All You may remember I raised the issue of whether the levels for ESD testing cited in IEC & EN 61326-1 in controlled environments were correct. The attached is the reply I received from the Convenor of the appropriate working group at the IEC.
Ian Gordon P Please consider the environment before printing this email. There are 10 types of people in this world: those that understand binary and those that don't ________________________________ From: Jaekel, Bernd [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: 27 May 2009 16:32 To: Gordon,Ian Cc: Bradfield Nick; Matei Cocimarov; [email protected] Subject: For attention of the committee responsible for IEC 61326-1 - ESD test level Dear Ian Gordon, please find my answer on your question "Sir There seems to be a typographical error in Table 3 of the above standard where the levels specified for ESD testing in controlled environments are given as 4kV/8kV (air/contact). However the level for the same test given in Table 1 which refers to Basic Immunity Requirements is only 4kV/4kV (air/contact). This seems wrong since the controlled EM environment would be inherently less severe. Is this correct? " as follows: The entry in Table 1, stating a test level of 4kV/4kV (air/contact) discharge is correct. This level was already given in the previous edition of IEC 61326-1:2005, i.e. in IEC 61326:2002. Table 1 states the minimum requirements for equipment. Table 3 states the requirements for equipment intended to be used in a controlled environment. Controlled environment, however, does not necessarily mean that there the levels are always comparable or lower than the basic requirements, as not all phenomena might be controlled with respect to their occurrence or their amplitudes. The paragraph below Table 3 says for example: "The manufacturer shall state that equipment fulfilling the requirements in Table 3 is designed to operate in a controlled electromagnetic environment, i.e. where r.f. transmitters such as mobile telephones may not be used in close proximity." hence focussing mostly at the phenomenon of high frequency electromagnetic fields. Working group 4 (WG 4) of SC 65A which is responsible for IEC 61326-1 has meanwhile identified the situation that a user of the standard could be confused by this kind of contradiction, which indeed is none as controlled does not necessarily mean that also all ESD events are controlled in any case. Therefore WG 4 is considering and discussing this point during the current maintenance on IEC 61326-1 and will give some more information in the next edition of IEC 61326-1 (i.e. the 2nd edition). With best regards, Dr. Bernd Jaekel (Convenor of SC 65A WG4) Technical Director EMC-Center / Standards and Regulation Siemens AG Industry Sector - EMC Center I IA SE DE EMC Guenther-Scharowsky-Str. 21 91058 Erlangen, Germany Tel.: +49 (9131) 7-33037 Fax: +49 (9131) 7-25007 Mobile: +49 (152) 22951121 mailto:[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> Siemens Aktiengesellschaft: Chairman of the Supervisory Board: Gerhard Cromme; Managing Board: Peter Loescher, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer; Wolfgang Dehen, Heinrich Hiesinger, Joe Kaeser, Barbara Kux, Hermann Requardt, Siegfried Russwurm, Peter Y. Solmssen; Registered offices: Berlin and Munich, Germany; Commercial registries: Berlin Charlottenburg, HRB 12300, Munich, HRB 6684; WEEE-Reg.-No. DE 23691322 ________________________________ Von: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] Gesendet: Mittwoch, 27. Mai 2009 16:44 An: Matei Cocimarov; [email protected] Cc: Bradfield Nick; [email protected]; Jaekel, Bernd Betreff: AW: Fw: For attention of the committee responsible for IEC 61326-1 Betreff: Fw: For attention of the committee responsible for IEC 61326-1 Datum: Wed, 27 May 2009 16:00:50 +0200 Von: Matei Cocimarov <[email protected]> An: [email protected] Dear Mr Kohling, Could you please, further to the question bellow, give us your advice. Thank you in advance and Kind Regards, Matei Cocimarov IEC CO Technical Officer Tel.: +4122/919 02 37 The World of IEC The IEC is the world leading organization that prepares and publishes International Standards for all electrical, electronic and related technologies – collectively known as "electrotechnology". The IEC also administers three global conformity assessment systems, IECEE, IECEx and IECQ,for testing, certification and approval of equipment, systems and components to its International Standards. Wherever you find electricity - >from generation, transmission and distribution, through industrial automation, healthcare, transport, multimedia in the home, to the battery in your phone - you will find theWorld of IEC supporting the environment, safety, performance, and efficiency ----- Forwarded by Matei Cocimarov/CO/IEC on 2009-05-27 15:59 ----- "Gordon,Ian" <[email protected]> 18.05.2009 13:40 To <[email protected]> cc Subject For attention of the committee responsible for IEC 61326-1 Sir There seems to be a typographical error in Table 3 of the above standard where the levels specified for ESD testing in controlled environments are given as 4kV/8kV (air/contact). However the level for the same test given in Table 1 which refers to Basic Immunity Requirements is only 4kV/4kV (air/contact). This seems wrong since the controlled EM environment would be inherently less severe. Is this correct? Ian Gordon 15 Marshall Road, Eastbourne, East Sussex BN22 9BA Tel: 01323 501147 Fax: 01323 509824 Ian Gordon | EMC Engineer | Edwards Limited | Registered in England & Wales No.6124750 | Registered office: Manor Royal, Crawley, West Sussex RH10 9LW P Please consider the environment before printing this email. There are 10 types of people in the world-those who understand binary and those who don't. ________________________________ The contents of this email and any attachments are confidential and are provided solely for the use of the intended recipient(s). If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any copying, disclosure, distribution, or use of this e-mail, its attachments or any information contained therein is unauthorized and strictly prohibited and you should please contact the sender immediately and delete this e-mail and any attachments from your system. 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