Standards

International standardisation work in the field of electrical engineering is well

developed. There are two organisations: IEC (International Electrotecnical Commission) and
CENELEC (Comit Europen de Normalisation Electrotechnique). IEC works on global scale
while CENELEC concentrates on regional work in Western Europe. The International
Standardisation Organisation ISO also has particular interest in electric motors.
The IEC has some 45 member countries; CENELEC has 17. The aim of CENELEC is to
remove obstacles to technical trade in Western Europe due to differences in regulations and
standards. Existing IEC publications are generally used as a basis, but additions can be made.
New national standards are increasingly identical to or largely based on Europeans standards
issued by CENELEC.
The offered motor shall at the time of delivery comply with all the relevant standards and
specifications, in particular the following:
Title

Standard

General requirements for rotating electrical

machines

IEC 34-1
IEC 85

Fixing dimensions and assignment of rated

output with IM B 3

IEC 72

Terminal markings and direction of rotation of

IEC 34-8
rotating electrical machines
Types of construction of rotating electrical
machines

IEC 34-7

Method of cooling rotating electrical

machinery

IEC 34-6

Degrees of protection by enclosures for

rotating electrical machinery

IEC 34-5

Vibration severity of electrical machines

IEC 34-14, ISO 2373

Parallel shaft extensions for electrical

machines

IEC 72

Noise emission limits

IEC 34-9

Starting performance

IEC 34-12

IEC standard voltages

IEC 38

Methods for determining losses and efficiency

IEC 34-2
of rotating electrical machinery from test

1 Tolerances
1.1 Electrical data
The following tolerances according to IEC 34-1 are permitted:
Table I. Electrical tolerances
Performance characteristic
indirect calculation
Efficiency
direct method
Power factor

Permissible tolerance

Notes

- 15% of (1-)
PN 50 kW
- 10% of (1-)
PN > 50 kW
- 15% of (1-)

min 0.02
max 0.07

Slip

at rated load operating

temperature

Starting current

in the planned starting circuit

+ 20%
+ 10% for frame size 56 - 160

20% N 1 kW

Starting torque

- 15% and + 25%

Pull-up torque

- 15 %

Pull-out torque

- 10%

Moment of inertia

Noise level

+ 3 dB(A)

without restriction downwards

with the applications of the

tolerance TK/TN at least 1.6

10%
sound pressure level

These tolerances are permissible for the values assured for three-phase asynchronous motors,
taking the necessary manufacturing tolerances and material variations of the raw materials
used, into account.
1.2 Mechanical parameters
Table II. Mechanical fit or tolerances
Mechanical dimension

Fit or tolerance

Largest width of motor (without terminal box)

+ 2%

Overall length of motor

+ 1%

Overall height (lower edge foot, housing or flange to highest point of motor)

+ 2%

2 Frame sizes
In the IEC-publication 72-1 (1991) frame sizes and the most essential fixing dimensions are
fixed and co-ordinated to the individual frame size.

Table III. Frame size

Thread
A/mm

B/mm

C/mm

D/mm

E/mm

F/mm

G/mm

H/mm

71-14

112

90

45

14

30

11

71

M6

80-19

125

100

50

19

40

15.5

80

M8

90S24

140

100

56

24

50

20

90

M8

90L24

140

125

56

24

50

20

90

M8

100L28

160

140

63

28

60

24

100

M10

112M28

190

140

70

28

60

24

112

M10

132S38

216

140

89

38

80

10

33

132

M10

132M38

216

178

89

38

80

10

33

132

M10

160M42

254

210

108

42

110

12

37

160

M12

160L42

254

254

108

42

110

12

37

160

M12

180M48

279

241

121

48

110

14

42.5

180

M12

180L48

279

279

121

48

110

14

42.5

180

M12

200M55

318

267

133

55

110

16

49

200

M16

200L55

318

305

133

55

110

16

49

200

M16

3 Types of duty
Various types of duty have been defined in terms of how the load, and thus the output of the
motor, varies with time. The rated output for each type of duty is determined in a load test
which the motor must undergo without the temperature limits laid down in IEC Publication
34-1 (1994) being exceeded. Duty types are:
Table IV. Duty types
Duty type

