IEC 60446:2007

Basic and safety principles for man-machine interface, marking and identification - Identification of conductors by colours or alphanumerics

IEC 60446:2007 provides general rules for the use of certain colours or alphanumerics to identify conductors with the aim of avoiding ambiguity and ensuring safe operation. These conductor colours or alphanumerics are intended to be applied in cables or cores, busbars, electrical equipment and installations. This fourth edition cancels and replaces the third edition, published in 1999 and constitutes a technical revision. It includes the following changes:
- addition of Clause 3 - Terms and definitions;
- addition of Clause 4 - Identification of conductors;
- addition of subclauses 5.3.4 to 5.3.6 - Use of bi-colour combinations;
- addition of subclause 6.2 - Identification of certain designated conductors;
- addition of a new Annex A (informative) "Identification of certain designated conductors by means of colour code and alphanumeric"; - deletion of the old Annex A (informative) "Methods of marking PEN conductors in different countries". This bilingual version (2014-04) corresponds to the monolingual English version, published in 2007-05. It has the status of a basic safety publication in accordance with IEC Guide 104.

Principes fondamentaux et principes de securité pour l'interface homme-machine, le marquage et l'identification - Identification des conducteurs par des couleurs ou par des repères alphanumériques

L'IEC 60446:2007 fournit des règles générales pour l'usage de certaines couleurs ou de repères alphanumériques pour identifier les conducteurs dans le but d'éviter toute ambiguïté et d'assurer un fonctionnement sûr. Ces couleurs et repères alphanumériques pour l'identification des conducteurs sont destinés à être utilisés dans les câbles ou les conducteurs, pour les jeux de barres, les équipements et les installations électriques. Cette quatrième édition annule et remplace la troisième édition parue en 1999, et constitue une révision technique. Elle inclut les modifications techniques significatives suivantes par rapport à l'édition précédente:
- addition de l'Article 3 - Termes et définitions;
- addition de l'Article 4 - Identification des conducteurs;
- addition des paragraphes 5.3.4 à 5.3.6 - Utilisation des combinaisons bicolores;
- addition du paragraphe 6.2 - Identification de certains conducteurs désignés;
- addition d'une nouvelle Annexe A (informative) "Identification de certains conducteurs désignés au moyen d'un code de couleurs et de repères alphanumériques";
- suppression de l'ancienne Annexe A (informative) "Méthodes de marquage des conducteurs PEN dans différents pays". La présente version bilingue (2014-04) correspond à la version anglaise monolingue publiée en 2007-05. Elle a le statut d'une publication fondamentale de sécurité conformément au Guide CEI 104.

General Information

• Status: Replaced
• Publication Date: 08-May-2007
• ICS: 01.070 - Colour coding
• ICS: 29.020 - Electrical engineering in general
• Technical Committee: TC 3 - Documentation, graphical symbols and representations of technical information
• Drafting Committee: MT 11 - TC 2/MT 11
• Current Stage: DELPUB - Deleted Publication
• Completion Date: 27-Aug-2010

Relations

• Replaced By: IEC 60445:2010 - Basic and safety principles for man-machine interface, marking and identification - Identification of equipment terminals, conductor terminations and conductors
• Effective Date: 05-Sep-2023
• Revises: IEC 60446:1999/COR1:2002 - Corrigendum 1 - Basic and safety principles for man-machine interface, marking and identification - Identification of conductors by colours or numerals
• Effective Date: 05-Sep-2023
• Revises: IEC 60446:1999 - Basic and safety principles for man-machine interface, marking and identification - Identification of conductors by colours or numerals
• Effective Date: 05-Sep-2023

Standards Content (Sample)

INTERNATIONAL IEC
STANDARD 60446
Fourth edition
2007-05
BASIC SAFETY PUBLICATION
Basic and safety principles for man-machine
interface, marking and identification –
Identification of conductors by colours
or alphanumerics
Reference number
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, no part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form

or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and microfilm, without permission in writing from
either IEC or IEC's member National Committee in the country of the requester.
If you have any questions about IEC copyright or have an enquiry about obtaining additional rights to this publication,
please contact the address below or your local IEC member National Committee for further information.

IEC Central Office
3, rue de Varembé
CH-1211 Geneva 20
Switzerland
Email: [e-mail]
Web: www.iec.ch
About the IEC
The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is the leading global organization that prepares and publishes
International Standards for all electrical, electronic and related technologies.

