I would recommend using the limits for a SELV circuit for the lower limit of the LVD.
The voltage between any two conductors in the equipment, or any conductor and ground should not exceed 42.4 V peak or 60 V d.c. These are voltages that are considered safe to touch. These voltages should not be exceeded under normal operating conditions or after a single fault. A device that meets these requirements should not need the LVD applied. The official version is available from the European Commission, Directorate General. Text from their document follows. -------------------- INDUSTRY GUIDELINES ON THE APPLICATION OF COUNCIL DIRECTIVE 73/23/EEC The Directive applies to all electrical equipment designed for use with a voltage rating of between 50 and 1000 V for alternating current and between 75 and 1500 V for direct current. Voltage ratings refer to the voltage of the electrical input or output, not to voltages which may appear inside the equipment. Battery operated equipment outside the voltage rating is obviously outside the scope of the LVD. Nevertheless, the accompanying battery-charger as well as equipment with integrated power supply unit within the voltage ranges of the Directive, are in the scope of the LVD. This applies also, in the case of battery operated equipment with supply voltage rating under 50 V AC and 75 V DC, for their accompanying power supply unit (e.g. Notebooks) -------------------- Ted Eckert Regulatory Compliance Engineer American Power Conversion Corporation [email protected] The items contained in this e-mail reflect the personal opinions of the writer and are only provided for the assistance of the reader. The writer is not speaking in an official capacity for APC nor representing APC’s official position on any matter. Please respond to [email protected] To: [email protected] cc: (bcc: Ted Eckert/SDD/NAM/APCC) From: [email protected] on 01/13/2000 08:44 AM Subject: LVD voltage range.
Hello all, Does a hand-held field device that operates mainly on 12Vdc from a group of batteries and alternatively uses an AC/DC adapter need to be assessed for safety according to the LVD? I read somewhere that for LVD the DC voltage should be between 75 and 1500V. Does this mean that such a device does not need to be evaluated for safety at all ? A client is awaiting a response from me in a couple of hours so I would appreciate any views on this matter. Thanks for your usual co-operation. John Whitfield Safety Engineer Rhein Tech Labs --------- This message is coming from the emc-pstc discussion list. To cancel your subscription, send mail to [email protected] with the single line: "unsubscribe emc-pstc" (without the quotes). For help, send mail to [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], or [email protected] (the list administrators).
