In order to be imported and marketed in the United States, radio frequency devices must obtain an authorization following the procedures established by Federal Communications Commission (FCC); procedures which were updated in November 2018.
The categories of devices that must comply with the standards expressed by the FCC regulations (Part 15B) are as follows:
- digital circuits that use, for their operation, radio frequencies above 9 kHz;
- radio receivers that tune frequencies between 30 MHz and 960 MHz;
- electronic devices that incorporate a single already certified radio module.
These limitations apply to involuntary emissions of electronic devices, such as those coming from microprocessors and digital equipment, and to intentional emissions, such as those produced by WiFi, Bluetooth equipment or other radio devices.
With the update of the legislation, two already existing compliance processes, called Verification of conformity And Declaration of conformity, today conformed to a single process called Supplier’s Declaration of Conformity (SDoC), or supplier's declaration of conformity.
Obligations and procedures for the SDoC
To obtain FCC product certification and meet SDoC requirements, a manufacturer must perform, or have performed by a competent laboratory such as Sicom Testing the checks necessary for the evaluation of unintentional emissions, document the results in a report, produce the labels with the information required by the regulation and include the information on compliance in the documentation provided to the consumer.
Products for which SDoC is required
The SDoC approval process is used for both equipment Class A than for those of Class B.
Previously, Class A devices complied with the Verification of Conformity and for Class B equipment the Declaration of Conformity or the Certification.
For combined equipment, unintentional or intentional emitters, the Certification and/or to the SDoC, in relation to the specifications for the type of device in question.
In fact, there are some devices for which only one is provided Certification and some types of devices for which both processes are expected to apply.
For example, mobile phones, WiFi, WLAN, laptops and tablets require both FCC certification and the application of the SDoC procedure, presenting characteristics linked at the same time to intentional and unintentional issuers.
Responsibility for device compliance
The provisions for the SDoC require that the documentation accompanying the product includes a declaration of conformity and the identification of the person responsible for compliance; so that the end consumer can know these details.
The Compliance Officer must be FCC certified, located in the United States, and is responsible for reporting product compliance with FCC regulations.
This is an important change in the legislation, because in the previous provisions the appointment of a manager responsible for these tasks was not required.
Compliance information in electronic format
Compliance information may be provided to you at electronic format, where the device has a screen and the information can be accessed in no more than three steps. To exemplify a process of this type, it can be understood as:
1) turning on the device;
2) access to a menu containing legal information;
3) access to a submenu listing FCC compliance information.
Sicom Testing offers a complete service for FCC certification (United States) and the ISED certification (Canada) of the products.
To request further information on this topic, write to info@sicomtesting.com
or call +39 0481 778931.
Bom Dia.
Estou no Brasil. I have two versions of the equipment, one that has a built-in 2G modem and another that uses communication via red cable (ethernet). Do you understand that in the case of a modem model with FCC certification, are you in doubt regarding the modem connection, would I also specify the FCC for this other version as well as whether I have a wireless communication component?
Both versions require FCC approval. For the version without radio module the SDoC procedure applies.
Good work
Sicom Testing