About IEC publications
The technical content of IEC publications is kept under constant review by the IEC. Please make sure that you have the
latest edition, a corrigenda or an amendment might have been published.
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INTERNATIONAL IEC
STANDARD 60446
Fourth edition
2007-05
BASIC SAFETY PUBLICATION
Basic and safety principles for man-machine
interface, marking and identification –
Identification of conductors by colours
or alphanumerics
PRICE CODE
Commission Electrotechnique Internationale P
International Electrotechnical Commission
МеждународнаяЭлектротехническаяКомиссия
For price, see current catalogue

– 2 – 60446 © IEC:2007(E)
CONTENTS
FOREWORD.3

INTRODUCTION.5

1 Scope.6

2 Normative references .6

3 Terms and definitions .6

4 Identification of conductors.7

5 Identification by colours.8
5.1 General .8
5.2 Use of single colours .8
5.3 Use of bi-colour combinations .9
6 Identification by alphanumerics .10
6.1 General .10
6.2 Identification of certain designated conductors .11

Annex A (informative) Identification of certain designated conductors by means of
colour code and alphanumeric .12

Bibliography.15

Table A.1 – Identification of certain designated conductors by means of colour code
and alphanumeric .12

60446 © IEC:2007(E) – 3 –
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION

____________
BASIC AND SAFETY PRINCIPLES FOR MAN-MACHINE INTERFACE,

MARKING AND IDENTIFICATION –
IDENTIFICATION OF CONDUCTORS BY COLOURS OR ALPHANUMERICS

FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising
all national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote
international co-operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To
this end and in addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications,
Technical Reports, Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) and Guides (hereafter referred to as “IEC
Publication(s)”). Their preparation is entrusted to technical committees; any IEC National Committee interested
in the subject dealt with may participate in this preparatory work. International, governmental and non-
governmental organizations liaising with the IEC also participate in this preparation. IEC collaborates closely
with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in accordance with conditions determined by
agreement between the two organizations.
2) The formal decisions or agreements of IEC on technical matters express, as nearly as possible, an international
consensus of opinion on the relevant subjects since each technical committee has representation from all
interested IEC National Committees.
3) IEC Publications have the form of recommendations for international use and are accepted by IEC National
Committees in that sense. While all reasonable efforts are made to ensure that the technical content of IEC
Publications is accurate, IEC cannot be held responsible for the way in which they are used or for any
misinterpretation by any end user.
4) In order to promote international uniformity, IEC National Committees undertake to apply IEC Publications
transparently to the maximum extent possible in their national and regional publications. Any divergence
between any IEC Publication and the corresponding national or regional publication shall be clearly indicated in
the latter.
5) IEC provides no marking procedure to indicate its approval and cannot be rendered responsible for any
equipment declared to be in conformity with an IEC Publication.
6) All users should ensure that they have the latest edition of this publication.
7) No liability shall attach to IEC or its directors, employees, servants or agents including individual experts and
members of its technical committees and IEC National Committees for any personal injury, property damage or
other damage of any nature whatsoever, whether direct or indirect, or for costs (including legal fees) and
expenses arising out of the publication, use of, or reliance upon, this IEC Publication or any other IEC
Publications.
8) Attention is drawn to the Normative references cited in this publication. Use of the referenced publications is
indispensable for the correct application of this publication.
9) Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this IEC Publication may be the subject of
patent rights. IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
International Standard IEC 60446 has been prepared by IEC technical committee 16: Basic
and safety principles for man-machine interface, marking and identification.
This fourth edition cancels and replaces the third edition, published in 1999 and constitutes a
technical revision. This edition includes the following significant technical changes with
respect to the previous edition:
a) addition of Clause 3 – Terms and definitions
b) addition of Clause 4 – Identification of conductors
c) addition of subclauses 5.3.4 to 5.3.6 – Use of bi-colour combinations
d) addition of subclause 6.2 – Identification of certain designated conductors
e) addition of a new Annex A (informative) “Identification of certain designated conductors by
means of colour code and alphanumeric”
f) deletion of the old Annex A (informative) “Methods of marking PEN conductors in different
countries”.
– 4 – 60446 © IEC:2007(E)
It has the status of a basic safety publication in accordance with IEC Guide 104.

The text of this standard is based on the following documents:

FDIS Report on voting
16/461/FDIS 16/462/RVD
Full information on the voting for the approval of this standard can be found in the report on

voting indicated in the above table.

This publication has been drafted in accordance with the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.
The committee has decided that the contents of this publication will remain unchanged until
the maintenance result date indicated on the IEC web site under "http://webstore.iec.ch" in
the data related to the specific publication. At this date, the publication will be
• reconfirmed;
• withdrawn;
• replaced by a revised edition, or
• amended.
A bilingual version of this publication may be issued at a later date.

