IP Ratings Waterproof & Dustproof Explained in Detail
People around the world invest in the latest gadgets that claim to offer them the best user experience. Devices that range from mobile phones, cameras to automobiles are an essential part of our daily lives. The buyer’s choice in these situations is impacted by the durability of their purchases and how well they fare against various circumstances; essentially the protection these devices have against substances like water and dust. This degree of protection is measured by the Ingress Protection rating, commonly known as the IP rating of a device. This article will explore IP ratings and what is their part in making devices waterproof testing and dustproof testing.
Contents
IP Rating
Ingress Protection is essentially the ability of an enclosure to resist anything from entering it. This can be either large or small items such as hands or dust and water respectively.
Water and dust exposure can lead to various problems like performance failure, electrical shorts, and corrosion. IP rating systems are universal which provides buyers with surety of how their purchase will perform in specific conditions. These ratings provide a pretty precise picture of how well a product offers protection against various foreign objects.
IP ratings are two-digit ratings, where the first digit signifies protection against solid objects and foreign bodies while the second digit represents resistance against water. Together, they offer a pretty accurate image of the efficiency of a product under different conditions.
Now to pinpoint the IP ratings of a product, it has to undergo waterproof and dustproof tests. These tests can be conducted through LISUN‘s Dustproof Testing Machine and IP Waterproof Test Equipment pretty accurately.
Waterproof Test 
Waterproof testing can be done through a waterproof test machine. The rating ranges from 1 to 9k, where 1 represents protection against vertically falling drops like condensation and 9k represents protection against jet sprays with high pressure and temperature commonly seen in the application of road vehicles. The equipment by LISUN includes grades IPX1, IPX2, IPX3, IPX4, IPX5, IPX6, IPX7, and IPX8. The testing system is comprised of a drip box (JL-12) utilized for testing grades 1 and 2. Swing Pipe Water Spray Test Equipment (JL-34) tests out grade 3 and 4 products. Grade 5 and 6 are tested out using a Waterproof Jet Test Device (JL-56). While grades 7 and 8 are tested by two different Immersion tank Waterproof test Devices. These tests can help get a pretty clear picture of a product’s resistance to dripping water, rain, etc., and its durability against water.
Dustproof Test
Dustproof testing is done using a dustproof testing machine which can test out electrical and electronic equipment parts along with the assemblies for devices and machines. A wire warp having a metal net is used while various kinds of dust can be used. In LISUN‘s instruments, a talcum powder suspension is maintained in a closed chamber which has a vertical circulation of the dust-air mixture. The device has an adjustable test and vibration time according to the needs of the product being tested. Leakage and short circuit protection functions are also in place.
To ensure the inner box and sample lacks do not corrode, they are made with stainless steel plates. For appropriate observation of the test situation, an LED lighting lamp and transparent window are installed in the box. A device is in place to ensure dust doesn’t stick to the walls or condense while a suction pipe performs the vacuumed action on the sample.
The conducted test then provides us with a rating that varies from 1 to 6. Here, 1 means the product under test is resistant to foreign objects greater than 50 mm and body parts cannot be inserted in it. While 6 means no dust ingress at all and the item is completely sealed off from dust.
Conclusion
IP ratings give a pretty clear idea of how a product withstands dust and water, and how it will react to certain situations. So it is important to invest in items with a good rating. However, the fact that these are laboratory conditions and not real-world conditions needs to be taken into account. They don’t exactly replicate what we encounter in real life. So, despite a good IP rating, you should not take unnecessary risks with your gadgets based solely on that rating.
