EN IEC 63203-201-3:2021

Wearable electronic devices and technologies - Part 201-3: Electronic textile - Determination of electrical resistance of conductive textiles under simulated microclimate

IEC 63203-201-3:2021 specifies a test method for determination of the electrical resistance of conductive fabrics under simulated microclimate within clothing. The microclimate is the climate of the small air layer between the skin and clothing having a specific temperature and humidity. This test method can be applied to conductive fabrics including multilayer assemblies for use in clothing.

Tragbare elektronische Geräte und Technologien - Teil 201-3: Elektronische Textilien - Bestimmung des elektrischen Widerstandes von leitfähigen Textilien unter simuliertem Mikroklima

Technologies et dispositifs électroniques prêts-à-porter - Partie 201-3: Textile électronique - Détermination de la résistance électrique des textiles conducteurs sous microclimat simulé

L’IEC 63203-201-3:2021 spécifie une méthode d’essai pour la détermination de la résistance électrique des étoffes conductrices sous microclimat simulé dans les vêtements. Le microclimat est le climat de la fine couche d’air entre la peau et le vêtement qui présente une température et une humidité spécifiques. Cette méthode d’essai peut être appliquée aux étoffes conductrices, y compris aux assemblages multicouches qui sont utilisés dans les vêtements.

Nosljive elektronske naprave in tehnologije - 201-3. del: Elektronski tekstil - Določanje električne upornosti prevodnega tekstila v simulirani mikroklimi (IEC 63203-201-3:2021)

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 20-May-2021
• ICS: 59.080.80 - Smart textiles
• Technical Committee: CLC/SR 124 - Wearable Electronic Devices and Technologies
• Drafting Committee: IEC/TC 124 - Wearable electronic devices and technologies
• Current Stage: 6060 - Document made available - Publishing
• Start Date: 21-May-2021
• Completion Date: 21-May-2021
• Ref Project: SIST EN IEC 63203-201-3:2021 - Wearable electronic devices and technologies - Part 201-3: Electronic textile - Determination of electrical resistance of conductive textiles under simulated microclimate (IEC 63203-201-3:2021)

Overview

EN IEC 63203-201-3:2021 - part of the IEC 63203 series on wearable electronic devices and technologies - specifies a laboratory test method for determining the electrical resistance of conductive textiles under a simulated microclimate. The simulated microclimate is the thin air layer between skin and clothing with defined temperature and humidity. This standard applies to conductive fabrics and multilayer textile assemblies intended for integration into clothing and smart textile products.

Key topics and technical requirements

• Test scope: Measurement of electrical behaviour of textile-based conductive tracks when exposed to realistic microclimate conditions inside clothing.
• Test principle and equipment: Uses a sweating guarded-hotplate to simulate skin heat and moisture; measurement instrumentation includes a device with temperature/humidity sensors and a four‑electrode / four‑wire arrangement for stable electrical readings.
• Measured quantities:
  • Linear electrical resistance (R_L) - electrical resistance per unit length (expressed in ohm per metre).
  • Water‑vapour resistance including air layer (R_et_al) - quantifies evaporative resistance of the fabric–air system (expressed in m²·Pa/W).
• Specimen requirements: Definitions and requirements for textile‑based electrically conductive tracks (minimum length:width ratio 10:1), number of specimens, dimensions and conditioning according to standard atmospheres.
• Procedure elements: Preparation of contact points, specimen mounting, determination of apparatus constants, and reporting of results. Annexes give example data and reporting formats.
• Normative references: Integrates established test standards (ISO 139, ISO 11092, ISO 21232, EN 16812) to ensure reproducible conditioning and comparison.

