Multimedia Equipment, emission requirements standard EN 55032 held up due to errors.

Back of audio mixer at bull and gate London (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The CEN-CENELEC Management Centre (CCMC) was informed that a considerable number of errors were discovered during the publishing phase of the new EMC standard for multimedia equipment, CISPR 32:2012. The procedure has been endorsed by CENELEC as EN 55032:2012 (dor = 3/5/12). It has been noted that the document submitted for vote was the correct text however.

While the IEC is investigating possible options for correcting the matter, CCMC is informing of the errors and working with the IEC toward a speedy resolution to enable CENELEC members to implement corrections at the national level. The CCMC has also posted a note to the CENELEC website / database informing of this error.

The CCMC will not yet offer EN 55032:2012 to the European Commission for citing in the Official Journal. The intended listing was for the EMC and Radio and Telecommunication Terminal Equipment ( R&TTE)  Directives.

Furthermore the Technical Committee will request that the Date of Withdrawal (DOW) be extended from dor+36 months to dor+60 months.

EN 55032:2012 has a broad scope and applies to multimedia equipment (MME) having a rated r.m.s. AC or DC supply voltage not exceeding 600 V. Equipment within the scope of CISPR 13 (EN 55013) or CISPR 22 (EN 55022) is within the scope of EN 55032. Multimedia equipment intended primarily for professional use is also within the scope of EN 55032.

The term “dor” refers to the date of ratification, and is the date when the technical board notes the approval of a European Norm (EN), at which time the standard may be said to be adopted.

Ref:

CENELC Project : EN 55032:2012

CENELEC Guide 19

FCC running out of Grantee codes

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The availability of new FCC issued grantee codes is critically low, and the FCC will soon run out. Today the Commission voted to expand the code from 3, to 5 digits by amending Sections 2.925 and 2.926.

Each product certified to the FCC rules must carry an FCC ID, as an example look on the back of your electronic device for “FCC ID:xxx1234”. This identifier consists of a grantee code making up the first 3 digits, and an applicant assigned unique product code composed of from 1 to 14 additional alpha-numeric characters, dashes or hyphens.

Each entity seeking to obtain a grant of equipment authorization from the FCC, must first obtain the unique grantee code assigned by the FCC. This three digit format uses alpha numeric characters, excluding 0 and 1 in a way that would provide for over 30,000 unique combinations.

This FCC identifier system was introduced in 1979. In 1999, 440 grantee codes had been issued that year. In 2001, 635 grantee codes were issued, and in 2011 the number had increased to 1275 unique grantee codes issued per year.

Given the rate of grantee code issuance, the FCC will soon run out of unique codes. To extend this deadline, the FCC had been recycling old unused grantee codes, however this was only a temporary solution. Today the Commission approved a vote to extend the code to 5 digits. This will provide approximately 8,000,000 unique combinations.

Entities that currently have a 3 digit grantee code may keep the code, but new applicants will be assigned the new 5 digit grantee code approximately 30 - 60 days from the order’s publication in the federal register.

Ref:
Open Commission Meeting June 13, 2012

FCC Extends commenting period for some draft publications

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The OET (Office of Engineering and Technologies) agreed to extend the commenting period for a number of Draft Knowledge Data Base publications, also known as KDBs,  until June 30, 2012, after receiving and reviewing a number of requests for such an extension.

This extension amounts to an additional 30 day review period. The FCC commented that given the number of different KDB guidance documents, it would be useful for all parties to take more time to review and comment.

Following are the affected draft KDBs;

- General RF Exposure Guidance (447498)

- SAR Evaluation consideration for LTE Devices (941225)

- SAR Measurement, Compliance Reporting, 100 MHz to 6 GHZ (865664)

- SAR Evaluation Considerations for Handsets with Multiple Transmitters (648474)

- SAR Evaluation Considerations for Laptop, Notebook, Netbook (616217)

- TCB Exclusion List (628591)

- Permit But Ask List (388624)

- RF Exposure Evaluation Considerations for Occupational Push-to-Talk Two-Way Radios (643646)

New R&TTE and EMC Standards List Published in OJ

New Harmonized standards lists have been published in the Official Journal of the European Union for the Radio and Telecommunication Terminal Equipment(R&TTE) Directive and the EMC Directive.

R&TTE Directive Standards List

EMC Directive Standards List

Wireless handset hearing aid compatibility standard adopted

Hearing aid types (300dpi) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The FCC has formally adopted ANSI C63.19 2011 as an applicable technical standard for evaluating the hearing aid compatibility of wireless phones.

