Link to IEEE Standard for Safety Levels with Respect to Human Exposure to Electric, Magnetic, and Electromagnetic Fields, 0 Hz to 300 GHz
- Published on October 4, 2019
- IEEE Standards Coordinating Committee 39
- Developed by the IEEE International Committee on Electromagnetic Safety
- Revision of IEEE Std C95.1-2005/ Incorporates IEEE Std C95.1-2019/Cor 1-2019
| IEEE 2019-C95.1 Standard | IEEE 2005-C95.1 (C95.1a-2010 ) Standard | |
|---|---|---|
| Published | October 4, 2019 | April 19, 2006 (and amended in 2010) |
| Title | IEEE Standard for Safety Levels with Respect to Human Exposure to Radio Frequency Electromagnetic Fields, 3 kHz to 300 GHz | |
| Purpose | The purpose of this standard is to provide rational, science-based exposure values to protect against established adverse effects to human health induced by exposure to |
The purpose of this standard is to provide exposure limits to protect against established adverse effects to human health induced by exposure to RF electric, magnetic and electromagnetic fields over the frequency range of 3 kHz to 300 GHz. |
| Scope | Recommendations are made to protect against established adverse health effects in humans resulting from exposure to electric, magnetic and electromagnetic fields in the frequency range of 0 Hz to 300 GHz. The recommendations are expressed in terms of exposure reference levels (ERLs) and dosimetric reference levels (DRLs).
The Dosimetric Reference Levels are limits on:
The Exposure Reference Levels (derived from the DRLs) are limits on:
This standard is intended to apply to all human exposures except for exposure of patients under medical supervision. The recommendations are not intended for the purpose of preventing interference with medical and other devices that may exhibit susceptibility to radio frequency (RF) fields. The recommendations at 300 GHz are consistent with existing recommendations for safe exposure in the infrared frequency range, which begins at 300 GHz, cf., ANSI Z136.1, and IEC]. |
Recommendations are made to protect against established adverse health effects in human beings associated with exposure to electric, magnetic and electromagnetic fields in the frequency range of 3 kHz to 300 GHz. The recommendations are expressed in terms of basic restrictions (BRs) and maximum permissible exposure (MPE) values.
The Basic Restrictions are limits on:
The Maximum Permissible Exposure values (derived from the BRs) are limits on:
The recommendations, which protect against effects associated with electro-stimulation [as well as] tissue and whole-body heating, are intended to apply to all human exposures except for exposure of patients by, or under the direction of, physicians and medical professionals. These recommendations are not intended for the purpose of preventing interference with medical and other devices that may exhibit susceptibility to radio frequency (RF) fields. The recommendations at 300 GHz are compatible with existing recommendations for safe exposure in the infrared frequency range, which begins at 300 GHz, cf., ANSI Z136.1-2000 [B7]1, ICNIRP guidelines [B63], and IEC 60825-1 [B65]. IEEE Std C95.6-20022 is the applicable standard for use at frequencies below 3 kHz. |
On page 17:
No plausible biophysical mechanisms have been verified that explain hypothesized adverse effects at low-level exposures. Thus, ICES concludes that only the established acute mechanisms related to electro-stimulation between 0 Hz and 100 kHz (and up to 5 MHz for exposures to pulses) and tissue heating between 100 kHz and 300 GHz need to be addressed to provide a valid basis for the DRLs and ERLs designated in this standard.
ICES is also aware of the U.S. National Toxicology Program’s draft study reports and peer-review outcomes on the effects of Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) and Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) RF signals on whole-body exposure of rats and mice at levels that exceed the DRLs in this standard.
The NTP studies were conducted for the purpose of hazard identification. As is the continuing practice of ICES,** the final NTP reports** and subsequent evaluations and risk assessments by other organizations will be addressed in future revisions of the standard.
A careful assessment of the NTP study by ICNIRP describes several difficulties in interpreting the results of the study for development of standards, in particular, the use of exposure levels in the NTP study that were considerably above the existing or proposed whole-body exposure limits of IEEE Std C95.1; “ICNIRP NOTE on recent animal carcinogenesis studies,” Sep. 4, 2018 (https://www.icnirp.org/cms/upload/publications/ICNIRPnote2018.pdf).
While the issue of RF emissions from wireless transmitters causing electromagnetic interference with medical devices is outside the scope of the current standard, the reader is directed to several relevant standards that recommend immunity levels for external medical devices (e.g., IEC 60601-1 [B651] and IEC 60601-1-2 [B652]), as well as implantable medical devices (e.g., ANSI/AAMI PC69:2007 [B71] and ISO/TR 21730:2007 [B690] offer guidance for the use and operation of mobile wireless transmitters within healthcare facilities).