In modern life, there are quite a few areas of human activity that require the use of various electronic devices, but the conditions in which they will be used require additional protection for them from all sorts of adverse factors. Therefore, technologists from various industrial companies are developing devices that would have an increased degree of protection against the penetration of harmful elements into the device.
There are different degrees of protection against various factors. Let's deal with just one of them. This is IPX7 - the degree of protection of the device against moisture ingress.
There is a gradation of moisture resistance of the device, and IPX7 is the designation of one of the highest degrees of protection.
IP: classification of degrees of protection
To describe the degrees of protection of various devices, an international classification was developed, which received a designation consisting of two letters: IP, which designate the system itself. As a rule, after them they also put 2 digits, indicating the degree of security of the device.
Each device,manufactured by the industry has a certain degree of protection against extraneous influences, which can be designated as IPxx, where each x is replaced by numbers that determine the security of the device. Moreover, the first of them indicates the safety of the device from the ingress of foreign objects. The highest degree of security in this case is the sixth. It indicates that the device is protected from dust.
The second digit always indicates the protection of the device from moisture. For example, if the designation on the product looks like IPX7, the degree of protection against moisture will be almost maximum, but the safety against the penetration of solid foreign objects (sand, dust, etc.) is not regulated.
Let's take a closer look at protecting the device from moisture.
Degrees of protection against moisture
In total, there are eight degrees of protection against moisture ingress in the classification. Moreover, IPX7 is the second degree of protection in terms of quality. If we consider the table that defines the parameters of these steps, it is easy to see how the last two of the listed ones differ from each other. So, if the degree of protection is IPX7, the interpretation of this designation says that the device can fall under water for a short time without consequences, to a depth of one meter.
To a higher degree of safety will belong devices that will continue to work, being under water for half an hour or longer, at a depth of more than one meter. It should be noted that in the modern world there are many devices thata degree of protection against water IPX7 is required, but of all of them we will consider only one. These are phones that fit this standard.
Moisture resistant phones
Not so long ago, phones were mainstream gadgets with IPX7 ratings. Most often they were used in places where contact with moisture was constant. Such devices were quite expensive. And one of their advantages was the ability to continue working even after briefly falling into the water at a shallow depth.
It's no secret that often the main reason used phones are sold is that they've been in the water and are starting to fail. Usually they are called drowned, since such gadgets cannot be repaired. But recently, some phone manufacturers have not only switched to the production of waterproof phones, but also actively began to explore the market for smartphones with IPX7 code. The degree of protection of this level is especially widely used in the devices of Motorola and Apple.
Ways to achieve increased moisture protection
Modern technologies are already at the level where the IPX7 class (the degree of protection of the phone) is achieved without compromising the appearance of the device. After all, not so long ago, a phone protected according to the IP67 standard could be easily identified by a unique case that preserves the gadget. And modern smartphones are practically no different from their counterparts, which have a lower degree ofprotection. In addition, Apple announced that all watch models released by it have an IP67 rating. Therefore, any owner of such a device can even fearlessly take a shower in them. But, of course, not all users of these products decide on such an experiment, since the cost of such smart watches exceeds four hundred dollars.
Application of IPX7 degree of protection in other areas of technology
Telephony is not the only area in which this standard is applied. Most of the equipment with this degree of protection is used in the fleet, regardless of whether it is civilian or military. Rescuers working in extreme conditions are also equipped with such devices. And of course, in scientific research one cannot do without such devices. Therefore, in the future, technologists will work to increase the degree of protection of various equipment.