Designation

Duty type

Designation

S1

Continuos duty

S6

Continuos-operating periodic duty

S2

Short-time duty

S7

Continuos-operation periodic duty with electrical

braking

S3

Intermittent periodic duty without starting

S8

Continuos-operation periodic duty with related

load/speed changes

S4

Intermittent periodic duty with starting

S9

Duty with non-periodic and speed variations

S5

Intermittent periodic duty with electrical braking

4 Insulation
According to IEC 85, insulation is divided into insulation classes. Each class has a
designation corresponding to the temperature that is upper limit of the range of appli
cations of the insulation material under normal operating conditions and with satisfactory life.
If this upper limit is exceeded, the life of the insulation will be shorten.
The correct insulation for the winding of a motor is therefore determined by both the
temperature rise in the motor and the temperature of the ambient air. If a motor is subjected to
an ambient temperature higher than 40 oC, it must normally derated or an insulating material
of an higher class must be used. Temperature limits of the different insulation classes is
shown Fig. 1.

Fig. 1. Temperature limits according to IEC 85

5 Protection

Degree of protection are defined in IEC Publication 34-5 and are stated as the letters IP
(International Protection) followed by two digits.
The first digit states the degree of protection against contact and the penetration of solid
objects (Table V). The second digit states the degree of protection against water (Table VI).
Table V. The first digit mean
First digit

Protection against contact and the entry of objects

No special protection of persons against accidental or inadvertent contact with live or moving parts. No
protection of machine against ingress of solid foreign bodies

Protection against accidental or inadvertent contact with live and moving parts inside the enclosure by a
large surface of human body. Protection against ingress of large solid foreign bodies (diameter greater
than 50 mm).

Protection against contact by finger with live or moving parts inside the enclosure. Protection against
ingress of small solid foreign bodies (diameter greater than 12 mm).

Protection against contact with live or moving parts inside the enclosure by tools, wires, or such objects
of thickness greater than 1 mm. Protection against ingress of small solid foreign bodies (diameter > 1
mm) excluding the ventilation openings (intake and discharge of external fans) and the drain hole of
enclosed machine which may have degree 2 protection.

Complete protection against contact with live or moving parts inside the enclosure. Protection against
harmful deposits of dust. The ingress of dust is not totally prevented, but dust cannot enter in an amount
sufficient to interfere with satisfactory operation of the machine.

Table VI. The second digit mean

Second digit

Protection of harmful ingress of water

No special protection.

Dripping water (vertically falling drops) shall have no harmful effect.

Drop of water falling at any angle up to 15o from the vertical shall have no harmful effect.

Water falling as a spray at an angle equal to or smaller than 60o with respect to the vertical shall have no
harmful effect.

Water splashed against the machine from any direction shall have no harmful effect.

Water protection by a nozzle against the machine from any direction shall have no harmful effect.

Water from heavy seas shall not enter the machine in harmful quantity.

Ingress of water into the machine in a harmful quantity shall not be possible when the machine is
immersed in water under stated conditions of pressure and time.

Ingress of water into machine in a harmful quantity shall not be possible when the machine is immersed
in water under a specified pressure and for an indefinite time.

A letter S added after the digits means that the machine has been tested when stationary. The
letter W between IP and the digits indicates a weatherproof version; this means that the
version is protected against harmful ingress of rain, snow and solid air-bone particles.
6 Cooling
IEC Publication 34-6 lays down cooling methods for air cooled motors. There are two types
of code, a simple code for commonest types of motor and a more detailed code for more
complex cooling systems. the cooling method is specified with the letter IC (International
Cooling) followed by a group of digits.
The first digit indicates the arrangement of cooling circuit. The second digit indicates the
method of supplying power to circulate the cooling medium.
Table VII. Cooling type
Code

Brief description

IC 01

Free circulation, self-circulation

IC 06

Free circulation, independent component mounted on the machine

IC 11

Inlet pipe ventilated, self-circulation

IC 17

Inlet pipe ventilated, independent and separate device for coolant system pressure

