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A gladhand connector or gladhand coupler is an interlocking hose coupling fitted to hoses supplying pressurized air from a tractor unit to air brakes on a semi-trailer, or from a locomotive to railway air brakes on railroad cars. Gladhand connectors resemble a pair of "hands shaking" when interlocked, hence the name.
Design
Gladhands are designed to allow the driver to disconnect without a mechanic or tools. They sometimes utilize a quick release style to speed up brake release time. A tractor / trailer typically has two gladhands - one for service brakes and another for emergency brakes. Gladhands are color coded. Within the United States service lines are blue and emergency brake lines are red and are standardized by SAE J318. Where ISO standards are used, the Supply lines are Red and the Control Lines are Yellow per ISO 1728. The SAE "Service" lines are synonymous with the ISO "Supply" lines and the "Emergency" lines are synonymous with ISO "Control" lines
Mated rubber grommets provide a positive seal. Joined halves separate automatically when depressurized. Gladhand couplers are typically genderless or hermaphroditic, allowing them to be freely connected to each other, for example allowing either end of a railcar to be connected to the end of a train. North America has a system of standardized gladhand sizes.