The new versions of the standards have superseded their predecessors and became mandatory on December 1, 2013. New products shipped into the European Union must now comply with the newer versions of the standards.
EN55022, based on CISPR-22, is the international version that has been adopted by most of the world, including the United States (at least in part). This standard covers radiated emissions, conducted emissions on the AC Mains, and conducted emissions on communications lines, such as Ethernet. EN55024, is the European equivalent of CISPR-24, the international standard for immunity requirements. It is mostly a European requirement with some countries having adopted the immunity standards (such as Taiwan, Korea, and others). The immunity testing called for is electrostatic discharge (ESD), radiated immunity, electrically fast transients (EFT), voltage surge, conducted disturbances, power-frequency magnetic field, and voltage dips and interruptions.
The new requirements represent the latest update to these EMC standards. Although the limits for emissions and the levels for immunity have not changed, some of the underlying test methodologies have been changed to reflect the changing technologies within the ITE sector, primarily for communications interfaces such as Ethernet. Requirements for radiated emissions testing above 1 GHz have also been added to EN 55022, where in the past, this has always been a North American requirement only.
The standards are meant to mitigate the risk of IT equipment interfering with other devices through electromagnetic emissions, as well as ensure IT equipment does not encounter interference from other devices. These standards allow a manufacturer to show compliance with the essential requirements of the EMC Directive (2004/108/EC) and are a legal requirement of the CE mark.
Companies in the information technology industry shipping equipment to the EU should begin using the new standards for compliance testing. Companies purchasing information technology equipment for use in the EU on or after December 1 need to ensure the equipment has been tested and is compliant with these new standards.
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