IC 21

Outlet pipe ventilated, self-circulation

IC 27

Outlet pipe ventilated, independent and separate device for coolant system pressure

IC 31

Inlet and outlet pipe ventilated, self-circulation

IC 37

Inlet and outlet ventilated, independent and separate device for coolant system pressure

IC 41

Frame surface cooled, self-circulation

IC 51

Integral heat exchanger using surrounding medium, self-circulation

The more detailed code describes cooling circuits. The first code group of one letter and two
digits indicates the low-temperature outer secondary cooling circuit. The second code group
of one letter and two digits indicates the higher-temperature inner
primary cooling circuit. The letter A stands for air and letter W for water. Where only air is
used, the letter A may be omitted.
7 Type of construction
Classification of types of constructions and mounting arrangements (IM Code) are published
in IEC 34-7. It lays down two ways of starting how a motor is mounted. Code I covers only
motor with bearing end shields and one shaft extension. Code II is a general code. Fig. 2
includes the designations for the most commonly occurring mounting arrangements according
to the two codes.

Fig. 2. Common mounting arrangements.

8 Starting performance
IEC Publication 34-12 applies to the starting performance of single speed three phase cage
induction motors for voltage up to and including 660 V, intended for normal torque design
(N) at frequencies of 50 or 60 Hz, high torque deign (H) at a frequency of 60 Hz and NY and
HY for star-delta starting. Motors rated on the basis of duty-type S1 (maximum continuous
rating) and they may have any degree of protection. All data is given in relation to rated
power and for 2, 4, 6 and 8 poles.
The standard also states the maximum permissible moment of inertia with regard to the
temperature rise of the motor during starting.

8.1 Design N starting torque

The starting torque is represented by the locked rotor torque Tl, pull-up torque Tu and
breakdown torque Tb each expressed as a per unit values of rated torque TN and shall

be in accordance with the appropriate values given in Table VIII. These values are minimum
values at rated voltage, with no tolerance. Higher values are allowed.
Locked rotor torque is the minimum measured torque, which the motor develops with the
rotor locked at rated voltage applied at rated frequency.
TableVI II. Torques for design N starting performance
Number of poles
Power range

(kW)

Tl

Tu

Tb

4
Tl

Tu

Tb

6
Tl

Tu

Tb

8
Tl

Tu

Tb

0.4 <Pn 0.63

1.9

1.3

2.0

2.0

1.4

2.0

1.7

1.2

1.7

1.5

1.1

1.6

0.63 <Pn 1.0

1.8

1.2

2.0

1.9

1.3

2.0

1.7

1.2

1.8

1.5

1.1

1.7

1.0 <Pn 1.6

1.8

1.2

2.0

1.9

1.3

2.0

1.6

1.1

1.9

1.4

1.0

1.8

1.6 <Pn 2.5

1.7

1.1

2.0

1.8

1.2

2.0

1.6

1.1

1.9

1.4

1.0

1.8

2.5 <Pn 4.0

1.6

1.1

2.0

1.7

1.2

2.0

1.5

1.1

1.9

1.3

1.0

1.8

4.0 <Pn 6.3

1.5

1.0

2.0

1.6

1.1

2.0

1.5

1.1

1.9

1.3

1.0

1.8

6.3 <Pn 10

1.5

1.0

2.0

1.6

1.1

2.0

1.5

1.1

18.

