Safety and functional safety | IEC

IEC 61508 allows for the development of a uniform technical approach that can be applied to all safety systems in electronics and related software. It is a ... Skiptomaincontent Home Wherewemakeadifference Fundamentals Safety Safetyandfunctionalsafety Safetyandfunctionalsafety EnsuringsafetyisoneofthekeyprinciplesguidingtheworkoftheIECwhilerecognizingthatzeroriskisnotpossible Safety Safetyisdefinedasthefreedomfromunacceptableriskofphysicalinjury,anditisanintegralaspectofallIECwork. Electricityisinherentlydangerousandelectrotechnicalequipmentrepresentsmanyrisksthatrequiremitigation.Thosecanbecausedbyelectricshock,hotsurfaces,movingpartsorhazardoussubstances,tonamebutafew. Theycanimpactpeople,criticalinfrastructure,economiesortheenvironment.TheIEChasadedicatedtechnicaladvisorycommitteeonsafety(ACOS)whichguidesandcoordinatesIECworkonsafetyinstandardizationandtogetherwithconformityassessmenthelpsensurethatsafetyissuesareproperlyaddressed. Withtheexpansionofintelligentsystemssuchasrobotics,theinternetofthingsorartificialintelligence,newandcomplexsafetyrequirementsareemerging.Theincreasingpresenceofmachinesinfactories,logistics,mobilityorhealthcare,requiresafetyprocedurestoprotectthepeopleinteractingwiththem.  Safetyinthefuture Advancedrobotics,artificialintelligence,theInternetofThingsaretransforminghowhumansandelectrotechnicalsystemsinterconnect. Readmore Functionalsafety Automaticallyreducethelevelofriskinadeviceorsystem Athome,atworkorinpublicspaces,wearesurroundedbyanincreasingnumberofelectricalandelectronicdevicesandsystems.Functionalsafetyfocusesonelectronicsandrelatedsoftwareandactivatesbuilt-insafetymechanismstoreducepotentialrisksthatcouldharmsomebodyordestroysomethingtoatolerablelevel.  Thesensorsinautomaticdoorsensurethattheyopenfastenoughandclosesafelybehindyou.Thedetectionofsmokebyasensortriggerstheactivationofawatersprinklersysteminsideanapartmentbuilding.Anoverflowvalveisactivatedwhenacertainlevelofliquidorpressurehasbeenreached. Image   The IEC61508 seriesprovidesfunctionalsafetystandardsforthelifecycleofelectrical,electronicorprogrammableelectronic(E/E/PE)systemsandproducts.Itaddressesthosepartsofadeviceorsystemthatperformautomatedsafetyfunctionsincluding,forexample,sensors,controllogic,actuatorsandmicro-processors. IEC61508allowsforthedevelopmentofauniformtechnicalapproachthatcanbeappliedtoallsafetysystemsinelectronicsandrelatedsoftware.Itisahorizontalstandardapplicableacrossawiderangeofsectors. Thestandardrequirestheanalysisofthepotentialrisksorhazardsofagivensystemordevice.Itprovidescategoriestodeterminetheleveloflikelihoodofapotentialhazardandtheconsequencesshoulditoccur.IEC61508definesfoursafetyintegrationlevels(SIL)toindicatethedegreetowhichasystemwillmeetitsspecifiedsafetyfunctions. FunctionalsafetyFAQ Hazardbasedsafetyengineering Hazard-basedsafetyengineering(HSBE)isamethodologyusedinthedevelopmentofsafetystandards. Safetyconsiderationsareanintegralpartofthedesignprocess.Risksmustbeidentifiedandmanagedattheearlystagesofproductdevelopment.Duetotheintegrationofelectronicdevices,audio,video,ITandcommunicationtechnologies,hazard-basedsafetyengineering(HSBE)hasbecomeincreasinglynecessary. WithHSBE,potentiallyhazardoussituationsareclearlyidentifiedandsafeguardsareputinplacetoincreaseproductsafety.Sincesafetyrequirementsareoutcome-basedratherthanprescriptive,HSBEwhichispartofIEC62368-1,canbeappliedtoawiderangeofsystemsanddevices. Functionalsafety AnintroductiontoFunctionalsafetyandtheIEC61508series. Readmore