Machine control systems

The trend in the industry today is that an increasing part of the risk reduction is dependent on the correct operation of the machine's control system. This applies both to traditional machines but also to mobile machines. RISE is accredited by Swedac for evaluating control systems in machines and works with standards such as ISO 13849 and IEC 6206

Purpose

RISE can help evaluate that the requirements of these machine safety standards are met. The reason for taking help from RISE can either be to build up your internal expertise in the area or that you need an independent evaluation of your design. If your product is classified as Logic Units for Protective Functions in accordance with point 21 of Annex 4 of the Machinery Directive 2006/42 / EC, we can issue an EC type-approval in addition to an evaluation report.

By using RISE early in your Product development, you avoid the risk of misinterpreting these functional safety standards. The first choice is whether you shall work with ISO 13849 which is based on the risk reduction measure Performance level or IEC 62061 which is based on the risk reduction measure SIL - Safety Integrity Level or alternatively if for your product there are other functional safety requirements stated directly in your product safety standard. Even when identifying the correct standard, there are many pitfalls, we usually stress how important it is to define the safety functions correctly before proceeding with the design of the associated software and hardware.

The evaluation is based on ISO 13849-1:2015 but we are also updated on the upcoming version ISO 13849-1:2023. The updates to the standard include (among other things):

Clearer definitions of terms and concepts that will make it easier to understand and apply the standard.
Expanded use of Performance level (PL)
Updated documentation requirements to ensure that all necessary information on machinery safety is documented and available.
The new standard emphasises more the human role in machinery safety, including the need to train and develop user competence in the use of machinery and safety-related parts of control systems.