standard byInternational Electrotechnical Commission , 11/01/2025
IEC 63437:2025 This document specifies the essential characteristics of off grid and unreliable grid refrigerating appliances for domestic and similar use or light commercial use, cooled by internal natural or forced air convection. It defines input voltage supply signals for appliances designed for unreliable grid and off grid conditions.
An unreliable grid condition can be the result of disturbances on the electricity supply, such as power outages, or issues with power quality, such as voltage spikes and surges, that could cause performance challenges to refrigerating appliances. An off grid supply, in this context, for example is generated by a solar panel or a stand-alone solar home system that is not connected to the power grid. This document simulates the power characteristics in off grid and unreliable grid conditions but does not specify requirements or test procedures to assess performance of generators, solar panels, solar home system or any other system generating a supply signal.
The supply signals defined in this document can also be used for evaluation of the performance of other refrigerating appliances such as medical or laboratory appliances, professional storage refrigerators or freezers, refrigerated display cabinets, beverage coolers or ice cream freezers.
This document specifies the test methods for measuring the functional performance characteristics and requirements. This document does not apply to refrigerating appliances designed for a good quality and stable electricity grid and refrigerating appliances utilising fuelled absorption cooling technology.
This document is applicable to any refrigerating appliance for domestic or light commercial use that has a rated performance to properly operate off grid or under unreliable grid operating conditions resisting power interruptions and supply variations. Off grid and unreliable grid refrigerating appliances are appliances intended to for use with standalone or intermittent or distorted electrical mains. Electrical mains supply is assumed to be alternating current (AC) for unreliable grid or direct current (DC) for off grid. This document is also applicable to hybrid refrigerating appliances.
The test procedures primary focus on the performance of the overall refrigerating appliances and not on the specific performance of auxiliary components such as electrical batteries, inverters or rectifiers or any device intended to improve the power quality but external to the appliance itself. In case a refrigerating appliance is supplied with control unit, an electrical battery, a voltage protector, an inverter or a rectifier in the original product packaging, these components are considered as a component of the refrigerating appliance and are connected during testing.
The tests defined in this document aim to assess the fundamental design and functional operation of the refrigerating appliance as well as its resilience to given power quality issues.
Unreliable grid (UG) refrigerating appliance categories which are within the scope of this document are as follows:
a) UGintermittent : AC voltage supplied refrigerating appliances designed for proper operation during intermittent power outages, containing an internal thermal store and/or electrical battery;
b) UGdistorted: AC voltage refrigerating appliances designed for operation when connected to a distorted grid supply (for example voltage sags or voltage surges);
c) UGintermittent+distorted: AC voltage refrigerating appliances designed for operation with intermittent grid/power outages and distorted grid supply (combination of a) and b).
Off grid (OG) refrigerating appliance categories which are within the scope of this document are as follows:
– OGSDD: DC voltage supplied solar direct drive refrigerating appliances, designed for direct connection to a photovoltaic solar panel, containing an internal thermal store with an optional electrical battery to supply auxiliaries such as a controller, lighting or fans. The compressor of the appliance is directly supplied by the solar panel;
– OGbattery supported: DC voltage supplied, electrical battery supported solar refrigerating appliance designed for direct connection to a photovoltaic solar panel, incorporating an electrical battery to supply the compressor when there is insufficient solar power. These appliances can also have internal thermal store. The electrical battery is charged by the solar panel only. The battery will be part of the appliance or will be supplied in the same packaging of the appliance;
– OGintermittent : DC voltage supplied refrigerating appliance designed for proper operation during power outages, containing an internal thermal store or electrical battery, or both;
– OGcontinuous: Continuous DC voltage supplied refrigerating appliances, without any internal thermal store and electrical battery.
This document also defines solar classes, consisting of different irradiance patterns and unreliable grid protection codes, describing various power outages and voltage disturbances of the electricity grid. These classes can also be applied for products outside the scope of this standard.
Refrigerating appliances that are out of scope in this document include AC refrigerating appliances designed for reliable, good quality continuous supply. These refrigerating appliances are covered by IEC 62552-1 [7]1, IEC 62552-2 [8] and IEC 62552-3 [9] for domestic refrigerating appliances.
This document does not define requirements for production sampling or conformity assessment or certification.
