#FCC certification
11 messages in this thread
Ron,
The FCC is short handed, like everyone else these days. They keep tabs
on the major manufacturers and act on others when there is a complaint or when
they happen to get some free time to check out what's available and not
certified.
Also, some manufacturers seem to intrepret the rules differently than
others (and the FCC) and don't seem to feel their products need certification
when in fact they do.
One very good example of this is C.Ltd themselves. Their first add-ons
were not certified. They claimed they didn't need to be, suddenly they started
showing up with FCC certification stickers on them. When asked about this, Ed
replied that they were informed that certification was needed. The implication
was that the FCC came down on them.
Don
I wonder, in very simple terms, what determines what has to be certified. If
you know, maybe you could post up a brief explanation?
Ron
If that were known, very few companies would have any problem at all deciding
what to get certified. It _is_ a gevernment agency after all.
-larry
Most of what isn't certified is supposed to be.
How's that<grin>
We did learn all about what they think should be certified, and it was brutal.
Basically anything that uses signals brought out of the machine (disk drives
etc.) or internal boards that break the units shielding (any board that brings
signals to the outside world). Several exceptions: signals less than 10khz,
switchboxes etc. don't need to be certified.
Mark
Ron,
In simple terms:
If it radiates RF energy and has an outside world connection…it has
to be certified. If it fits inside the RF shielding of a certified device, has
no outside world connections, and doesn't change the radiation characteristics
of the device in a significant manner…it doesn't need to be certified.
Joysticks don't radiate RF energy…so don't need to be certified. Disk
controllers do radiate energy and have outside world connections so have to be
certified. Likewise with external disk drives, hard or floppy. Memory cards
that go in the A2000 are in the grey area, memory cards that attach to the
A1000 or A500 side port need to be certified since they don't fit inside the
manufacturer's RF shielding.
Get the idea?
Don
Very good. After we learned the rules it was _amazing_ how much stuff isn't
certified. But they don't care if it radiates energy, just that it _could_. For
example, I could have a circuit that has a 1 mhz clock in it,thick groundplanes
and massive shielding. It might radiate 1 microwatt. But that doesn't matter, I
have to get it certified. You probably now this, but some companies say "I know
it's clean, I don't have to worry about it". Actually, that has little to do
with it.
Mark
Mark,
Right…the FCC doesn't give a hoot about what the manufacturer thinks
of the design and how clean it is…they want to test it to make sure. That's
the whole idea behind certification…to make sure the things the manufacturer
says are true…really are.
Don
Yes. So, if you had a 'hard card' that had no outside connection and did not
'change the radiation characteristics of the device in a significant manner' –
it would not need certification. Or an accellerator, etc, as long as all
requirements are met.
Ron
Anything with a “CPU'' must be tested.
#e6T6M3<GJ'/6>5^c7N[N~#aP A:W!^/WgPP20V*R6HW$h5gP4vvY-#FCC ch%3R
tion
These days thats almost every circuit board made!
Ron
Ron,
Assuming that you had a 'hard card' that did not have a CPU, that had no part
of it outside the main box, it would leave the final requirement that it
not 'change the radiation characteristics of the device in a significant
manner'. Think about this one a minute. A manufacturer builds such a device,
and decides that it does not change the radiation characteristics at all. The
FCC looks at it and says "Who tested this product?", waits for the answer, and
says "It needs to be tested by us.". If it's tested by them, and passes, then
it's certified, whether it needed to be or not. If it does not pass, then it
needs to pass and to be certified. There are three basic rules that you really
should memorize for those unfortunate times when you are dealing with a
government agency:
1. You can't win.
2. You can't break even.
3. You can't even quit the game.
-larry
Ron,
To my knowledge what nees to be certified includes (but is not
necesserally limited to). Any board that contains a processor, any board that
has an external connection, ie. cable, open hole for switch access, ect. and
just about any board that produces any harmonics in the 60-80 Mhz range.
-Dean