Articles from Elliott Laboratories Specialists
Practical Advice for Meeting the FCC's DFS Testing Requirements
By Juan Martinez and Tom Wetzel
The advent of the 802.11a wireless market and the constant push to open up new spectrum for unlicensed use created a requirement for dynamic frequency selection (DFS), a mechanism to allow unlicensed devices to share spectrum with existing radar sysÂtems. The regulatory requirements for DFS, along with requirements for transmit power control (TPC) and uniform channel loading have been adopted in the United States, Europe and Japan and are being considered by many other regulatory domains looking at adopting the 5GHz bands for unlicensed (and possibly licensed) devices.
Plastic Requirements for Product Safety Compliance
By Mike Campi
The usage of plastics in the product manufacturing process has become so commonplace that it has essentially eliminated the usage of many other traditional manufacturing materials. Today, everything from your laptop to your coffee maker to your home stereo are made with extensive use of various types of durable and moderately inexpensive plastics. However, when manufacturers begin to plan for compliance with their applicable Product Safety requirements, there are a number of factors that need to be taken into consideration with regard to the usage of plastics.
RoHS Is Here! (Are You Ready?)
by Don Ballard
RoHS (European Union Directive 2002/95/EC on the Restriction of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment) is a directive issued January 27, 2003 by the European Commission (EC). It directs European Union (EU) member nations to enact local legislation by August 13, 2004, which will implement the RoHS directive as regulatory requirements before the activation date of July 1, 2006.
A Look at Dynamic Frequency Selection (DFS) and the 5GHz Unlicensed Band
by Mark Briggs
The advent of the 802.11a wireless market and the constant push to open up new spectrum for unlicensed use created a requirement for Dynamic Frequency Selection (DFS), a mechanism to allow unlicensed devices to share spectrum with existing radar systems. The regulatory requirements for DFS, along with requirements for Transmit Power Control (TPC) and uniform channel loading have been adopted in the US, Europe and Japan and are being considered by many other regulatory domains looking at adopting the 5GHz bands for unlicensed, and possibly licensed devices. This article provides an overview of the current and proposed DFS requirements for Europe and the proposed DFS requirements for the US.
Originally published in Conformity Magazine
Basic Standard: IEC 60601-1-2 - Essential Performance, Risk Analysis and Immunity Testing
by David W. Bare
Product-specific knowledge and, in many cases, medical expertise are required to make an effective risk analysis that clearly identifies the essential performance and minimizes the number of functions and parameters that need to be evaluated for susceptibility to the EMC phenomena outlined in the second edition of IEC/EN 60601-1-2. The EMC test lab should be able to provide guidance in implementing a test plan based on the essential performance parameters and functions identified by the risk analysis.
Originally presented at the 2004 EMC Synmposium
Avoiding Regulatory Pitfalls When Integrating Wireless Modules Into Your Product
by Mark Briggs and Michael Derby [RFI Global Services Ltd.]
This article reviews the EMC and radio test requirements in the US, Canada and European Union for devices that incorporate wireless modules, with the aim of providing guidelines to assist in understanding the test and regulatory requirements for both the wireless function and the complete product.
Originally presented at 2004 the EMC Synmposium
Power Measurements of OFDM Signals
by Mark Briggs, Juan Martinez, and David Bare
This paper reviews the various methods used to make power measurements of OFDM signal for regulatory purposes and recommends suitable methods for production line measurements of 802.11a and 802.11g devices.
Originally published in Conformity Magazine
EMC for Medical Products
by David W. Bare
This paper presents assessment methods that are required by IEC 60601-1-2 that could affect product design. The definitions of "essential performance" and "risk analysis" are summarized. The EMC requirements of EN 60601-1-2 emissions and immunity tests are described.
Originally published in Conformity Magazine
