Harmonization of national regulations
Since 1996, all electric and electronic equipment for sale on the European domestic market have to comply with EMC Directive 2004/108/EC and carry the CE marking. HBM ensures conformity of all HBM equipment by adhering to the EN 61326 product family standard which defines both the limits for electromagnetic interference and the test levels for electromagnetic immunity. Compliance with the requirements of this standard is ensured through testing in HBM’s accredited in-house EMC laboratory.

Electric protection measures
Electromagnetic environmental pollution, which has grown steadily over the past years, places ever increasing demands on the immunity to electromagnetic disturbances of measuring equipment. Potential sources of interference are:

• Radio equipment
• Mobile phones
• Solenoid valves
• Contactors
• Relays
• Welding equipment
• Power lines
• etc.

These sources of interference may cause electromagnetic fields which couple interference voltages into the respective measuring circuits inductively or capacitively through connecting cables and equipment housings and thus affect the way the equipment works.

It is essential to ensure that the equipment used in the system itself does not emit electromagnetic disturbances. Electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) which combines the concepts of required electromagnetic immunity or susceptibility (EMS) and permitted electromagnetic interference (EMI) has become increasingly more important over the past years. The electromagnetic interference and immunity of all electrical/electrotechnical components of the complete measuring chain are tested and technical safety issues are analyzed in HBM’s accredited in-house laboratory, thus ensuring that all normative requirements are satisfied. These tests have resulted in a shielding design which ensures that HBM equipment operates safely and failure-free, and that it does not emit any disturbances into the environment nor excessively load the mains power supply.