Why Dust Test
Any electronic, lighting, mobile or automotive product is going to be exposed to airbourne dust over it’s life. If the product includes a fan, it’ll suck in large volumes of dust over it’s lifetime. Additionally, for products containing user interfaces such as keypads, buttons, or rotary dials dust can penetrate and prevent the actuation of these functions.
Another lesser thought about effect of dust build-up is increased heat generation. The dust will accumulate on to of the electronics providing a blanket comprised of microscopic particles. This blanket leads to increased running temperatures which will ultimately lead to shorter life on the affected components.
 |  |
| IP5X Test Chamber | IPX4 Test Chamber |
What IP54
Although IP Ratings can seem somewhat confusing, they play an incredibly important role in helping us understand which products are best suited to match their purpose in our buildings. IP stands for “Ingress Protection”, which refers to the protection that an electrical component has against external elements, such as dust or water. Each product is ranked by two separate digits, which individually symbolise the solid protection (ranked from 0-6) and liquid protection (ranked from 0-9K), with 0 standing for No Protection.
An IP54 rating means that your product will be protected against contamination from limited amounts of dust and other particles. Additionally, you can be confident that it will be protected from water sprays from all directions.
