Water-Wash, Process-Sealed, IP67 Switch Seal Rating
Water-Wash, Process-Sealed, IP67 Switch Seal Rating
Definition of IP Codes (Ingress Protection):
IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) 60529 Standards document specifies an international Classification system for the sealing effectiveness of enclosures of electrical equipment against the “Intrusion into the equipment of foreign bodies and moisture”.
1. Degrees of Protection – First Digit
6 Dust-tight
2. Degrees of Protection – Second Digit
7 Protection against effects of immersion from 15cm to 1m (6″ to 40″).
Based on the above, our standard for defining a “process-sealed” switch is “sealed to meet the minimum requirements of IP-67”.
This means that a switch rated to IP-67 is “Dust-tight” and will pass a water submersion test at 40″ (1m), for up to 30 minutes.
Due to the variables encountered in actual water-wash machine processing, IP67 does not necessarily insure that water entry into the switch cannot occur.
The water-wash pressures and air-knife drying that occurs in modern pcb machine-washing can exceed the seal requirements of the IP-67 rating.
.png)
Ingress Protection
Ingress protection tells how much the structure of the Switch provides protection against solid objects and water.
1. First Digit: Protection against Solid Objects
| Code | Level of protection | |
|---|---|---|
| 0 |  |
No protection against entry of dust or dirt. |
| 1 |  |
Round test object with 50-mm diameter will only partially enter the interior. |
| 2 |  |
Round test object with 12.5-mm diameter will only partially enter the interior. |
| 3 |  |
Round test object with 2.5-mm diameter will not enter the interior. |
| 4 |  |
Test object with 1.0-mm diameter will not enter the interior. |
| 5 |  |
No dust or dirt that would affect the correct operation of the device or safety will enter the interior. |
| 6 |  |
Dust and dirt will not enter the interior. |
2. Second Digit: Protection against Liquids
| Code | Level of protection | Test method outline (test performed using pure water) |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | No protection | No protection against entry of water | No test | |
| 1 | Protection against water drops |
No harmful effects from vertical water drips | By using water drip tool vertically and dropping water for 10 min |  |
| 2 | Protection against water drops |
No harmful effects of water drips from vertical direction when the enclosure is tilted at 15° from its normal position | By using water drip tool, moving it at an angle of 15°, and dripping water for 10 min (2.5 min per direction) |  |
| 3 | Protection against water spray |
No harmful effects of water spray at any angle up to 60° from the vertical direction | By using the tool shown on the right, and spraying water vertically at angles up to 60° for 10 min |  |
| 4 | Protection against water splash |
No harmful effects of water splash from all directions | By using the tool shown at the right, and splashing water from all directions for 10 min |  |
| 5 | Protection against water jets |
No harmful effects of water jets from all directions | By using the tool shown on the right, and jetting the water from all directions to the object surfaces for 1 m2/min, for at least 3 min total. |  |
| 6 | Protection from strong water jet |
No harmful effects of strong water jets from all directions | By using the tool shown on the right, and jetting the water from all directions to the object surfaces for 1 m2/min, for at least 3 min total. |  |
| 7 | Protection against submersion in water |
No harmful effects from submersion in water to a certain level of pressure and length of time | Submerge to 1 m depth in water (when device height is 850 mm or less) for 30 min |  |
This does not imply that the device can be operated under water.
Standard switches are often IP40. Sealed switches are often IP67.
■
