New Safety Standard for High-Tech Products Accommodates Future

Designs and Technologies

Underwriters Laboratories

Introduction

On Jan. 10, 2010, IEC 62368-1 Ed 1.0: Audio/Video, Information and Communication Technology

Equipment – Safety Requirements, was approved as a Final Draft International Standard (108/325/FDIS) and has since been published as an International Standard. This development is due to nearly eight years of hard work and dedication by IEC TC108, the IEC technical

committee responsible for standards for safety of electronic equipment within the field of A/V, information technology and communication

technology.

The Origins of IEC 62368-1

• The explosion of multimedia technology over the past decade is erasing distinctions between products, and allowing for further integration

• Consumer electronics and IT equipment have become interconnected and interchangeable

• The committee management of IEC TC74 and TC92 recognized that it was no longer necessary to use two different safety standards to certify products

Formation of IEC TC108

• IEC TC74 and TC92 concluded that a new standard was needed to replace IEC 60065 for information technology equipment and IEC 60950-1 for A/V equipment.

• The two committees combined to form IEC TC108, Safety of Electronic Equipment within the field of A/V, Information Technology and Communications Technology

Committee Objectives

• Cover a broad range of products• Be technologically independent and stable• Formally address use by children• Clearly identify the hazard being addressed• Be performance-based, but allow proven prescriptive

construction options, as warranted• Be a type test standard, but not a simple merger of IEV

60065 and IEC 60950• Be useful to designers, but suitable to assess conformance

by suppliers, purchasers and certifiers• Allow for minimization of national/regional differences

Recent History

• First draft of new Standard, submitted in 2007 for formal vote, did not pass because of National Committee concerns

• A second draft was approved by narrow margin and published as an International Standard in Q1 2010.

• Formal implementation scheduled for 2015 to allow sufficient time for transition

The Characteristics of IEC 62368-1

• New terminology: differentiates it from the traditional standards of safety for other forms of electronic equipment

• Hazard-Based Criteria: classifies energy sources, prescribes safeguards against them and provides guidance on the application of and requirements for those safeguards

• The resulting requirements are either prescriptive performance-based requirements (preferred) or prescriptive construction-based requirements (alternate)

Implementation

The five-year transition allows the industry time to become familiar with the new Standard and even

develop a second edition that is more mature. This will enable manufacturers, suppliers, test houses,

certifiers and safety engineers to learn and apply the new requirements, and deploy the appropriate test

protocols and documentation.

Underwriters Laboratories’ Engagement

• UL has played a significant role in the development of IEC 62368-1 from the beginning

• UL and its customers are developing informational and educational tools and services in support of the transition to the new Standard

• Built to accommodate new designs and innovations, IEC 62368-1 is the future of the high-tech industry and UL is confident that implementation of the new Standard will benefit manufacturers and their bottom lines