Radiometrics Midwest Corporation’s large 10-meter semi-anechoic chamber provides a controlled EMC test environment for products ranging from electronic systems to complete vehicles and large agricultural, construction and industrial equipment.
The chamber’s combination of size, access, turntable capacity and EMC measurement capability allows Radiometrics to accommodate test items that cannot readily be evaluated in smaller conventional EMC chambers.
Radiometrics added its large 10-meter chamber in 2003 as a major expansion of the laboratory’s vehicle and large-equipment EMC capabilities.
10-Meter EMC Test Chamber
The large semi-anechoic chamber is designed for 10-meter radiated measurements and large-equipment EMC testing.
Major facility features include:
- 20-foot-diameter turntable
- Turntable load capacity exceeding 25,000 pounds
- Equipment entrance approximately 20 feet wide by 16 feet high
- Space for complete vehicles and large machinery
- 25,000 CFM air-handling system with separate exhaust handling
- Automated EMC measurement capability
- Controlled environment for radiated emissions and applicable immunity testing
The chamber can accommodate both conventional electronic products and unusually large or heavy equipment.
Power, Ventilation and Equipment Support
The chamber was designed to support demanding test configurations as well as physically large equipment.
A 25,000 CFM air-handling system and separate exhaust handler support vehicles and other heat-generating equipment while operating in the chamber.
Electrical support includes eight standard power-line filters capable of handling up to 100 amps each, along with an additional duplexed 30-amp filter. Special power accommodations can also be arranged for equipment with unusual electrical requirements.
Communications, monitoring and test connections can be routed through configurable 12 × 12-inch and 24 × 24-inch feed-through panels, allowing test setups to be adapted to the equipment and support systems required by the customer.
Complete Vehicle EMC Testing
The large chamber allows many complete vehicles to be evaluated in a controlled EMC environment.
Applications can include:
- Passenger vehicles
- Commercial vehicles
- Heavy-duty trucks
- Buses
- Electric and hybrid vehicles
- Specialized vehicles
- Vehicle electronic systems
The 20-foot turntable allows the vehicle or equipment to be rotated relative to the measurement antenna, supporting repeatable radiated EMC measurements.
Agricultural and Construction Equipment
The chamber’s large access opening and heavy-duty turntable make it particularly useful for agricultural, construction and off-highway equipment.
Test items can include:
- Tractors
- Agricultural machinery
- Combines and harvesters
- Sprayers
- Excavators
- Loaders
- Construction machinery
- Utility equipment
- Mobile industrial equipment
Large-machine EMC testing can be coordinated with component-level testing when manufacturers need to evaluate both electronic modules and the completed equipment.
Heavy and Large Equipment Testing
Many EMC laboratories are designed primarily for relatively small electronic products.
Radiometrics’ large chamber allows EMC testing of equipment weighing many thousands of pounds while maintaining the controlled test environment needed for repeatable measurements.
For unusually large or heavy test items, Radiometrics can review dimensions, weight, power requirements, ventilation requirements and operating configuration before shipment.
Radiated Emissions Testing
The 10-meter chamber supports radiated emissions measurements for applicable commercial, industrial, automotive and other EMC requirements.
Radiometrics performs radiated emissions testing for requirements including FCC, CISPR, automotive and manufacturer-specific standards.
The chamber’s size also allows products to be evaluated with representative cables, peripherals and operating configurations.
The chamber meets applicable Normalized Site Attenuation (NSA) requirements and is used for many of Radiometrics’ 3-meter radiated emissions measurements in addition to its large-equipment and vehicle-level applications.
Vehicle and Heavy Equipment EMC Standards
Radiometrics supports applicable vehicle and machinery EMC requirements, including testing associated with:
- CISPR 12
- CISPR 25
- SAE vehicle and component EMC methods
- ISO 11451 series
- ISO 11452 series
- ISO 13766 series for earth-moving machinery
- ISO 14982 series for agricultural and forestry machinery
- Manufacturer-specific EMC requirements
The applicable test program depends on the equipment, installation and customer specification.
Pre-Compliance Testing and Troubleshooting
The large chamber is also valuable for developmental and pre-compliance testing.
When a complete machine or vehicle exhibits an EMC problem, testing in a controlled chamber can help identify operating modes, cables, electronic systems or equipment configurations associated with the problem.
Where practical, engineering changes can be evaluated while the equipment remains installed in the chamber.
Preparing Large Equipment for Testing
For large vehicles or machinery, please provide the following information before scheduling:
- Overall length, width and height
- Equipment weight
- Electrical system voltage
- AC or DC power requirements
- Required operating modes
- Ventilation or exhaust requirements
- External support equipment
- Required EMC standards and test methods
- Drawings or photographs of the equipment
Radiometrics can review this information before shipment to confirm chamber access, turntable capacity and test configuration.
Why Use Radiometrics’ 10-Meter Chamber?
Radiometrics combines a large physical test environment with decades of EMC engineering and testing experience.
The chamber’s 20-foot turntable, greater than 25,000-pound load capacity and approximately 20-foot-wide by 16-foot-high equipment entrance provide unusual flexibility for complete vehicles and large machinery.
Manufacturers can also coordinate large-equipment testing with Radiometrics’ additional EMC chambers and component-level test capabilities.
Related EMC Testing Services
Learn more about Radiometrics’ Automotive, Agricultural & Heavy Equipment EMC Testing capabilities.
Agricultural and construction-equipment manufacturers can also review our Agricultural & Construction Equipment EMC Testing services.
Schedule 10-Meter Chamber Testing
Contact Radiometrics to discuss complete-vehicle testing, large-equipment EMC testing, chamber access, applicable standards, scheduling or quotation requirements.