Directive Decoder

Often asked about Power Supplies and their RoHS status.
As finished goods these donot seem to fit any of the WEEE categories and would be deemed out of scope. However, thinking it through, the majority of power supplies are used as components in, or attached to, other equipment and may therefore have the same status as the equipment they are "part of".
A power supply inside a desk top computer is part of a Category 3 product and so will need to be RoHS compliant. However, if the same power supply is used in a Category 9 test instrument then it does not have to comply with RoHS.
The same can be said of battery chargers. These do not appear to be in any of the 10 WEEE categories but, when they are sold as accessories to other products, their status is the same as the equipment they are intended to charge. Therefore a charger for a mobile phone would be in scope, Category 3, whereas a charger for a portable test instrument is Category 9, and so outside scope.

Just a reminder that I will be in the Electronics Yorkshire seminar area at NEPCON at 2PM on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

I look forward to seeing you there.

Directive Decoder