Changes to European Acoustics Requirements in Toys - Revised EN 71-1:2011 + A2:2013
Vol. 735 | October 16, 2013
An amendment to EN 71-1:2011 has recently been published. National standards bodies have until March 2014 to publish it and withdraw conflicting national standards by September 2014.
The amendment concerns acoustics requirements. Among other things, it now includes requirements for toys not covered by the previous acoustics requirements. These include percussion toys such as drums, xylophones, tambourines and wind toys, such as trumpets and whistles.
Three exposure categories have been introduced to take into account that the length of time a sound is emitted from a toy can vary considerably. For example, Category 1 represents toys where the period of sound is longer than 30 seconds. Category 3 represents toys where the period of sound is less than 5 seconds (e.g. cap gun or whistle). New or revised sound pressure level limits are defined for eleven toy types and can differ within that toy type per the exposure category.
Test methods have been revised and detail how each of these toy types shall be tested. For example, testing wind and percussion toys involves 3 adults producing multiple samples of the sound.
For further inquiries, please contact:
Philip Bullock
Tel : +44 (0)116 263 0330
philip.bullock@intertek.com