connecting power supply cords to electrical appliances up to 250 volts. Different types of connector (distinguished by shape and size) are specified for different combinations of current, temperature and earthing requirements. Unlike IEC 60309 connectors, they are not coded for voltage; users must ensure that the voltage rating of the equipment is compatible with the mains supply.

The first edition of IEC 320 (later renumbered IEC 60320) was published in 1970.

Appliance couplers enable the use of standard inlets and country-specific cord sets which allow manufacturers to produce the same appliance for many markets, where only the cord set has to be changed for a particular market. Interconnection couplers allow a power supply from a piece of equipment or an appliance to be made available to other equipment or appliances. Couplers described under these standards have standardized current and temperature ratings.

Each type of coupler is identified by a standard sheet number. For appliance couplers this consists of the letter "C" followed by a number, where the standard sheet for the male appliance inlet is 1 higher than the sheet for the corresponding female cable connector. Many types of coupler also have common names. The most common ones are IEC connector for the common C13 and C14, the figure-8 connector for C7 and C8, and cloverleaf connector or Mickey Mouse connector for the C5/C6. Kettle plug is a colloquial term used for the high-temperature C16 appliance inlet (and sometimes, wrongly, for the mating C15 female connector). "Kettle plug" is sometimes mistakenly used to refer to regular temperature-rated C13 and C14 connectors, which should not be used with heating appliances.

Detachable appliance couplers are used in office equipment, measuring instruments, IT environments, and medical devices, among many types of equipment for worldwide distribution. Each appliance's power system must be adapted to the different plugs used in different regions. An appliance with a permanently-attached plug for use in one country cannot be readily sold in another which uses an incompatible wall socket; this requires keeping track of variations throughout the product's life cycle from assembly and testing to shipping and repairs.

...
Wikipedia