QUESTION

Question

I'm trying to design a wireless product but am not sure how the certification process differs from country to country and whether each specific carrier has their own cert. requirements.

Has anyone gone through the certification process for EU carriers and then tried to pass certification for the US and their carriers? What are some of the things to be mindful of?

Thanks!

Pete

Answer 1

I know that each carrier has a requested certification format for wireless products.
This should be checked individually with customers.
In any country, there will be a company acting on behalf of each certification.

Answer 2

Hi Pete, you don't need a carrier approval in Germany. This is only necessary if you want to deliver directly to the network operator. Here there is nothing comparable to PTCRB. In the other countries it is similar. You only need RED (CE) and if you have all the measuring equipment, then you can explain that yourself. We measure and check the function of the devices with radiation but also with irradiation. As far as I know, there is no function test for interference at FCC. The measurements here are more extensive and some measurements according to RED/CE are similar to measurements according to FCC.
Regards
Harald

Answer 3

Hi Pete,

This is a very good question and one I am pleased to see you are asking before embarking on your wireless design. Many times we see cellular products designed without consideration here, only to then fail approval.

Do you plan to have a single device/design for both European and US market? The US is typically harder to pass because you need both PTCRB and then the selected network approval. However, AT&T recently reduced their requirements with products having a ground plane less than 107mm I believe.

Its worth mentioning just in case. US carriers no longer approve 3G cellular based products. It has to be 4G/LTE. This is not the case for Europe.

Network approvals and designing a cellular product to pass is a challenge, especially when products are getting smaller and smaller. Its an important subject that should be researched before embarking on a design. Failing network approval is both costly to re-test, as well as the possibility that you may have to redesign your product.
Select your cellular wireless module carefully. Many vendors do have approval on their modules, but this does not automatically mean you do not need to approve your device because of this.

Kind regards

Colin