Applications and users

Who benefits from using EN IEC 63203-201-3:2021:

• Textile and smart‑garment manufacturers validating conductive yarns, printed tracks, and multilayer assemblies for wearable electronics.
• R&D teams and product designers assessing performance of e-textiles under realistic thermal and humidity loads.
• Independent testing laboratories and quality control departments for acceptance testing and product specifications.
• Safety and compliance engineers ensuring durable electrical performance in garments (healthcare wearables, sportswear, heated clothing, sensors).
  Practical uses include performance benchmarking, material selection, durability assessment and verifying integration methods for conductive tracks in garments.

Related standards

Relevant referenced standards that complement testing under microclimate conditions:

• ISO 139 - standard atmospheres for conditioning and testing
• ISO 11092:2014 - sweating guarded‑hotplate test for thermal and water‑vapour resistance
• ISO 21232:2018 - measuring microclimate using a sweating guarded‑hotplate
• EN 16812:2016 - determination of linear electrical resistance of conductive tracks

EN IEC 63203-201-3:2021 is essential for anyone developing or testing conductive textiles and smart garments who needs reliable, repeatable electrical resistance data under realistic wearer conditions.

Standards Content (Sample)

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
01-julij-2021
Nosljive elektronske naprave in tehnologije - 201-3. del: Elektronski tekstil -
Določanje električne upornosti prevodnega tekstila v simulirani mikroklimi (IEC
63203-201-3:2021)
Wearable electronic devices and technologies - Part 201-3: Electronic textile -
Determination of electrical resistance of conductive textiles under simulated microclimate
(IEC 63203-201-3:2021)
Tragbare elektronische Geräte und Technologien - Teil 201-3: Elektronische Textilien -
Bestimmung des elektrischen Widerstandes von leitfähigen Textilien unter simuliertem
Mikroklima (IEC 63203-201-3:2021)
Technologies et dispositifs électroniques prêts-à-porter - Partie 201-3: Textile
électronique - Détermination de la résistance électrique des textiles conducteurs sous
microclimat simulé (IEC 63203-201-3:2021)
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: EN IEC 63203-201-3:2021
ICS:
59.080.80 Inteligentne tekstilije Smart textiles
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

EUROPEAN STANDARD EN IEC 63203-201-3

NORME EUROPÉENNE
EUROPÄISCHE NORM
May 2021
ICS 59.080.80
English Version
Wearable electronic devices and technologies - Part 201-3:
Electronic textile - Determination of electrical resistance of
conductive textiles under simulated microclimate
(IEC 63203-201-3:2021)
Technologies et dispositifs électroniques prêts-à-porter - Tragbare elektronische Geräte und Technologien - Teil 201-
Partie 201-3: Textile électronique - Détermination de la 3: Elektronische Textilien - Bestimmung des elektrischen
résistance électrique des textiles conducteurs sous Widerstandes von leitfähigen Textilien unter simuliertem
microclimat simulé Mikroklima
(IEC 63203-201-3:2021) (IEC 63203-201-3:2021)
This European Standard was approved by CENELEC on 2021-05-12. CENELEC members are bound to comply with the CEN/CENELEC
Internal Regulations which stipulate the conditions for giving this European Standard the status of a national standard without any alteration.
Up-to-date lists and bibliographical references concerning such national standards may be obtained on application to the CEN-CENELEC
Management Centre or to any CENELEC member.
This European Standard exists in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other language made by translation
under the responsibility of a CENELEC member into its own language and notified to the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre has the
same status as the official versions.
CENELEC members are the national electrotechnical committees of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic,
Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the
Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Turkey and the United Kingdom.

