I worked for biggest flash based USB drive and SD, CF micro SD cards manufacturer for long time.
Safety is very complicated. But simply said as the device operates less than the lower limit specified in LVD, it is not required, However GPSD may ask you for the report etc. on EMC front, it is required and such devices radiate. It is quite a challenge to isolate the emissions whether it is from USB drive or host computer or it 's this combination. It is also very interesting to study ESD immunity and pass/fail acceptance criteria. If you need further assistance Please reply me on this e-mail. [email protected]. Thanks, Sudhakar --- On Tue, 8/18/09, Douglas Smith <[email protected]> wrote: From: Douglas Smith <[email protected]> Subject: Re: Approvals Required for USB Flash Drive or "Thumb Drive" To: "Monrad Monsen" <[email protected]> Cc: [email protected] Date: Tuesday, August 18, 2009, 7:36 PM Hi Monrad and the group (from Austin, TX) I have seen a USB flash drive radiate at several hundreds of MHz due to a resonance in its physical structure and helped the client fix the problem. So I think the "company" you mention is not being diligent. Duog Monrad Monsen wrote: What EMC and safety approvals are required for USB flash drives or "thumb drives"? We are preparing to source for re-sell some USB flash drives from another company that tells us that they are exempt. They have a Declaration of Conformity (DOC), but no supporting test reports. This seems flaky to me on many levels. Looking at the "USB flash drive" article in Wikipedia, the devices would have a 12 MHz clock oscillator, so I can't merely say it is passive memory. However, could the USB flash drive still be excluded from the scope of the European Union EMC Directive 2004/108/EC as inherently benign equipment? See section 1.1.4 within the "Guide for the EMC Directive 2004/108/EC". (http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/electr_ quipment/emc/guides/emcguide_may2007.pdf) I would want the device tested for radiated emissions, as well as the EN55024 enclosure port immunity tests like RF radiated field immunity, ESD, and power frequency magnetic field immunity. I see that the LVD Directive 2006/95/EC limits its cope to equipment operating in the range of 50-1000VAC and a range of 75-1500VDC. (Article 1 of LVD Directive 2006/95/EC) However, "electrical components which are intended to be incorporated into other equipment and for which a risk assessment can be undertaken, such as transformers and electrical motors, are covered as such by the Directive and must be CE marked." (Section 9, "Guidelines on the Application of Directive 2006/95/EC") I would assume that this standard USB flash drive would fit this description. Please confirm what worldwide EMC and safety approvals and testing is required. I definitely plan to required some systems level EMC testing that includes the USB Flash Drive mounted on a server or PC, but I need to confirm what agency approvals are needed for the Flash Drive to be able to sell worldwide including the frequently regulated countries like USA, Canada, Europe (plus Turkey), Australia, Japan (VCCI), Taiwan, China, Russia, Argentina and Mexico. Thanks. -- Monrad L. Monsen Worldwide Compliance Officer Sun Microsystems [email protected] 303.272.9612 Office - ---------------------------------------------------------------- This message is from the IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society emc-pstc discussion list. To post a message to the list, send your e-mail to <[email protected]> All emc-pstc postings are archived and searchable on the web at http://www.ieeecommunities.org/emc-pstc Graphics (in well-used formats), large files, etc. can be posted to that URL. Website: http://www.ieee-pses.org/ Instructions: http://listserv.ieee.org/request/user-guide.html List rules: http://www.ieee-pses.org/listrules.html For help, send mail to the list administrators: Scott Douglas <[email protected]> Mike Cantwell <[email protected]> For policy questions, send mail to: Jim Bacher <[email protected]> David Heald <[email protected]> -- -------------------------------------------------------------- ___ _ Doug Smith \ / ) P.O. Box 1457 ========= Los Gatos, CA 95031-1457 _ / \ / \ _ TEL/FAX: 408-356-4186/358-3799 / /\ \ ] / /\ \ Mobile: 408-858-4528 | q-----( ) | o | Email: [email protected] \ _ / ] \ _ / Web: http://www.dsmith.org -------------------------------------------------------------- - ---------------------------------------------------------------- This message is from the IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society emc-pstc discussion list. To post a message to the list, send your e-mail to <[email protected]> All emc-pstc postings are archived and searchable on the web at http://www.ieeecommunities.org/emc-pstc Graphics (in well-used formats), large files, etc. can be posted to that URL. Website: http://www.ieee-pses.org/ Instructions: http://listserv.ieee.org/request/user-guide.html List rules: http://www.ieee-pses.org/listrules.html For help, send mail to the list administrators: Scott Douglas <[email protected]> Mike Cantwell <[email protected]> For policy questions, send mail to: Jim Bacher <[email protected]> David Heald <[email protected]> - This message is from the IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society emc-pstc discussion list. To post a message to the list, send your e-mail to <[email protected]> All emc-pstc postings are archived and searchable on the web at http://www.ieeecommunities.org/emc-pstc Graphics (in well-used formats), large files, etc. can be posted to that URL. Website: http://www.ieee-pses.org/ Instructions: http://listserv.ieee.org/request/user-guide.html List rules: http://www.ieee-pses.org/listrules.html For help, send mail to the list administrators: Scott Douglas <[email protected]> Mike Cantwell <[email protected]> For policy questions, send mail to: Jim Bacher <[email protected]> David Heald <[email protected]>
