Type 2 connector

The IEC 62196 Type 2 connector (commonly referred to as Mennekes) is used for charging electric cars within Europe. The connector is circular in shape, with a flattened top edge and originally specified for charging battery electric vehicles at 3–120 kilowatts. Electric power is provided as single-phase or three-phase alternating current (AC), or direct current (DC). In January 2013 the IEC 62196 Type 2 connector was selected by the European Commission as official charging plug within the European Union.

Cars are fitted with a standardised male vehicle inlet, whilst charging station are fitted with a female outlet, either directly on the outside of the charging station, or via a flexible cable with permanently attached connector on the end. A charging station with a permanently fixed cable can be attached directly into the vehicle inlet, similar to using a petrol pump and when no fixed cable is available, a separate male-to-female cable is used to hook up the vehicle either using the charging station, or from a traditional IEC 60309-2 industrial connector.

The Type 2 connector system was originally proposed by Mennekes in 2009 leading to the colloquial name of Mennekes. The system was later tested and standardised by the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) as VDE-AR-E 2623-2-2, and subsequently recommended by the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) in 2011. As of 2015^[update], Type 2 is intended to replace the previous vehicle connectors used for AC charging within the European electric vehicle network, displacing both SAE J1772 and EV Plug Alliance Types 3A and 3C. For DC charging, the Combo 2 socket (Type 2 supplemented with 2 DC pins) shall become standard in cars, replacing Type 4 CHAdeMO. The transition period is scheduled to last until 2020.

...
Wikipedia