Product-family EMC standards for audio, video, audio-visual and entertainment lighting control apparatus for professional use, prEN 55103-1 and prEN 55103-2

The definition of 'apparatus for professional use' (CENELEC uses 'apparatus' rather than 'equipment', but they mean the same) is complex and has proved to be highly controversial, partly due to international language problems. For convenience in this paper, the standards are called the 'PAVI (Professional Audio, Video Industry) standards'. The generic standards series are segregated by environment. By contrast, most existing product (family) standards (EN55013, EN55014, EN55015 and EN55020) do not mention environment explicitly, and do not give different requirements for different environments. Some of the product families are likely to be confined to one, or a small number of, environments, but this is not certain, and is not the case for the apparatus within the scope of prEN 55103. Because the apparatus is used in many EM environments, including residential (but very seldom in the actual family home), the industry sector specifically indicated that it would not be acceptable for the standards to deal with only one or two EM environments, leaving the requirements for satisfactory service in others to be determined either by generic standards or by contractual agreements.