IEC TR 60825-3:2008

Safety of laser products - Part 3: Guidance for laser displays and shows

This part of IEC 60825, which is a technical report, gives guidance on the planning and design, set-up and conduct of laser displays and shows that make use of high power lasers. The laser power needed to produce effective theatrical or artistic displays in large spaces such as theatres, arenas, or architectural sites is great enough to pose a severe accidental exposure hazard, even when personal exposure is very brief. For this reason, subclause 4.1.5 of IEC/TR 60825-14 specifies that only laser products that are Class 1, Class 2 or visible-beam Class 3R should be used for demonstration, display or entertainment purposes in unsupervised areas. Laser products of other classes should only be permitted under carefully controlled conditions and under the control of a trained experienced operator. The guidance provided in this technical report is not intended to include the display or demonstration of scientific, medical or industrial laser products. However, many of the principles in this guidance may be relevant. This guidance provides recommendations for safety for those laser displays or demonstrations that are shows, artistic displays, advertising or light sculptures, or museum pieces used to demonstrate optical principles, etc. Laser products available for use in a domestic environment or for use by people who cannot be expected to have received a suitable level of training should be Class 1, Class 2 or visible beam Class 3R. Therefore, such equipment is outside the scope of this guidance. This guidance is intended to be used by those who:
- design, manufacture, assemble, install or operate laser products that are Class 4, Class 3B, or non-visible beam Class 3R for display and entertainment purposes;
- operate arenas, theatres, planetaria, discotheques or other places where such laser products may be installed and operated; or
- are responsible for reviewing the safety of such equipment, installations or displays.
This guidance is not normative, but rather a code of practice for the design, installation, operation and evaluation of the safety of laser light shows and displays, and the equipment employed in their production. This guidance is also intended for persons who modify laser display installations or equipment. This guidance contains safety criteria for the protection of the public or persons in the vicinity of laser displays in the course of their employment. In some countries, there may be specific requirements, such as government permissions or notifications of shows, or prohibitions, such as against laser scanning of spectators without appropriate safeguards. This guidance is not to be understood as in conflict with such requirements but merely to be supplementary. This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition published in 1995. It constitutes a technical revision. The main changes since the first edition include
- clarification of the scope;
- specific guidance on factors to take into account regarding scanning safeguards;
- clarification of the records to be maintained; and
- modification of the requirements for the zones where unattended laser projectors are used.

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 10-Mar-2008
• ICS: 01 - GENERALITIES. TERMINOLOGY. STANDARDIZATION. DOCUMENTATION
• ICS: 31.260 - Optoelectronics. Laser equipment
• Technical Committee: TC 76 - Optical radiation safety and laser equipment
• Drafting Committee: WG 8 - TC 76/WG 8
• Current Stage: DELPUB - Deleted Publication
• Start Date: 28-Jun-2019
• Completion Date: 13-Jul-2022

Relations

• Revised: IEC TR 60825-3:2022 - Safety of laser products - Part 3: Guidance for laser displays and shows
• Effective Date: 05-Sep-2023

Standards Content (Sample)

IEC/TR 60825-3
Edition 2.0 2008-03
TECHNICAL
REPORT
Safety of laser products –
Part 3: Guidance for laser displays and shows

IEC/TR 60825-3:2008(E)
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.
ƒ Catalogue of IEC publications: www.iec.ch/searchpub
The IEC on-line Catalogue enables you to search by a variety of criteria (reference number, text, technical committee,…).
It also gives information on projects, withdrawn and replaced publications.
ƒ IEC Just Published: www.iec.ch/online_news/justpub
Stay up to date on all new IEC publications. Just Published details twice a month all new publications released. Available
on-line and also by email.
ƒ Electropedia: www.electropedia.org
The world's leading online dictionary of electronic and electrical terms containing more than 20 000 terms and definitions
in English and French, with equivalent terms in additional languages. Also known as the International Electrotechnical
Vocabulary online.
ƒ Customer Service Centre: www.iec.ch/webstore/custserv
If you wish to give us your feedback on this publication or need further assistance, please visit the Customer Service
Centre FAQ or contact us:
Email: [e-mail]
Tel.: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
IEC/TR 60825-3
Edition 2.0 2008-03
TECHNICAL
REPORT
Safety of laser products –
Part 3: Guidance for laser displays and shows

INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
PRICE CODE
P
ICS 31.260 ISBN 2-8318-9648-7
– 2 – TR 60825-3 © IEC:2008(E)

CONTENTS
FOREWORD.3

1 Scope and object.5

1.1 Scope.5

1.2 Object .5

2 Normative references .6

3 Terms and definitions .6

4 Zone limits and maximum permissible exposures (MPE) for laser radiation .8
4.1 Compliance with maximum permissible exposure (MPE) .8
4.2 Spectator MPE .8
4.3 Ancillary personnel MPE .9
4.4 Performer MPE.9
5 Safety criteria for equipment and installations .10
6 Responsibilities of designers, installers, operators and performers.13
6.1 Training.13
6.2 Planning by designers. installers and operators.13
6.3 Set-up and alignment .13
6.4 Operation .14
6.5 Display safety record (DSR) .14
7 Special considerations.15
7.1 Holographic displays .15
7.2 Ultraviolet and blue-light laser beams.15

Bibliography.16

Figure 1 – Time for a scanning safeguard to be effective .9
Figure 2 – Spectator separation with operator in control .11
Figure 3 – Audience/spectator separation with operator in control.12
Figure 4 – Audience/spectator separation from unattended beams .12

Table 1 – Summary of MPE selection criteria.10

TR 60825-3 © IEC:2008(E) – 3 –

INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION

____________
SAFETY OF LASER PRODUCTS –
Part 3: Guidance for laser displays and shows

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.
The main task of IEC technical committees is to prepare International Standards. However, a
technical committee may propose the publication of a technical report when it has collected

data of a different kind from that which is normally published as an International Standard, for
example "state of the art".
IEC 60825-3, which is a technical report, has been prepared by IEC technical committee 76:
Optical radiation safety and laser equipment.
This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition published in 1995. It constitutes a
technical revision. The main changes since the first edition include clarification of the scope;
specific guidance on factors to take into account regarding scanning safeguards; clarification
of the records to be maintained; and modification of the requirements for the zones where
unattended laser projectors are used.

– 4 – TR 60825-3 © IEC:2008(E)

The text of this technical report is based on the following documents:

Enquiry draft Report on voting

76/371/DTR 76/379/RVC
Full information on the voting for the approval of this technical report 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.

A list of all parts of the IEC 60825 series, published under the general title Safety of laser
products, can be found on the IEC website.
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.

TR 60825-3 © IEC:2008(E) – 5 –

SAFETY OF LASER PRODUCTS –
Part 3: Guidance for laser displays and shows

1 Scope and object
1.1 Scope
This part of IEC 60825, which is a technical report, gives guidance on the planning and
design, set-up and conduct of laser displays and shows that make use of high power lasers.
The laser power needed to produce effective theatrical or artistic displays in large spaces
such as theatres, arenas, or architectural sites is great enough to pose a severe accidental
exposure hazard, even when personal exposure is very brief. For this reason, subclause 4.1.5
of IEC/TR 60825-14 specifies that only laser products that are Class 1, Class 2 or visible-
beam Class 3R should be used for demonstration, display or entertainment purposes in
unsupervised areas. Laser products of other classes should only be permitted under carefully
controlled conditions and under the control of a trained experienced operator.
The guidance provided in this technical report is not intended to include the display or
demonstration of scientific, medical or industrial laser products. However, many of the
principles in this guidance may be relevant. This guidance provides recommendations for
safety for those laser displays or demonstrations that are shows, artistic displays, advertising
or light sculptures, or museum pieces used to demonstrate optical principles, etc.
Laser products available for use in a domestic environment or for use by people who cannot
be expected to have received a suitable level of training should be Class 1, Class 2 or visible
beam Class 3R. Therefore, such equipment is outside the scope of this guidance.
1.2 Object
This guidance is intended to be used by those who:
– design, manufacture, assemble, install or operate laser products that are Class 4, Class
3B, or non-visible beam Class 3R for display and entertainment purposes;
– operate arenas, theatres, planetaria, discotheques or other places where such laser
products may be installed and operated; or
– are responsible for reviewing the safety of such equipment, installations or displays.