60446 © IEC:2007(E) – 5 –
INTRODUCTION
This International Standard is a basic safety publication is intended for use by technical

committees in the preparation of standards in accordance and with the principles laid down in

IEC Guide 104 and in ISO/IEC Guide 51.

It should be noted that one of the responsibilities of a technical committee is, wherever

possible, to include or refer to requirements of basic safety publications in standards for

equipment within its scope. Consequently, the requirements of this basic safety publication

apply only if they are included, or are referred to in those standards.

– 6 – 60446 © IEC:2007(E)
BASIC AND SAFETY PRINCIPLES FOR MAN-MACHINE INTERFACE,

MARKING AND IDENTIFICATION –
IDENTIFICATION OF CONDUCTORS BY COLOURS OR ALPHANUMERICS

1 Scope
This International Standard provides general rules for the use of certain colours or
alphanumerics to identify conductors with the aim of avoiding ambiguity and ensuring safe
operation. These conductor colours or alphanumerics are intended to be applied in cables or
cores, busbars, electrical equipment and installations.
2 Normative references
The following referenced documents are indispensable for the application 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.
IEC Guide 104, The preparation of safety publications and the use of basic safety publications
and group safety publications
ISO/IEC Guide 51, Safety aspects – Guidelines for their inclusion in standards
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
NOTE The terms are sorted in alphabetical order.
3.1
functional bonding conductor
conductor provided for functional-equipotential-bonding
[IEV 195-02-16]
3.2
functional earthing conductor
functional grounding conductor (in US)
earthing conductor provided for functional earthing
[IEV 195-02-15]
3.3
line conductor
phase conductor (in AC systems) (deprecated)
pole conductor (in DC systems) (deprecated)
conductor which is energized in normal operation and capable of contributing to the
transmission or distribution of electric energy but which is not a neutral or mid-point conductor
[IEV 195-02-08]
3.4
mid-point conductor
conductor electrically connected to the mid-point and capable of contributing to the
distribution of electric energy

60446 © IEC:2007(E) – 7 –
[IEV 195-02-07]
3.5
neutral conductor
conductor electrically connected to the neutral point and capable of contributing to the

distribution of electric energy

[IEV 195-02-06]
3.6
PEL conductor
conductor combining the functions of both a protective earthing conductor and a line
conductor
[IEV 195-02-14]
3.7
PEM conductor
conductor combining the functions of both a protective earthing conductor and a mid-point
conductor
[IEV 195-02-13]
3.8
PEN conductor
conductor combining the functions of both a protective earthing conductor and a neutral
conductor
[IEV 195-02-12]
3.9
protective bonding conductor
equipotential bonding conductor (deprecated)
protective conductor provided for protective-equipotential-bonding
[IEV 195-02-10]
3.10
protective bonding conductor, earthed
protective bonding conductor with a conductive path to earth
3.11
protective bonding conductor, unearthed

protective bonding conductor without a conductive path to earth
3.12
protective conductor
(identification: PE)
conductor provided for purposes of safety, for example protection against electric shock
[IEV 195-02-09]
4 Identification of conductors
Conductors shall be identified either by colours or by an alphanumeric designation or both.
Identification of conductors by colours shall be in accordance with the requirements provided
in Clause 5. Identification of conductors by alphanumerics shall be in accordance with the
requirements provided in Clause 6.

– 8 – 60446 © IEC:2007(E)
5 Identification by colours
5.1 General
For identification of conductors, the following colours are permitted:

– black, brown, red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet, grey, white, pink, turquoise.

NOTE This list of colours is derived fr
...

IEC 60446 ®
Edition 4.0 2007-05
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
NORME
INTERNATIONALE
colour
inside
Basic and safety principles for man-machine interface, marking and
identification – Identification of conductors by colours or alphanumerics

Principes fondamentaux et principes de sécurité pour l’interface homme-
machine, le marquage et l’identification – Identification des conducteurs par des
couleurs ou par des repères alphanumériques

All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, no part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form
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The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is the leading global organization that prepares and publishes
International Standards for all electrical, electronic and related technologies.

