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Protection categories and protection classes
Protection categories
The protection category indicates suitability for different environmental conditions as well as the degree to which humans are protected against potential risks during use. According to DIN EN 60529 and DIN 40 050 the acronym IP stands for International Protection (or: International Safeguarding / International Protection Category).
Always including the letters IP, the protection category acronym is followed by two code numbers. If the two code numbers are not required or not supposed to be included, they are substituted by the letter X
1st code number: Protection against foreign objects and touch
2nd code number: Protection against water
Number 1
| Protection against foreign objects | Protection against touch | |
| 0 | no protection | no protection |
| 1 | protected against solid foreign objects with a diameter of 50 mm or more | protected against access with the back of the hand |
| 2 | protected against solid foreign objects with a diameter of 12.5 mm or more | protected against access with a finger |
| 3 | protected against solid foreign objects with a diameter of 2.5 mm or more | protected against access with a tool |
| 4 | protected against solid foreign objects with a diameter of 1.0 mm or more | protected against access with a wire |
| 5 | protected against dust in harmful quantities | complete protection against touch |
| 6 | dust-tight | complete protection against touch |
Number 2
| Protection against water | |
| 0 | no protection |
| 1 | protection against dripping water |
| 2 | protection against dripping water when the enclosure is tilted up to 15° from its normal position |
| 3 | protection against spraying water falling at an angle of up to 60° from the vertical |
| 4 | protection against splashing water from all directions |
| 5 | protection against water jets (nozzle) from any angle |
| 6 | protection against high-pressure water jets |
| 7 | protection against temporary immersion |
| 8 | protection against continuous immersion |
| 9 | protection against water during high-pressure / steam cleaning operations especially in agriculture |
When equipment is used in adverse conditions, additional factors – aside from protection class and protection category – need to be taken into account when selecting the equipment in order to guarantee trouble-free operation.
Protection class and protection category can be specified for electrical equipment.
Protection classes
The information on the protection class is used to identify the safety measures that are in place to prevent electric shock.
Protection classes only have an indirect impact in terms of environmental influences.
protection class I
products with protective earth wire
protection class II
products without protective earth wire
protection class III
products that can only be operated with protected extra-low voltage