This guidance is not normative, but rather a code of practice for the design, installation,
operation and evaluation of the safety of laser light shows and displays, and the equipment
employed in their production. This guidance is also intended for persons who modify laser
display installations or equipment.
This guidance contains safety criteria for the protection of the public or persons in the vicinity
of laser displays in the course of their employment.
In some countries, there may be specific requirements, such as government permissions or
notifications of shows, or prohibitions, such as against laser scanning of spectators without
appropriate safeguards. This guidance is not to be understood as in conflict with such
requirements but merely to be supplementary.

– 6 – TR 60825-3 © IEC:2008(E)

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.

lEC 60825-1:2007, Safety of laser products – Part 1: Equipment classification and

requirements.
IEC/TR 60825-14:2004, Safety of laser products – Part 14: A user’s guide
...

IEC/TR 60825-3
Edition 2.0 2008-03
TECHNICAL
REPORT
Safety of laser products –
Part 3: Guidance for laser displays and shows

IEC/TR 60825-3:2008(E)
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.
ƒ Catalogue of IEC publications: www.iec.ch/searchpub
The IEC on-line Catalogue enables you to search by a variety of criteria (reference number, text, technical committee,…).
It also gives information on projects, withdrawn and replaced publications.
ƒ IEC Just Published: www.iec.ch/online_news/justpub
Stay up to date on all new IEC publications. Just Published details twice a month all new publications released. Available
on-line and also by email.
ƒ Electropedia: www.electropedia.org
The world's leading online dictionary of electronic and electrical terms containing more than 20 000 terms and definitions
in English and French, with equivalent terms in additional languages. Also known as the International Electrotechnical
Vocabulary online.
ƒ Customer Service Centre: www.iec.ch/webstore/custserv
If you wish to give us your feedback on this publication or need further assistance, please visit the Customer Service
Centre FAQ or contact us:
Email: [e-mail]
Tel.: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
IEC/TR 60825-3
Edition 2.0 2008-03
TECHNICAL
REPORT
Safety of laser products –
Part 3: Guidance for laser displays and shows

INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
PRICE CODE
P
ICS 31.260 ISBN 2-8318-9648-7
– 2 – TR 60825-3 © IEC:2008(E)
CONTENTS
FOREWORD.3

1 Scope and object.5
1.1 Scope.5
1.2 Object .5
2 Normative references .6
3 Terms and definitions .6
4 Zone limits and maximum permissible exposures (MPE) for laser radiation .8
4.1 Compliance with maximum permissible exposure (MPE) .8
4.2 Spectator MPE .8
4.3 Ancillary personnel MPE .9
4.4 Performer MPE.9
5 Safety criteria for equipment and installations .10
6 Responsibilities of designers, installers, operators and performers.13
6.1 Training.13
6.2 Planning by designers. installers and operators.13
6.3 Set-up and alignment .13
6.4 Operation .14
6.5 Display safety record (DSR) .14
7 Special considerations.15
7.1 Holographic displays .15
7.2 Ultraviolet and blue-light laser beams.15

Bibliography.16

Figure 1 – Time for a scanning safeguard to be effective .9
Figure 2 – Spectator separation with operator in control .11
Figure 3 – Audience/spectator separation with operator in control.12
Figure 4 – Audience/spectator separation from unattended beams .12

