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The
EAS
industry has been active for over 30 years, during which time
approximately 1 Million Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) systems have been installed
in retail stores, libraries, office buildings, and hospitals around the
world. The equipment is in
such widespread use that it can be safely said that millions of people
have been working near, and passing through, these systems billions of
times.
As
with all products with which the general public regularly come into
contact, there are sometimes questions asked about those producs and their
safety. This page gives examples of the various regulations and
standards, with which EAS products may comply.
In
Europe, there is Directive 1999/5/EC on “radio
equipment and telecommunications terminal equipment and the mutual
recognition of their conformity” (Official Journal L91, 07/04/1999);
or Directive 73/23/EEC on “the harmonisation of the laws of Member
States relating to electrical equipment designed for use within certain
voltage limits” (Official Journal L77, 26/03/1973), as appropriate
for the Country and frequency of operation; and application of the
product. Both
of these Directives include safety requirements. Compliance may be demonstrated using the following European Standards and Recommendations:
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EN
60950:1992+Amendments,
“Safety of information technology equipment, including electrical
business equipment”, Official Journal of the European
Communities, C62 09/03/2002
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EN
50357:2001, “Evaluation
of human exposure to electromagnetic fields from devices used in
Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS), Radio Frequency Identification
(RFID) and similar applications”
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EN
50364:2001, “Limitation
of human exposure to electromagnetic fields from devices operating in
the frequency range 0 Hz to 10 GHz, used in Electronic Article
Surveillance (EAS), Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) and similar
applications”,
Official Journal of the European Communities, C62 09/03/2002
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Council
Recommendation 1999/519/EC on
“the limitation of exposure of the general public to
electromagnetic fields (0Hz to 300GHz)”, Official Journal of the
European Communities, L199 30/07/1999
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Additionally
EAS products may be independantly assessed by widely recognised
National organisations such as TÜV
(or similar bodies)
In
the United States, there are the following standards and regulations that
are applicable:
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Institute
of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
C95.1-1991,
“Standard for Safety Levels with Respect to Human Exposure to Radio
Frequency Electromagnetic Fields, 3 kHz to 300 GHz”
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United
States Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
FCC
96-326,
“Guidelines for Evaluating the Environmental Effects of
Radiofrequency Radiation”,
FCC Report and
Order, Federal Register, Vol. 61, No. 153, August 7, 1996, Rules and
Regulations, 41006
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Additionally
EAS products may be independantly assessed by widely recognised
national and international organisations such as UL
(or similar bodies)
On
a wider international basis, there are the guidelines
issued by the
International Commission on Non-Ionising Radiation Protection (ICNIRP):
“Guidelines
for limiting exposure to time varying electric, magnetic, and
electromagnetic fields (up to 300GHz)”,
Health Physics, Volume 74, Number 4, April 1998, p.494
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