As specified in the Second Further Notice, the new rules permit the use of either ANSI C63.19 2007, or ANSI C63.19 2011  for the testing of new handset models. All existing grants issued under the 2007 standard, as well as any pre-2010 grants remain valid, thus, no existing handset models will require retesting or recertification for hearing aid compatibility.

A 12 month transition period has been adopted for testing of multi-band and multi-mode handsets that incorporate operations which are not covered under the 2007 ANSI Standard. The Report and Order recognizes that as the new rules become effective, some manufacturers will be in production cycles where it will be impractical to return to a testing cycle for upcoming multi-band or multi-mode handsets under the 2011 ANSI Standard. Specifically, during the transition period, and as an alternative to using the 2011 standard, manufacturers may certify handsets as hearing aid compatible if they meet all compatibility criteria under the 2007 ANSI standard for all operations covered by that standard, providing they meet the disclosure requirements set forth in the order. After the transition period, all new handsets that contain operations not covered by the 2007 version will need to comply with the 2011 ANSI standard.

The Report and Order makes it clear that evaluations performed partly under one version of the ANSI standard, and partly under another, is incompatible with existing rules, thus manufacturers must test exclusively with one of the applicable versions.

Ref;

http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2012/db0409/DA-12-550A1.pdf

http://www.emcrules.com/2011/11/hearing-aid-compatibility-for-wireless.html

$12,000 “Dollar” Forfeiture Order

SAN Control Tower (Photo credit: Peter Kaminski)

San Diego, California; FCC issues a forfeiture order in the amount of $12,000 to DTG Operations Inc., (d/b/a Dollar Rent-A-Car), after receiving complaints from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regarding intermittent interference to three ground control frequencies used by air traffic controllers at San Diego’s International Airport.

During investigation by FCC Enforcement Bureau’s San Diego Office, agents discovered the source of the interference signal to be emanating from a transmitter on a Dollar airport shuttle bus. Upon discovery, the manager of the Dollar facility immediately took the radio transmitter out of service.

In Response to an earlier Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture (NAL), Dollar requested that the fine be reduced because the violation was “an unintentional mistake,” which Dollar readily admitted, and because Dollar cooperated fully in the investigation. It was noted in the forfeiture order however that a reduction was not warranted.

For some information on the FCC enforcement process see “Enforcement Primer” on the FCC.gov web site. The legal firm Fish & Richardson has an article on their web site that gives a brief rundown on the process, as well as figures on Equipment manufacturer violations. Although the web page’s focus is on equipment violations associated with marketing rules and technical standards,  and not necessarily on the misuse of approved radio communication devices, the steps in enforcement are essentially the same.

Ref;

http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2012/db0404/DA-12-536A1.pdf

http://www.fcc.gov/

How Important is enhanced Amateur Radio Communications?

An example of an Amateur Radio Station (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In a public notice released Monday, The FCC Wireless Telecommunications Bureau and Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau seek comments on the importance of the enhanced Amateur Radio Communications service, also inquiring as to any impediments of the service , with an example being "the effects of unreasonable or unnecessary private land use restrictions on residential antenna installations"

This inquiry is a product of the mandated study on utilization of Amateur Radio in emergencies and Federal regulation of private land use restrictions on amateur antennas, included in the “Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012” signed into law February 22, 2012.

The study asks two distinct questions, “Importance of emergency Amateur Radio Service communications” and “Impediments to enhanced Amateur Radio Service communications.”

The report cites several recent examples from the American Radio Relay League on the importance of amateur radio operators during disaster, such as  when amateur radio operators provided storm observations and damage reports to the National Weather Service when winds and tornadoes moved through Arkansas and Alabama in January 2012, and provided communications to villages along the Bering Sea when a November 2011 severe winter storm knocked out power lines and communications.

The commenting period is only 45 days, ending on May 17th, 2012. commenting is open to interested parties via the Commission’s Electronic Comment Filing System (ECFS). The report urges commenting parties to organize their comments using specific guidelines provided within the public notice.

 

 

Ref;

http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2012/db0402/DA-12-523A1.pdf

http://www.arrl.org/news/payroll-tax-bill-includes-provision-for-amateur-radio-study

http://www.arrl.org/news/hams-in-arkansas-and-alabama-help-provide-assistance-to-nws-during-severe-sunday-storms

http://www.arrl.org/news/when-brutal-storm-slams-alaska-hams-provide-critical-communications