EMC and functional safety, impact of IEC 61000-1-2

The IEC Technical Specification called: "Methodology for the achievement of functional safety of electrical and electronic equipment with regard to electromagnetic phenomena" is clarified. This document is based on the work of three Technical Committees of the IEC: TC77 with regard to the EMC aspects, SubCommittee 65A with regard to the basic safety considerations and TC 56 with regard to the assessment methods. It is a good example of the co-ordination between several IEC TCs. The document makes a clear distinction between "operational immunity", the ability of equipment to function without a degradation of performance and "functional safety" or freedom from an unacceptable risk of harm to health or property. Practical examples increase the understanding of the proposed methodology. The impact cannot yet be established entirely. Examples are that meanwhile CENELEC and the British IEE have prepared guidance documents with reference to the IEC 61000-1-2. Furthermore recent discussions on the IEEE e-mail forum on product safety show a growing interest in the subject.