As a basic electronic component, ordinary thick film surface mount resistors have increasingly needed to meet safety certification requirements in recent years. This trend is mainly driven by the following core factors, reflecting profound changes in the electronic industry in terms of safety, regulations, and technology:
1、 The increase in security requirements brought about by the expansion of application fields
Popularization of automotive electronics
Automotive electronics have extremely strict requirements for component reliability, and AECQ200 certification has become a mandatory threshold for automotive resistors. This certification covers multiple tests such as temperature cycling, high temperature and humidity, mechanical shock, etc., ensuring that the resistor can still work stably in environments such as vehicle vibration and temperature fluctuations. Unrecognized resistors may cause functional failure and even lead to safety accidents.
Upgrading industrial and medical equipment
In industrial power supplies, medical instruments, and other scenarios, resistors need to withstand higher voltages (such as the maximum overload voltage of the Guangjie HVR series resistors reaching 4000V) and continuous current surges. If such equipment shuts down or malfunctions due to resistance failure, it may cause significant economic losses or personal injury. Safety certification (such as UL/IEC 62368) has become the underlying requirement to ensure system level safety.
2、 Mandatory promotion of regulatory and standard upgrades
International safety regulations are becoming stricter
UL/IEC 623681 replaces the old standard: This standard includes audio, video, and IT equipment in the evaluation scope, requiring resistors to not pose a risk of fire or electric shock under overvoltage, overheating, and other faults.
Environmental regulations (RoHS, halogen-free): restrict the use of harmful substances such as lead and cadmium, and promote technological innovation in resistance materials.
The cascading effect of whole machine certification
If terminal products need to pass CCC, CE and other certifications, their internal components (including resistors) must provide safety support documents. For example, UL certification requires resistor manufacturers to submit design documents, test reports, and quality control records.
3、 Technological Advancement for High Voltage/High Reliability Applications
Popularization of high-voltage scenarios
New energy vehicle inverters, industrial converters, etc. require resistors to withstand thousands of volts of voltage (such as the working voltage of the Guangjie HVR series reaching 3000V). Ordinary resistors are prone to creepage or breakdown under high voltage, while safety certified resistors solve such hidden dangers through special structural design (such as extending the creepage distance and optimizing the electrode layer).
Surge resistance has become an essential requirement
Transient pulses such as power switches and lightning strikes may burn out resistors. The safety certification requires resistors to have anti surge design (such as SUSUMU thick film resistors using high heat capacity materials), ensuring that they can withstand pulse currents of several amperes.
4、 Market competitiveness and brand value factors
Certification enhances product premium
UL and AECQ200 resistors can be marked with certification marks, making them a preferred purchasing option for customers. For example, the automotive supply chain explicitly requires suppliers to use certified components to reduce system risks.
Avoid liability disputes
If the whole machine accident (such as electric vehicle fire) is caused by unverified resistors, the manufacturer may bear legal responsibility. As a proof of compliance, safety certification has become a key basis for brand exemption.
5、 The linkage effect of overall system safety design
Failure Mode Prevention Requirements
85%~90% of resistor failures are open circuits, which may cause circuit chain faults. Safety certification exposes potential defects in advance through accelerated life testing (such as 1000 hours of high temperature load), reducing the overall failure rate of the machine.
Standardization dependence on derating design
The safety certification clearly specifies the power derating curve of the resistor (such as reducing the load above 70 ℃), providing design basis for engineers to avoid early failure caused by excessive use.
The safety certification requirements for ordinary thick film surface mount resistors are essentially the result of the evolution of electronic devices towards high voltage, high reliability, and multiple scenarios, as well as the tightening of global regulations. In the future, with the further penetration of the Internet of Things and automotive electronics, safety certification will completely transform from a "high-end option" to a "necessary pass".