What is BS EN 61310-3 - Safety-related requirements for operation of actuators about?
BS EN 61310-3 is a European standard and the third part of the BS EN 61310 series that discusses the requirements for the location and operation of actuators for the safety of machinery.
BS EN 61310-3 specifies safety-related requirements for actuators, operated by the hand or by other parts of the human body, at the human-machine interface. It gives general requirements for:
- The standard direction of movement for actuators
- The arrangement of an actuator with other actuators
- The correlation between an action and its final effects
BS EN 61310-3 is based on IEC 60447 but is also applicable to non-electrotechnical technologies such as mechanical and fluid-powered systems.
BS EN 61310-3 covers single actuators as well as groups of actuators forming part of an assembly.
Note: BS EN 61310-3 does not specify any requirements for "touch screens" (such information is given in IEC 60073).
Who is BS EN 61310-3 - Safety-related requirements for operation of actuators for?
BS EN 61310-3 on the safety-related requirements for operation of actuators applies to:
- Manufacturers of actuators for machines
- Electrical engineers
- Product design engineers
- Manufacturers of fluid powered equipment
- Inspection bodies
- Quality control and testing personnel
Why should you use BS EN 61310-3 - Safety-related requirements for operation of actuators?
Moving machinery can cause injuries in many ways: People can be struck and injured by moving parts of machinery or ejected material. The safety factor is a given multiple of the valve's operating torques to ensure proper operation of the actuator.
BS EN 61310-3 provides the general requirement on actuators that is taken into account at an early stage of machinery design and applied unambiguously throughout the machine installation.
BS EN 61310-3 talks about the principle in which the correlation between the action applied to the actuator and the final effect can be evident to the operator. This correlation is based on the classification into two groups of both actions and final effects.
BS EN 61310-3 provides typical examples of monofunctional actuators.
Overall, safety equipment in manufacturing machines aims to reduce the hazards presented by processes for people, the environment and property to the lowest possible, acceptable level.