IP 65 is a term bandied around quite a lot in the digital signage industry and yet many people are still unsure of exactly what IP 65 and what it represents.
IP 65 is part of the ‘ingress protection’ rating system used throughout the European Union. The IP system designates numbers to the enclosures of devices such as LCD or plasma screens as a way of explanation to how much protection their enclosures offer.
The IP system designates two numbers, the first indicating the protection of solid particles and ranges from 0 to 6, with the lower numbers offering little or no protection against solid objects (such as dust) while a number 6 indicates a totally dust tight enclosure (the first digit has a secondary function in that it also designates the protection the enclosure offers a person against moving parts).
The second digit represents the moisture level it protects against and these numbers go from 0 to 8, the lower offering no water protection while a number 8 is a totally waterproof enclosure.
Plasmas and LCD enclosures that are IP65 protected are therefore dust-tight devices that offer excellent protection from water, ideal for outdoor locations as they can protect from the rain. It must be noted however that an IP65 enclosure is only waterproof to the extent of protected: ‘against heavy seas, or powerful jets of water,’ they can not be immersed in water.
