Peter, the initial and most important point would be to define the appropriate European standard. I do not know exact what luminaries you are using for your ballast for, but EN61046 DC or AC supplied electronic step-down converter for filament lamps might be appropriate.
To your questions: PCB board- the standard refers to EN60249 Basis material for PCB boards. My understanding is, that FR4 material fulfils the requirements. It does not require European or UL approval. The standard EN61046 requires a humidity test (similar to IEC60950). Leads- The standard does contain a clause to require European or UL approved leads. Nevertheless, the voltage rating and wire size has to be appropriate. Of course, having the right approval will make things easier. You might have to describe the insulation, thickness, material of the leads in the safety critical component list. Dielectric testing- the standard (table 2) specifies 1500 V a.c. dielectric testing for primary to secondary. It insists on AC testing. (clause 13.1) . Please take in consideration, that a IEC60950 will require 3000 V a.c. or 4200 V d.c. , which is much harder. Fuse- the standard defines the abnormal testing in clause 16. It does not require a built in fuse, as long as the abnormal testing will be passed. The European mark for ballast might be the ENEC mark, which is strictly based on the standard. The GS-mark is also appropriate, but is based on the German law of safety AND the standard. The GS mark also addresses points like handling, manual, appropriate installation and is therefore with additional requirements. Ten years ago it was very important to select the right mark, today ENEC or the GS mark from any European test house should not be any disadvantage for marketing in Europe. With best regards Horst -----Ursprüngliche Nachricht----- Von: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]]Im Auftrag von Tania Grant Gesendet: Donnerstag, 3. Mai 2001 05:15 An: Peter Merguerian; '[email protected] ' Betreff: Re: Stuck in Germany! Peter, And which standard is it that has all these requirements specified! I've had some unfortunate experiences some time back with German test houses demanding that all sorts of unexpected compliances be met. I very firmly and politely asked them to show me just where and in which standard these requirements are stated. After some back and forth verbal negotiations, they came back to say that it is not in the standard but that is still a requirement, etc., "...and it is the right thing to do...!" My response was that these mandatory requirements should be stated in writing up front rather than surprising their clients later on in the investigation. I persisted and finally they relented. I am not saying that in this case these requirements are not justified (I know nothing of ballast lamps!) But you certainly should be more assertive in finding out where these requirements are coming from. My other suggestion (and too late for you) is not to deal with German test houses if at all possible. I believe there is a harmonized standard for luminaires (or is that only for household use?) that might enable you to go through other test houses in Europe. Tania Grant [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> ----- Original Message ----- From: Peter Merguerian Sent: Wednesday, May 02, 2001 4:14 PM To: '[email protected] ' Subject: Stuck in Germany! Dear All, I have submitted an electronic ballast (ballast designed for building-in and provided with pigtail leads used for installation at the base of road lamps) to a reputable German test house for investigation and the following points were discovered: 1. PCB is not European approved!!! I convinced them (do not know how!) that a UL Recognized board is OK to use. 2. Leads are UL and must be approved to a European Standard by a European test house. Tried for half an hour to convince them that the ballast is designed for international usage and UL Listed or Recognized leads would be sufficient. They insist that the leads must be European approved. Question: Anyone knows of manufacturers of leads which are UL and also approved by a European test house? 3. Ballast fails a hipot of 1500 Vac. Told them to conduct test at 2121 Vdc (1.4 x Vrms) because of the filtering but they insisted that luminaire standards always require a test with an ac applied voltage. Was unable to convince that most standards allow the use of an ac or a dc voltage equal to the 1.4 x Vrms. Question: Anyone knows of a quick way (other than the autobahn) through the German Appeals Procedure? It took 4 months just to begin the tests!. I do not wish to wait another year for the Appeal! 4. In the case of faults within the ballast, they require a fuse or other overcurrent protective device within the ballast and not to rely on the main 16 A breaker on the road lamp installation. I told them that the ballast installation instructions specify an overcurrent protective device between the main 16 A breaker and the power supply input. They are still requring a fuse or fuselink within the ballast. Question: Anyone with a similar problem? Thanks to All, PETER MERGUERIAN -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] To: [email protected] Sent: 5/2/01 3:29 PM Subject: FW: EN 41003:1999 Hi Zohar: The Scope of EN41003 reads: "This standard applies to equipment designed and intended to be connected to a TELECOMMUNICATIONS NETWORK termination. It does not apply to equipment covered by EN60950." Therefore, equipment intended to connect to the network that is not ITE (for example Test and Measuring, Process Control, Laboratory equipment, and whatever others) should use EN41003 for the requirements to be applied to the network connection. As internet applications proliferate, more and more product categories other than ITE will likely need to use these requirements. Although EN41003 references EN60950 in a number of areas, not all of the EN60950 clause 6 requirements are referenced, and EN41003 adds a few other requirements. Also, EN41003 has an interesting Annex C which describes why telecommunication voltages which exceed "safe to touch limits set within general safety standards" are actually "electrically safe". I hope that helps some. Richard Payne Richard Payne Tektronix, Inc. Product Safety Engineering Ph: (503) 627-1820 Fax: (503) 627-3838 email: [email protected] -----Original Message----- From: Zohar Zosmanovich [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Wednesday, May 02, 2001 3:20 AM To: '[email protected]' Subject: EN 41003:1999 Hello to all, Any one familiar with EN 41003:1999 standard, if yes, where is it applicable? Does EN 60950/IEC 60950 covers EN 41003 requirements? Zohar (Jana) Zosmanovich Compliance Engineer, RADWIN ltd. 34 Habarzel St., Tel Aviv 69710, Israel Tel.: 972-3-7666735 ; Fax: 972-3-7657535 Email: <mailto:[email protected]> ------------------------------------------- This message is from the IEEE EMC Society Product Safety Technical Committee emc-pstc discussion list. Visit our web site at: http://www.ewh.ieee.org/soc/emcs/pstc/ To cancel your subscription, send mail to: [email protected] with the single line: unsubscribe emc-pstc For help, send mail to the list administrators: Michael Garretson: [email protected] Dave Heald [email protected] For policy questions, send mail to: Richard Nute: [email protected] Jim Bacher: [email protected] All emc-pstc postings are archived and searchable on the web at: http://www.rcic.com/ click on "Virtual Conference Hall," ------------------------------------------- This message is from the IEEE EMC Society Product Safety Technical Committee emc-pstc discussion list. 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