A touchscreen toaster and a portable fabric microwave “bag” were just some of the many new and connected household appliances to attract headlines at this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Add to that the stir fry robot, the artificial intelligence (AI) - powered refrigerator and transparent television, and it is clear that the future of households is about going smart.
Household appliances have been evolving since they first appeared on the market in the early 1900s, and improvements in battery technologies, for example, have enabled cordless appliances such as vacuum cleaners and electric knives to adorn our homes. But it is the Internet of Things (IoT) that has been the biggest game changer in recent years, in more ways than one.
By the end of 2024, it is estimated that there will be more than 207 billion connected devices in the world, and a significant chunk of them will be household appliances. Connected appliances such as ovens, cookers and washing machines with pre-programmed settings and more intuitive functions are set to increase and evolve, making appliances more efficient and personalized. Now there are apps that can send cooking instructions straight to the oven, for example, or turn on the washing machine at times when electricity is cheaper.
Ensuring safety
Being connected, however, isn’t a guarantee that something won’t go wrong. Appliances still need built-in safety features such as anti-jam functions on toasters or auto-shutoff mechanisms if the product gets too hot or malfunctions.
In most jurisdictions, household appliances are subject to strict safety regulations to prevent fires and other hazards that could cause harm to users. But accidents still do happen, due to a range of causes including defective or very old products that no longer meet safety regulations and, of course, misuse.
International standards and conformity assessment (CA) play a significant role in appliance safety as they provide globally agreed technical specifications and requirements designed to ensure a minimum level of performance and safety. IECEE, the IEC System of Conformity Assessment Schemes for Electrotechnical Equipment and Components, ensures that IEC Standards for household appliances are actually applied properly.
The IEC 60335 series of standards is the international reference for ensuring safety in household appliances. (Read The intelligence of appliances in e-tech).The series covers a long list of household appliances including refrigerators, washing machines, dishwashers, hairdryers, microwave ovens and the humble toaster. Yet the principle behind the standards remains the same: that the product functions as it should, and safely.
Moving with the times
Claudia Sirch is Chief Engineer, Global Engineering at the leading Total Quality Assurance provider Intertek and a member of the IECEE Peer Assessment Committee.The IEC 60335 series, she said, has changed dramatically since it was first published in 1970. “Now 50 years later we are on the sixth edition, and it features significant changes and additions such as those related to cyber security, and new requirements for battery operated products”.
As kitchen appliances get smaller and smaller to save bench space, for example, battery technology has evolved with it, and lithium is used more and more because it is light and has a greater power capacity. But lithium batteries don’t come without risks. If they fail they can cause explosions and fires, as was seen in a number of e-scooters recently. It is estimated that 1,5% of lithium-ion batteries are linked to overheating, explosion or fire incidents each year. “This is why it is always important that manufacturers test their products to the latest versions of the standard, so that these risks are taken into account,” said Sirch.
Cyber security, a key priority
Increased connectivity means increased risks of cyber attacks which can manipulate functions such as temperature limits that are designed to keep you safe. Just as manufacturers and retailers must ensure products perform as intended, they must also design products that meet new and evolving safety implications of products which operate with such connected capability.
Which is why IEC 60335 was also updated to include new cyber security requirements. The intention is to safeguard against unauthorized access and its potential consequences on user safety. The IEC 60335 series is also referenced in many laws, such as the EU directives, meaning compliance with the standards presumes conformity to the law.
As technology and thus safety requirements become more complex, the demand for evidence of safety rises and hence the requirement for testing and certification.“We are seeing a lot more retailers, particularly those that are large and multinational, make recognized safety certificates a prerequisite for products to be sold on their shelves,” added Sirch.
The importance of certification
IECEE offers the IECEE HOUS Certification Body Test Certificate (CBTC) Scheme for household appliances to provide such evidence. The scheme works whereby the IECEE national certification body (NCB) arranges that a registered and qualified CB testing laboratory (CBTL) carries out the relevant tests based on the applicable IEC Standards and issues a test report. This is then reviewed and validated by the NCB who then issues a CBTC.
These certificates are then recognized by other NCBs in other countries without retesting, thus facilitating international trade and saving time and money, all the while ensuring the product is safe and functions correctly.
The adoption of the IEC 60335 series and the recognition and implementation of the IECEE HOUS CBTC provides a high degree of assurance to national authorities that these appliances are safe. It also helps to prevent counterfeit or low-quality products being imported and/or coming on the market.
Jing Bian, Chair of the IECEE Peer Assessment Committee and Technical Director at the China Quality Certification Center (CQC), recognizes that the IEC has established its reputation in the era of traditional safety and still plays a leading role in this aspect.
“Thanks to the wide adoption of IEC Standards, only appliances meeting relevant standard requirements can get into the market. It is through the IECEE and CB test certificates that IEC Standards are accepted and adopted as basis for national standards in many countries. Since 2001, IECEE has issued over 1,6 million CB test certificates and among them 373 000 are for household appliances.”
To ensure any of cyber security risks are best addressed, IECEE also offers the IECEE cyber security certification programme to test and certify the cyber security of electrotechnical products and systems in the electrotechnical sphere. It recently added the widely used cyber security standard specifically for consumer IoT to its scheme. ETSI EN 303 645 specifies high-level security and data protection provisions for consumer IoT devices. Included in its scope are connected toys and baby monitors, smart TVs and speakers, connected appliances and more.
“With the introduction of ETSI EN 303645, we expect IECEE can better meet the market needs, and at the same time drive faster development of IEC Standards to encompass a more comprehensive safety concept,” Bian concludes.
This story was originally featured in the last issue of e-tech magazine published by IEC, and is only reproduced here with their kind permission. The original version can be found here.