Ingress Protection (IP) ratings are developed by the European Committee for Electro Technical Standardization (CENELEC) (described IEC/EN 60529), specify the environmental protection an enclosure provides.
The IP rating normally has two (or three) numbers:
- Protection from solid objects or materials
- Protection from liquids
- Protection against mechanical impacts (commonly omitted)
Example - IP Rating
With the IP rating IP 54, 5 describes the level of protection from solid objects and 4 describes the level of protection from liquids.
IP First number - Protection against solid objects
| 0 |
No protection. |
| 1 |
Protected against solid objects up to 50mm, e.g. accidental touch by hands. |
| 2 |
Protected against solid objects up to 12mm, e.g. fingers. |
| 3 |
Protected against solid objects over 2.5mm (tools and wires). |
| 4 |
Protected against solid objects over 1mm (tools, wire, and small wires). |
| 5 |
Protected against dust limited ingress (no harmful deposit). |
| 6 |
Totally protected against dust. |
IP Second number - Protection against liquids
| 0 |
No protection. |
| 1 |
Protection against vertically falling drops of water e.g. condensation. |
| 2 |
Protection against direct sprays of water up to 15° from the vertical. |
| 3 |
Protected against direct sprays of water up to 60° from the vertical. |
| 4 |
Protection against water sprayed from all directions o limited ingress permitted. |
| 5 |
Protected against low pressure jets of water from all directions o limited ingress. |
| 6 |
Protected against low pressure jets of water, e.g. for use on ship decks - limited ingress permitted. |
| 7 |
Protected against the effect of immersion between 15cm and 1m. |
| 8 |
Protects against long periods of immersion under pressure. |
IP Third number - Protection against mechanical impacts (commonly omitted)
| 0 |
No protection. |
| 1 |
Protects against impact of 0.225 joule (e.g. 150g weight falling from 15cm height). |
| 2 |
Protected against impact of 0.375 joule (e.g. 250g weight falling from 15cm height). |
| 3 |
Protected against impact of 0.5 joule (e.g. 250g weight falling from 20cm height). |
| 4 |
Protected against impact of 2.0 joule (e.g. 500g weight falling from 40cm height). |
| 5 |
Protected against impact of 6.0 joule (e.g. 1.5kg weight falling from 40cm height). |
| 6 |
Protected against impact of 20.0 joule (e.g. 5kg weight falling from 40cm height). |
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