1.3

1.0

1.7

10 <Pn 16

1.4

1.0

2.0

1.5

1.1

2.0

1.4

1.0

1.8

1.2

0.9

1.7

16 <Pn 25

1.3

0.9

1.9

1.4

1.0

1.9

1.4

1.0

1.8

1.2

0.9

1.7

25 <Pn 40

1.2

0.9

1.9

1.3

1.0

1.9

1.3

1.0

1.8

1.2

0.9

1.7

40 <Pn 63

1.1

0.8

1.8

1.2

0.9

1.8

1.2

0.9

1.7

1.1

0.8

1.7

63 <Pn 100

1.0

0.7

1.8

1.1

0.8

1.8

1.1

0.8

1.7

1.0

0.7

1.6

100 <Pn 160

0.9

0.7

1.7

1.0

0.8

1.7

1.0

0.8

1.7

0.9

0.7

1.6

160 <Pn 250

0.8

0.6

1.7

0.9

0.7

1.7

0.9

0.7

1.6

0.9

0.7

1.6

250 <Pn 400

0.75

0.6

1.6

0.75

0.6

1.6

0.75

0.6

1.6

0.75

0.6

1.6

400 <Pn 630

0.65

0.5

1.6

0.65

0.5

1.6

0.65

0.5

1.6

0.65

0.5

1.6

The minimum torque for single-speed motors (< 100 kW) delivered during run up at rated
voltage must not be less than 50% of the rated torque and not less than 50% of the starting
torque. For rated output 100 kW the corresponding figure is 30 and 50% respectively.
The maximum torque is a measure of the overload capacity of the motor. IEC Publication 341 lays down that the general-purpose motors must be capable of developing at least 160 % of
the rated torque for 15 seconds without stopping or sudden speed change if rated voltage and
frequency are maintained.

8.2 Design N locked rotor apparent power

The locked rotor apparent power S1 is the apparent power input expressed as a per unit value
of the rated output PN. This value shall not be greater than the appropriate values given in
Table IX. The values given in Table IX are independent of the number of poles and are
maximum values at rated voltage, with no tolerance.
The locked rotor current is the measured steady-state rms. current taken from the line with the
rotor locked with rated voltage and frequency applied. This is the value measured when, after
a few cycles, the transient phenomena have died out. The transient
current, the peak value, may be about 2.5 times the steady-state starting current, but decays
rapidly.
In the USA National Electrical Code (NEC) Article 430-52 limit the "transient" motor current
when selecting overcurrent devices
Table IX. Locked rotor apparent power
Power range [kW]

Sst/P

0.4 < P 6.3

13

6.3 < P 25

12

25 < P 100

11

100 < P 630

10

8.3 Design N starting requirements

Motors of design N shall satisfy the following starting requirements:
a) They shall allow two starts in succession (coasting to rest between starts) from cold
conditions or one star from hot after running at rated conditions. The retarding torque due to
driven load is in each case proportional to the square of the speed and equal to the rated
torque at rated speed with the external inertia I given in Table X.
b) In each case a further star is permissible only if the motor temperature before starting does
not exceed the steady temperature at rated load.

The values given in Table X are in terms of mr2 (m = mass; r = mean radius of gyration)
Table X. External inertia I
Number of poles
Power (kW)

kgm2

kgm2

kgm2

kgm2

0.4

0.018

0.099

0.273

0.561

0.63

0.026

0.149

0.411

0.845

1.0

0.040

0.226

0.624

1.28

1.6

0.061

0.345

0.952

1.95

2.5

0.091

0.516

1.42

2.92

4.0

0.139

0.788

2.17

4.46

6.3

0.210

1.19

3.27

6.71

10

0.318

1.80

4.95

10.2

16

0.485

2.74

7.56

15.5

25

0.725

4.10

11.3

23.2

40

1.1

6.26

17.2

35.4

63

1.67

9.42

26.0

53.3

100

2.52

14.3

39.3

80.8

160

3.85

21.8

60.1

123

250

5.76

32.6

89.7

184

400

8.79

49.7

137

281

630

13.2

74.8

206

423

For intermediate output values, external inertia shall be calculated according to the following
formula, from which the values in the Table X have been calculated:
I = 0.04 P 0.9 p2.5 kgm2,
where P is the power in kW and p is the number of pairs of poles.
8.4 Design NY starting requirements

The starting requirements are as for design N. In addition, however, a reduced retarding
torque is necessary as the starting torque in "star" may be insufficient to accelerate some loads
to an acceptable speed.
9 Sound level
IEC publication 34-9 recommends maximum limits for both sound pressure level and sound
power level. There are figures for both open-type motors (IP 22) and totally- enclosed motors
(IP 44). The procedure for measuring the sound level is laid down in ISO 1680. The
measurements are done under free-field conditions over a reflecting floor, i.e. without
reflections from walls and ceiling. The Table XI gives examples of sound pressure level for
totally-enclosed motors.

