What products are involved? All Rheonics sensors, transmitters and cables that have an IP rating.
What is the purpose of this article? To correlate the most similar IP and NEMA protection ratings on mechanical and electronic enclosures, considering there are still differences.
1. OverviewIP stands for Ingress Protection or International Protection Mark, it rates the protection mechanical and electrical enclosures have against solids and water. Based on the IEC 60529, it is used globally and consists in the use of two digits, each one having a meaning. Follow IP Rating explained article for more details.
NEMA (National Electronic Manufacturers Association) ratings also certifies the protection of mechanical and electrical enclosures, not only against solids and water, but also against corrosion and can give construction details. This rating is mostly used in the U.S.
2. IP and NEMA comparisonSince both standards can be used in different countries at the same time, it is worth verifying the equivalents ratings. However, these are just approximations since they use different tests for rating. It can be said that a NEMA rating can match the same requirements or go beyond a specific IP rating, but an IP class can’t do the same for NEMA. IP class also covers higher levels of ingress protection from water like IP69K with no direct equivalence in NEMA.
To select the right NEMA or IP classification, analyze the levels against your requirements.
NEMA | ≈ | IP | ||
Rating | Description | ≈ | Rating | Description |
NEMA 1 | Protection against intrusion of large objects (e.g. hand contact). No protection against dust or water. | ≈ | IP 10 | Protection against objects greater than Ø50mm. No protection against water. |
NEMA 2 | Protection against limited dripping water and dust in indoor use. | ≈ | IP 11 | Protection against objects greater than Ø50mm. Protection against vertically falling water drops. |
NEMA 3 | Some degree of protection against rain, sleet and windblown dust. Not waterproof. | ≈ | IP 54 | Protected against dust in harmful amounts. Protected against water splashed from any direction. |
| NEMA 3S | Covers NEMA 3 and also considers protection on external mechanisms. | |||
NEMA 13 | Protection against oil and dust in some level. | |||
NEMA 3R | Some degree of protection against rain, and sleet. | ≈ | IP 14 | Protection against objects greater than Ø50mm. Protected against water splashed from any direction. |
NEMA 4 | Protection against water, dust, sleet in the device and ice on surface. | ≈ | IP 66 | Protection against dust and any solids. Protection against harmful quantity of water. |
| NEMA 4X | Covers NEMA 4 and also provides additional protection against corrosion | |||
NEMA 5 | Protection against dust with the use of gaskets. | ≈ | IP 52 | Protected against dust in harmful amounts. Protection against vertically and up to 15° tilted water drops. |
NEMA 12 | Protection against dust, dripping water or light splashes. | |||
| NEMA 12K | Covers NEMA 12 and includes surface knockouts on enclosures. | |||
NEMA 6 | Protection against limited water submersion and sleet. | ≈ | IP 67 | Protection against dust and any solids. Protection against immersion in water from 15cm to 100cm. |
| NEMA 6P | Covers NEMA 6 with an improvement on water submersion. | |||
References:
[1]: IEC 60529
[3]: https://support.rheonics.com/en/support/solutions/articles/81000408814-ip-rating-explained