Table 1 – Summary of MPE selection criteria.10

TR 60825-3 © IEC:2008(E) – 3 –
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
____________
SAFETY OF LASER PRODUCTS –
Part 3: Guidance for laser displays and shows

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.
The main task of IEC technical committees is to prepare International Standards. However, a
technical committee may propose the publication of a technical report when it has collected
data of a different kind from that which is normally published as an International Standard, for
example "state of the art".
IEC 60825-3, which is a technical report, has been prepared by IEC technical committee 76:
Optical radiation safety and laser equipment.
This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition published in 1995. It constitutes a
technical revision. The main changes since the first edition include clarification of the scope;
specific guidance on factors to take into account regarding scanning safeguards; clarification
of the records to be maintained; and modification of the requirements for the zones where
unattended laser projectors are used.

– 4 – TR 60825-3 © IEC:2008(E)
The text of this technical report is based on the following documents:
Enquiry draft Report on voting
76/371/DTR 76/379/RVC
Full information on the voting for the approval of this technical report 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.
A list of all parts of the IEC 60825 series, published under the general title Safety of laser
products, can be found on the IEC website.
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.

TR 60825-3 © IEC:2008(E) – 5 –
SAFETY OF LASER PRODUCTS –
Part 3: Guidance for laser displays and shows

1 Scope and object
1.1 Scope
This part of IEC 60825, which is a technical report, gives guidance on the planning and
design, set-up and conduct of laser displays and shows that make use of high power lasers.
The laser power needed to produce effective theatrical or artistic displays in large spaces
such as theatres, arenas, or architectural sites is great enough to pose a severe accidental
exposure hazard, even when personal exposure is very brief. For this reason, subclause 4.1.5
of IEC/TR 60825-14 specifies that only laser products that are Class 1, Class 2 or visible-
beam Class 3R should be used for demonstration, display or entertainment purposes in
unsupervised areas. Laser products of other classes should only be permitted under carefully
controlled conditions and under the control of a trained experienced operator.
The guidance provided in this technical report is not intended to include the display or
demonstration of scientific, medical or industrial laser products. However, many of the
principles in this guidance may be relevant. This guidance provides recommendations for
safety for those laser displays or demonstrations that are shows, artistic displays, advertising
or light sculptures, or museum pieces used to demonstrate optical principles, etc.
Laser products available for use in a domestic environment or for use by people who cannot
be expected to have received a suitable level of training should be Class 1, Class 2 or visible
beam Class 3R. Therefore, such equipment is outside the scope of this guidance.
1.2 Object
This guidance is intended to be used by those who:
– design, manufacture, assemble, install or operate laser products that are Class 4, Class
3B, or non-visible beam Class 3R for display and entertainment purposes;
– operate arenas, theatres, planetaria, discotheques or other places where such laser
products may be installed and operated; or
– are responsible for reviewing the safety of such equipment, installations or displays.
This guidance is not normative, but rather a code of practice for the design, installation,
operation and evaluation of the safety of laser light shows and displays, and the equipment
employed in their production. This guidance is also intended for persons who modify laser
display installations or equipment.
This guidance contains safety criteria for the protection of the public or persons in the vicinity
of laser displays in the course of their employment.
In some countries, there may be specific requirements, such as government permissions or
notifications of shows, or prohibitions, such as against laser scanning of spectators without
appropriate safeguards. This guidance is not to be understood as in conflict with such
requirements but merely to be supplementary.

– 6 – TR 60825-3 © IEC:2008(E)
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.
lEC 60825-1:2007, Safety of laser products – Part 1: Equipment classification and
requirements.
IEC/TR 60825-14:2004, Safety of laser products – Part 14: A user’s guide
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
3.1
ancillary personnel
ancillary personnel include backstage workers, ushers, security g
...