Understanding IP Ratings
Describing the environmental protection that a product has from particles and liquids.
IP ratings (Ingress Protection) are an international standard established by the IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) and are an important indication of a devices suitability to operate in certain environments.
IP Ratings can be a valuable tool in determining whether the device would be rugged enough to suit the application it is intended for, this will minimise potential down-time or expensive replacements. They can be found on many handheld devices from pda’s to barcode scanners.
Each IP rating consists of two numbers, the first refers to 'particulate' protection and the second to 'liquids'.
Eg. IP65:
'6' = Dust tight. No ingress of Dust.
'5' = Protected against jets of water from any direction.
This table gives full details of current IP ratings:
| Protection against particles | Protection against water ingress |
|---|---|
0 - No protection |
 0 - No protection |
 1 - Protected against solid objects over 50mm (eg accidental touch by hands) |
 1 - Protected against vertically falling drops of water |
2 - Protected against solid objects over 12mm (eg. fingers) |
2 - Protected against direct sprays up to 15° from the vertical |
 3 - Protected against solid objects over 2.5mm (eg. tools and wires) |
 3 - Protected against direct sprays up to 60° from the vertical |
 4 - Protected against solid objects over 1mm (eg. tools and wires) |
 4 - Protected against direct sprays from all directions - limited ingress permitted |
 5 - Protected against dust - limited ingress (no harmful deposit) |
 5 - Protected against low pressure jets of water from all directions - limited ingress permitted |
 6 - Totally protected against dust |
 6 - Protected against strong jets of water eg. for use on ship decks - limited ingress permitted |
 7 - Protected against the effects of temporary immersion between 15cm and 1m. Duration of test 30 minutes |
|
 8 - Protected against long periods of immersion under pressure |
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