scope:

This International Standard applies to the classification of degrees of protection provided by enclosures for rotating electrical machines. It defines the requirements for protective enclosures that are in all other respects suitable for their intended use and which, from the point of view of materials and workmanship, ensure that the properties dealt with in this standard are maintained under normal conditions of use. This document does not specify degrees of protection against mechanical damage of the machine, or conditions such as moisture (produced for example by condensation), corrosive dust and vapour, fungus or vermin. This document is also applicable to explosion proof machines, but it does not specifiy the types of protection for use in a potentially explosive (dust, gas) environment. Those are defined in the IEC 60079 series of standards. In certain applications (such as agricultural or domestic appliances), more extensive precautions against accidental or deliberate contact may be specified.