Table XI. Permitted sound pressure level in dB(A) 1 meter from the surface, for totally-enclosed motors at no
load as per IEC 34-9.
Rated output
kW

> 600
960

> 960
1320

> 1320
1900

> 1900
2360

> 2360
3150

> 3150
3750

1.1

67

70

71

74

75

79

> 1.1 2.2

69

70

73

78

80

82

> 2.2 5.5

72

74

77

82

83

85

> 5.5 11

75

78

81

86

87

90

> 11 22

78

82

85

87

91

93

> 22 37

80

84

86

89

92

95

> 37 55

81

86

88

92

94

97

> 55 110

84

89

92

93

96

98

> 110 220

87

91

94

96

98

100

> 220 400

88

92

96

98

99

102

10 Efficiency
IEC Publication 34-2 describes two methods for determining the efficiency of a motor, the
direct method and the indirect method. In the direct method input power and output power are
each measured individually. The indirect method involves determining the input power and
the losses. The losses calculated are bearing and air friction losses, current heat losses in stator
and rotor, iron losses and stray losses. The standards define the stray losses as 0.5 % of the
input power at rated duty.
NEMA, the standards most widely used in the USA calculates stray losses at 0.9% - 1.2 %
depending on the output power.
11 Vibration
The International Standardisation Organisation ISO, has issued international standards
covering balancing and vibration characteristics. ISO 2373 is of particular interest for electric
motors. It covers permitted vibration level on delivery and applies to motor with shaft heights
in the range of 80 to 400 mm. The vibration level is expressed in mm/s rms. (millimetres per
second root mean squared) and must be measured at no load with the motor on elastic
mountings. ISO 2373 requires the shaft extension to be fitted with a full-size from during
vibration measurement. The requirements apply in the measurement range 10 to 1000 Hz.
Table XII. Vibration severity
Grade of quality

Speed
r/min

Maximum vibration velocity in mm/s rms.

at shaft height, mm

80 - 132 160 - 225 250 - 400

N
Normal

600 3 600

1.8

600 1 800
> 1800 3 600

1.71

Reduced

600 1 800
> 1800 3 600

0.45

Special

R
S

2.8

4.5

1.12
1.12

1.8
1.8

2.8

0.71
1.71

1.12
1.12

1.8

IEC 34-14 has its own recommendation for vibration characteristics; these differ slightly from
ISO. Among national standards the German DIN 45665 is almost identical to ISO 2373. The
parallel German recommendation VDE 2056 is differently written and uses other quality
description. British standard BS 4999 Part 50 also lays down figures that correspond to ISO.
The standards used in the USA are formulated in terms of displacement amplitude, not
vibration velocity, but the level aimed for is more or less the same. The smooth shaft method
of measurement is standard there.
12 Permitted output at high ambient temperature or high altitude above sea level
Motors in their standard versions are intended to operate in an ambient temperature of 40 oC
maximum and at not more than 1000 metres above sea level. If the motors are to be used at
high ambient temperature or higher altitudes the rated output must normally be reduced by the
percentage shown in the Table XIII. Thus when a standard motor is derated, relative data in
the catalogues, such as Ist/I, will change.
Table XIII. Permitted output at high ambient temperature or high altitude above sea level
Ambient temperature oC

40

45

50

55

60

70

Permitted output, % at rated output

100

96.5

93

90

86.5

79

Altitude above sea level

1000

1500

2000

2500

3500

4000

Permitted output, % of rated output

100

97

94.5

92

86.5

83.5

13 Overspeed
Motor shall be designed to withstand 1.2 times the maximum rated speed.
14 Voltage and frequency
According to VDE 0530 a voltage variation of 5% is permissible for the motor.
15 Overload capacity
In compliance with VDE 0530, all motors can be exposed to the following overload
conditions:
- 1.5 times the rated current for 2 minutes,
- 1.6 times the rated torque for 15 seconds.