Reducing the Functional Safety Risks (and Other Risks) That Can Be Caused by EMI — New IEEE Standard 1848

When Functional Safety risks must be reduced throughout the lifecycle of an electronic system, the acceptable levels for the risks that could be caused by electromagnetic disturbances or electromagnetic interference (EMI) are about 100dB lower than normal for immunity tests. This means that these risks are incapable of being verified or validated by immunity testing only. At the time of writing, IEEE Standard 1848 is well on its way towards being published. This is a new type of IEEE Standard, and will provide requirements and guidance on the use of well-proven techniques and measures to help ensure that neither electromagnetic disturbances nor EMI will be the cause of unacceptable Functional Safety risks. Its techniques and measures cover: project management; system design; operational design of hardware and software; verification, and validation. They also cover assembly/installation; commissioning, maintenance; upgrade; refurbishment, and disposal. Although intended for reducing Functional Safety risks, the techniques and measures in IEEE 1848 can also be used for reducing any quantifiable risks (mission-critical, reputational, financial, etc.) that could be caused by electromagnetic disturbances or EMI.