Chinese PV Inverters Ranked Alongside German Brands in Random Inspection at European International Symposium on Electromagnetic Compatibility

      Recently, the 2014 European International Symposium on Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC Europe 2014) was held in Gothenburg, Sweden, with 521 experts, scholars, and engineer representatives from over 50 countries attending the conference.

    A research report on electromagnetic interference to wireless reception caused by installations, jointly completed by the University of Amsterdam, the University of Twente, and the large multinational enterprise Thales, has attracted widespread attention in the international photovoltaic market.

    The report points out that complaints about electromagnetic interference to wireless reception caused by photovoltaic installations have increased sharply, and EMC standards will be strictly enforced, with a large number of products not meeting EMC directives being eliminated from the international market.

    The report randomly inspected products from three internationally renowned inverter manufacturers: SMA, the industry leader from Germany, OMNIK, a Sino-German joint venture brand holding 40% of the Dutch local market, and Mastervolt from the Netherlands, conducting emission interference tests on DC cables. The test results showed that SMA and OMNIK inverters performed well in terms of anti-interference, while Mastervolt's Soladin 600 performed poorly.

    Furthermore, the report pointed out that the main reason for the differences in the above results is that although all equipment on the European market should meet the requirements of the EMC directive, some suppliers adopt an innovative approach to meet the simplest electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) requirements. That is, the compatibility standards adopted by these suppliers do not follow the basic requirements of the European EMC directive, but rather seek to maximize convenience and minimize costs.

     SMA and OMNIK use the generic standards from the 61000-6 series to test their equipment and the DC side. Mastervolt's Soladin 600 only tests the AC side (230 V), because the standard IEC 55022 does not mention the DC bus. It is precisely because the international harmonized standards do not describe the DC bus emission of photovoltaic installations that manufacturers can freely manufacture equipment according to their budgets, seeking "innovative" methods to bring their products to market without regard for the rights of radio spectrum users.

    It is understood that electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) refers to the ability of a device or system to operate satisfactorily in its electromagnetic environment without introducing intolerable electromagnetic disturbances to anything in that environment.

    The electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) of inverters is a very important quality indicator. It is not only related to the operational reliability and safety of the product itself, but may also affect the normal operation of other equipment and systems, and is related to the protection of the electromagnetic environment.

    At present, although all developed countries and some developing countries internationally implement mandatory management of inverter EMC performance and formulate relevant electromagnetic compatibility standards, because this indicator is invisible, intangible, and complex to test, many inverter manufacturers cut corners in this aspect. After obtaining third-party test reports through engineering prototypes, they deliberately ignore EMC compliance in mass production to reduce costs.

    OMNIK engineers stated that OMNIK inverters have made many efforts to comply with EMC standards, such as the configuration of the anti-interference component "magnetic ring," which can effectively reduce the electromagnetic interference of the inverter, but its removal would not affect the normal operation of the machine. OMNIK consistently adheres to a truth-seeking, pragmatic, and rigorous R&D attitude, firmly upholds industry ethics, and in product development, resolutely does not cut corners or violate regulations, ensuring that the configuration of test samples is consistent with that of mass-produced machines to guarantee the uniformity of OMNIK inverter quality. This is also the true long-term brand value.

Recently, the 2014 European International Symposium on Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC Europe 2014) was held in Gothenburg, Sweden, with 521 experts, scholars, and engineer representatives from over 50 countries attending the conference.

    A research report on electromagnetic interference to wireless reception caused by installations, jointly completed by the University of Amsterdam, the University of Twente, and the large multinational enterprise Thales, has attracted widespread attention in the international photovoltaic market.

    The report points out that complaints about electromagnetic interference to wireless reception caused by photovoltaic installations have increased sharply, and EMC standards will be strictly enforced, with a large number of products not meeting EMC directives being eliminated from the international market.

    The report randomly inspected products from three internationally renowned inverter manufacturers: SMA, the industry leader from Germany, OMNIK, a Sino-German joint venture brand holding 40% of the Dutch local market, and Mastervolt from the Netherlands, conducting emission interference tests on DC cables. The test results showed that SMA and OMNIK inverters performed well in terms of anti-interference, while Mastervolt's Soladin 600 performed poorly.

    Furthermore, the report pointed out that the main reason for the differences in the above results is that although all equipment on the European market should meet the requirements of the EMC directive, some suppliers adopt an innovative approach to meet the simplest electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) requirements. That is, the compatibility standards adopted by these suppliers do not follow the basic requirements of the European EMC directive, but rather seek to maximize convenience and minimize costs.

     SMA and OMNIK use the generic standards from the 61000-6 series to test their equipment and the DC side. Mastervolt's Soladin 600 only tests the AC side (230 V), because the standard IEC 55022 does not mention the DC bus. It is precisely because the international harmonized standards do not describe the DC bus emission of photovoltaic installations that manufacturers can freely manufacture equipment according to their budgets, seeking "innovative" methods to bring their products to market without regard for the rights of radio spectrum users.

    It is understood that electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) refers to the ability of a device or system to operate satisfactorily in its electromagnetic environment without introducing intolerable electromagnetic disturbances to anything in that environment.

    The electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) of inverters is a very important quality indicator. It is not only related to the operational reliability and safety of the product itself, but may also affect the normal operation of other equipment and systems, and is related to the protection of the electromagnetic environment.

    At present, although all developed countries and some developing countries internationally implement mandatory management of inverter EMC performance and formulate relevant electromagnetic compatibility standards, because this indicator is invisible, intangible, and complex to test, many inverter manufacturers cut corners in this aspect. After obtaining third-party test reports through engineering prototypes, they deliberately ignore EMC compliance in mass production to reduce costs.

    OMNIK engineers stated that OMNIK inverters have made many efforts to comply with EMC standards, such as the configuration of the anti-interference component "magnetic ring," which can effectively reduce the electromagnetic interference of the inverter, but its removal would not affect the normal operation of the machine. OMNIK consistently adheres to a truth-seeking, pragmatic, and rigorous R&D attitude, firmly upholds industry ethics, and in product development, resolutely does not cut corners or violate regulations, ensuring that the configuration of test samples is consistent with that of mass-produced machines to guarantee the uniformity of OMNIK inverter quality. This is also the true long-term brand value.