European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization
Comité Européen de Normalisation Electrotechnique
Europäisches Komitee für Elektrotechnische Normung
CEN-CENELEC Management Centre: Rue de la Science 23, B-1040 Brussels
© 2021 CENELEC All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved worldwide for CENELEC Members.
Ref. No. EN IEC 63203-201-3:2021 E

European foreword
The text of document 124/136/FDIS, future edition 1 of IEC 63203-201-3, prepared by IEC/TC 124
"Wearable electronic devices and technologies" was submitted to the IEC-CENELEC parallel vote and
approved by CENELEC as EN IEC 63203-201-3:2021.
The following dates are fixed:
• latest date by which the document has to be implemented at national (dop) 2022-02-12
level by publication of an identical national standard or by endorsement
• latest date by which the national standards conflicting with the (dow) 2024-05-12
document have to be withdrawn
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. CENELEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
Endorsement notice
The text of the International Standard IEC 63203-201-3:2021 was approved by CENELEC as a
European Standard without any modification.
In the official version, for Bibliography, the following note has to be added for the standard indicated:
ISO 8388:1998 NOTE Harmonized as EN ISO 8388:2003 (not modified)
Annex ZA
(normative)
Normative references to international publications
with their corresponding European publications
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content
constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For
undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments)
applies.
NOTE 1  Where an International Publication has been modified by common modifications, indicated by (mod),
the relevant EN/HD applies.
NOTE 2  Up-to-date information on the latest versions of the European Standards listed in this annex is available
here: www.cenelec.eu.
Publication Year Title EN/HD Year
ISO 139 - Textiles - Standard atmospheres for EN ISO 139 -
conditioning and testing
ISO 11092 2014 Textiles - Physiological effects - Measurement EN ISO 11092 2014
of thermal and water-vapour resistance under
steady-state conditions (sweating guarded-
hotplate test)
ISO 21232 2018 Textiles - Determination of moisturizing effect - -
of textile materials by measurement of
microclimate between textiles and simulated
human skin using sweating guarded hotplate
- - Textiles and textile products - Electrically EN 16812 2016
conductive textiles - Determination of the
linear electrical resistance of conductive
tracks
IEC 63203-201-3 ®
Edition 1.0 2021-04
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
NORME
INTERNATIONALE
Wearable electronic devices and technologies –

Part 201-3: Electronic textile – Determination of electrical resistance of

conductive textiles under simulated microclimate

Technologies et dispositifs électroniques prêts-à-porter –

Partie 201-3: Textile électronique – Détermination de la résistance électrique

des textiles conducteurs sous microclimat simulé

INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
COMMISSION
ELECTROTECHNIQUE
INTERNATIONALE
ICS 59.080.80 ISBN 978-2-8322-9640-0

– 2 – IEC 63203-201-3:2021  IEC 2021
CONTENTS
FOREWORD . 3
1 Scope . 5
2 Normative references . 5
3 Terms and definitions . 5
4 Principle of test . 6
5 Test equipment . 6
5.1 Sweating guarded-hotplate . 6
5.2 Device including temperature and humidity sensor with set-up of the four
electrode – four wire method . 6
5.3 Membranes . 7
5.4 Test enclosure of the sweating guarded-hotplate . 7
6 Test specimens . 8
6.1 Number of test specimens . 8
6.2 Dimension of specimens . 9
6.3 Conditioning . 9
7 Test procedure . 9
7.1 Preparation of textile-based electrically conductive track contact points for
necessary measurement stability . 9
7.2 Specimen mounting on measuring unit . 9
7.3 Determination of the apparatus constant R and measurement of water-
et0_al
vapour resistance including air layer R and RH) . 9
et_al
7.4 Determination of linear electrical resistance . 9
8 Test report . 10
Annex A (informative) Example of test results . 11
A.1 Sample . 11
A.2 R , RH and R . 11
et_al L
Bibliography . 13

Figure 1 – Sweating guarded-hotplate . 7
Figure 2 – Device including temperature and humidity sensor with set-up of four

electrode – four wire method . 8
Figure 3 – Example of textile-based electrically conductive track . 8
Figure A.1 – Conductive fabric . 11

Table A.1 – Arithmetic mean and CV % of test results . 12

IEC 63203-201-3:2021  IEC 2021 – 3 –
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
____________
WEARABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICES AND TECHNOLOGIES –

Part 201-3: Electronic textile – Determination of electrical resistance
of conductive textiles under simulated microclimate

FOREWORD
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