Ingress Protection (IP) Testing

IPX3 Testing

Ingress protection (IP) testing is a type of testing that measures the ability of device enclosures to withstand exposure to dust, water, and other solid objects. Testing is performed in accordance with the international standard IEC 60629. It is used to determine the level of protection that an enclosure offers against the ingress of liquids, as well as objects of varying sizes, to ensure that the device will continue to function when exposed to environmental factors.

IP testing is broken up into two main test categories: Solid Ingress testing and Liquid Ingress testing. All device enclosures are rated for both solid and ingress protection, which are presented in the format “IPXY”, where X is the solid ingress rating, and Y is the liquid ingress rating. For example, a device enclosure rated for IP56 implies an IP5X Solid ingress rating, and an IPX6 liquid ingress rating. Quest can perform all of the IP tests listed below.

Quest Engineering Solutions has years of experience performing IP testing on products of all sizes, ranging from handheld devices to large cabinets. Please contact Quest for all your IP testing needs.

IP Standard Codes

Indented List Example

Water Ingress Codes

  • IPX1: Protected against falling water equivalent to 3-5mm rainfall per minute for a duration of 10 minutes.
  • IPX2: Protected against falling water when tilted up to 15 degrees – Same as IPX1 but unit is tested in 4 fixed positions – tilted 15 degrees in each direction from normal operating position.
  • IPX3: Protected against spraying water – Water spraying up to 60 degrees from vertical at 10 liters/min at a pressure of 80-100kN/m2 for 5 min.
  • IPX4: Protected against splashing water – Same as IPX3 but water is sprayed at all angles.
  • IPX5: Protected against water jets – Water projected at all angles through a 6.3mm nozzle flow rate of 12.5 liters/min at a pressure of 30kN/m2 for 3 minutes from a distance of 3 meters.
  • IPX6: Protected against heavy seas – Water projected at all angles through a 12.5mm nozzle at a flow rate of 100 liters/min at a 100kN/m2 pressure for 3 minutes from a distance of 3 meters.
  • IPX7: Protected against water immersion – Immersion for 30 minutes at a depth of 1 meter.
  • IPX8: Protected against water submersion – Equipment suitable for continual submersion in water under conditions as specified by manufacturer.
Solid Ingress Codes

Solid Ingress Codes

  • IP1X: Protected against solid foreign objects of 50 mm diameter and greater.
  • IP2X: Protected against solid foreign objects of 12.5 mm diameter and greater.
  • IP3X: Protected against solid foreign objects of 2.5 mm diameter and greater.
  • IP4X: Protected against solid foreign objects of 1.0 mm diameter and greater.
  • IP5X: Dust-protected – Ingress of dust is not totally prevented, but dust shall not penetrate in a quantity to interfere with satisfactory operation of the apparatus or to impair safety.
  • IP6X: Dust-tight – No ingress of dust.

Part 1 of IP Testing Table

Water\SolidNoneNot-knownHandFinger
NoneIP00IPX0IP10IP20
Not-knownIP0XIPXXIP1XIP2X
DrippingIP01IPX1IP11IP21
Dripping/TiltIP02IPX2IP12IP22
SprayingIP03IPX3IP13IP23
SplashingIP04IPX4IP14IP24
Water JetIP05IPX5IP15IP25
Powerful JetIP06IPX6IP16IP26
Immerse<1mIP07IPX7IP17IP27
Immerse>1mIP08IPX8IP18IP28

Part 2 of IP Testing Table

Water\SolidToolWireDustDust-tight
NoneIP30IP40IP50IP60
Not-knownIP3xIP4XIP5XIP6X
DrippingIP31IP41IP51IP61
Dripping/TiltIP32IP42IP52IP62
SprayingIP33IP43IP53IP63
SplashingIP34IP44IP54IP64
Water JetIP35IP45IP55IP65
Powerful JetIP36IP46IP56IP66
Immerse<1mIP37IP47IP57IP67
Immerse>1mIP38IP48IP58IP68

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