About IEC publications
The technical content of IEC publications is kept under constant review by the IEC. Please make sure that you have the
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IEC 60446 ®
Edition 4.0 2007-05
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
NORME
INTERNATIONALE
colour
inside
Basic and safety principles for man-machine interface, marking and

identification – Identification of conductors by colours or alphanumerics

Principes fondamentaux et principes de sécurité pour l’interface homme-

machine, le marquage et l’identification – Identification des conducteurs par des

couleurs ou par des repères alphanumériques

INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
COMMISSION
ELECTROTECHNIQUE
PRICE CODE
INTERNATIONALE
CODE PRIX P
ICS 01.070; 29.020 ISBN 978-2-8322-1322-3

– 2 – IEC 60446:2007 © IEC 2007
CONTENTS
FOREWORD . 3
INTRODUCTION . 5

1 Scope . 6
2 Normative references . 6
3 Terms and definitions . 6
4 Identification of conductors . 7
5 Identification by colours . 8
5.1 General . 8
5.2 Use of single colours . 8
5.3 Use of bi-colour combinations . 9
6 Identification by alphanumerics . 10
6.1 General . 10
6.2 Identification of certain designated conductors . 11

Annex A (informative) Identification of certain designated conductors by means of
colour code and alphanumeric . 12

Bibliography . 15

Table A.1 – Identification of certain designated conductors by means of colour code
and alphanumeric . 12

INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
____________
BASIC AND SAFETY PRINCIPLES FOR MAN-MACHINE
INTERFACE, MARKING AND IDENTIFICATION –

IDENTIFICATION OF CONDUCTORS BY COLOURS OR ALPHANUMERICS

FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising
all national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote
international co-operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To
this end and in addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications,
Technical Reports, Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) and Guides (hereafter referred to as “IEC
Publication(s)”). Their preparation is entrusted to technical committees; any IEC National Committee interested
in the subject dealt with may participate in this preparatory work. International, governmental and non-
governmental organizations liaising with the IEC also participate in this preparation. IEC collaborates closely
with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in accordance with conditions determined by
agreement between the two organizations.
2) The formal decisions or agreements of IEC on technical matters express, as nearly as possible, an international
consensus of opinion on the relevant subjects since each technical committee has representation from all
interested IEC National Committees.
3) IEC Publications have the form of recommendations for international use and are accepted by IEC National
Committees in that sense. While all reasonable efforts are made to ensure that the technical content of IEC
Publications is accurate, IEC cannot be held responsible for the way in which they are used or for any
misinterpretation by any end user.
4) In order to promote international uniformity, IEC National Committees undertake to apply IEC Publications
transparently to the maximum extent possible in their national and regional publications. Any divergence
between any IEC Publication and the corresponding national or regional publication shall be clearly indicated in
the latter.
5) IEC provides no marking procedure to indicate its approval and cannot be rendered responsible for any
equipment declared to be in conformity with an IEC Publication.
6) All users should ensure that they have the latest edition of this publication.
7) No liability shall attach to IEC or its directors, employees, servants or agents including individual experts and
members of its technical committees and IEC National Committees for any personal injury, property damage or
other damage of any nature whatsoever, whether direct or indirect, or for costs (including legal fees) and
expenses arising out of the publication, use of, or reliance upon, this IEC Publication or any other IEC
Publications.
8) Attention is drawn to the Normative references cited in this publication. Use of the referenced publications is
indispensable for the correct application of this publication.
9) Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this IEC Publication may be the subject of
patent rights. IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
International Standard IEC 60446 has been prepared by IEC technical committee 16: Basic
and safety principles for man-machine interface, marking and identification.
This fourth edition cancels and replaces the third edition, published in 1999 and constitutes a
technical revision. This edition includes the following significant technical changes with
respect to the previous edition:
a) addition of Clause 3 – Terms and definitions
b) addition of Clause 4 – Identification of conductors
c) addition of subclauses 5.3.4 to 5.3.6 – Use of bi-colour combinations
d) addition of subclause 6.2 – Identification of certain designated conductors
e) addition of a new Annex A (informative) “Identification of certain designated conductors by
means of colour code and alphanumeric”
f) deletion of the old Annex A (informative) “Methods of marking PEN conductors in different
countries”.
– 4 – IEC 60446:2007 © IEC 2007
It has the status of a basic safety publication in accordance with IEC Guide 104.
This bilingual version (2014-04) corresponds to the monolingual English version, published in
2007-05.
The text of this standard is based on the following documents:
FDIS Report on voting
16/461/FDIS 16/462/RVD
Full information on the voting for the approval of this standard can be found in the report on
voting indicated in the above table.
The French version of this standard has not been voted upon.
This publication has been drafted in accordance with the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.
The committee has decided that the contents of this publication will remain unchanged until
the maintenance result date indicated on the IEC web site under "http://webstore.iec.ch" in
the data related to the specific publication. At this date, the publication will be
• reconfirmed;
• withdrawn;
• replaced by a revised edition, or
• amended.
IMPORTANT – The 'colour inside' logo on the cover page of this publication indicates
that it contains colours which are considered to be useful for the correct
understanding of its contents. Users should therefore print this document using a
colour printer.
...