SIST EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026

• Abstract:

  This document specifies test methods for surface electromyography (sEMG) sensors by evaluating the quality of sEMG signals obtained from contracting the muscles of the forearm and hand for wearable applications. It is applicable to sEMG sensors that are used to decipher movement intentions and use them as control signals in situations such as virtual reality, game, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), robot control, and home automation. This document does not apply to sEMG sensors intended for medical diagnosis or treatment. For medical devices, national requirements can apply.

• Status: Published
• Public Enquiry End Date: 24-Jul-2025
• Publication Date: 23-Sep-2026
• ICS: 31.020 - Electronic components in general
• Technical Committee: I09 - Imaginarni 09
• Current Stage: 6060 - National Implementation/Publication (Adopted Project)
• Start Date: 22-Sep-2026
• Due Date: 27-Nov-2026
• Completion Date: 24-Sep-2026
• Ref Project: EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026 - Wearable electronic devices and technologies - Part 403-1: Test method of surface electromyography sensors on forearm and hand for wearable applications

SIST EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026 is a European Standard published by CENELEC and identical to IEC 63203-403-1:2026. It specifies a test method for surface electromyography (sEMG) sensors on the forearm and hand for wearable applications, so users can judge whether the sensor signal quality is suitable for decoding movement intent. It is intended for wearable control uses such as virtual reality, games, UAV control, robot control and home automation, not for medical diagnosis or treatment.

What does SIST EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026 specify?

SIST EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026 specifies how to test sEMG sensors by evaluating the quality of signals taken from contracting forearm and hand muscles. The document is organized as a test method for wearable applications, from subject and equipment setup through signal performance checks to the final test report.

The document is arranged as follows:

• Clause 1 - Scope
• Clause 2 - Normative references
• Clause 3 - Terms and definitions
• Clause 4 - Test conditions
• Clause 5 - Test equipment
• Clause 6 - Test procedure
• Clause 7 - Measurement of sensor performance
• Clause 8 - Test report

Annex	What it covers
Annex A	Hand movements, related muscles, and sensor placement guidance for forearm and hand
Annex B	Feature extraction methods for sEMG signals and sliding-window guidance
Annex C	Construction of the confusion matrix and accuracy calculation

What are the key requirements of SIST EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026?

SIST EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026 sets out a practical test flow: prepare the subject and environment, choose and place the sensor, then check baseline noise, SNR, distinguishability, and repeatability. In practice, this means the same sensor can be judged both for raw signal quality and for its usefulness in movement recognition.

Test conditions and subject setup

The test is carried out within the manufacturer’s operating environment, and the document recommends reducing power-line and other external noise. For the reader, that means the test should be run in a quiet, controlled setting if the goal is to compare sensors fairly.

The subject must have intact upper limbs and be healthy, with no muscle or nerve-related disorders. Loose clothing, clean skin on the forearm, and a comfortable posture all help keep the sensor contact stable and the signal easier to interpret.

Sensor type, selection, and placement

SIST EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026 classifies sEMG sensors by conductive medium, channel configuration, and fixation method. The document recommends an active sEMG sensor where possible because amplifier or feedback circuitry can help keep skin-to-electrode impedance low and reduce noise and motion artifacts.

Sensor choice depends on the task. For a specific muscle or a small set of target muscles, single-channel or multi-single channel sensors are used and placed on the target muscles. For muscle groups, single-channel, multi-single channel, or multi-type sensors can be used.

Placement depends on the movement and sensor type. Annex A links wrist and finger movements to the relevant forearm and hand muscles, and the main text requires sensors to follow the muscle fibres and sit on the muscle belly where applicable. If sensors are too close together, the document says to test them separately and keep the one with the better SNR.

Signal quality checks

Clause 7 starts with a baseline noise test. The sensor is attached while the target muscles are relaxed, the signal is recorded for one minute, and the root mean square (RMS) of the baseline is checked. If the baseline noise is too high, the document calls for cleaning the sensor and skin, and then repeating the check.

The SNR test then evaluates each relevant muscle during repeated movements. For the reader, this is the core check that shows whether the movement signal stands out clearly above background noise. The document uses repeated movement trials, compares the muscle signal against baseline noise, and expects the median SNR to reach an acceptable level.

The distinguishability test goes one step further and checks whether the chosen muscles let different hand movements be told apart reliably. Annex B provides the sliding-window feature extraction approach, and Annex C provides the confusion matrix used to judge classification results. If the classification accuracy is not good enough, the document directs the user to try other muscle combinations and keep the one that performs best.

Repeatability and reporting

SIST EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026 also requires repeatability checking for the final muscle combination. The distinguishability evaluation is repeated several times, and the set is accepted only if the classification results remain acceptable across repeats.

Clause 8 specifies what the test report should contain. In practice, this means the report captures the test conditions, subject details, device details, the target movements, the muscles tested, SNR results, the final muscle selection, the feature extraction method, classifier details, timing information, and repeatability results.

What terms does SIST EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026 define?

SIST EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026 defines the vocabulary needed to run and report the test method consistently.

• surface electromyography (sEMG) - A technique where electrodes on the skin above a muscle detect the muscle’s electrical activity.
• electrode - The part of the sensor that transfers skin potential into the sensor circuit.
• sEMG sensor - A device that generates a signal by measuring the electrical potential difference between electrodes.
• sEMG signal - The electrical signal from muscles detected by sensors placed above those muscles.
• subject - The person being tested in this document.
• baseline noise - The signal measured when the target muscles are relaxed as much as possible.
• signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) - The ratio between the wanted signal power and the noise power under specified conditions.
• active sEMG sensor - An sEMG sensor with an amplifier or signal-processing circuit built in.

Who uses SIST EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026?

SIST EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026 is used by teams that design, test, or validate wearable sEMG sensors and the systems they control. That includes product engineers, test laboratories, quality managers, and buyers who need a common test method for comparing devices.

It is relevant to applications that use movement intent as a control input, including virtual reality, games, UAV control, robot control, and home automation. It is also useful for integrators choosing between sensor types, channel configurations, and placement strategies for forearm and hand sensing.

Which standards are used with SIST EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026?

SIST EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026 uses IEC 60050-702 as its terminology reference. That vocabulary source provides the definitions for oscillations, signals and related devices, which supports the terms and definitions clause and keeps signal-related language consistent.

Annex ZA maps IEC 60050-702 and its listed amendments to the corresponding European publication. For users in Europe, that annex is the bridge between the IEC vocabulary and the European adoption of the standard.

What does the SIST EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026 document contain?

SIST EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026 contains the full test method, the supporting placement guidance, and the reporting structure needed to evaluate sEMG sensors for wearable use. The main body covers test conditions, sensor classification and selection, test procedure, and performance measurements.

The document also includes visual and tabular guidance that helps users place sensors and interpret movement-related muscle activity. Figure 1 and Figure 2 show placement examples, while Annex A gives movement-to-muscle mapping and muscle position guidance for the forearm and hand.

Annex B describes feature extraction using a sliding window and lists time-domain feature methods used in sEMG analysis. Annex C explains how to build a confusion matrix and use it to calculate recognition accuracy, which is the final check for movement distinguishability.

The test report clause ties the whole process together by listing the data that should be recorded. That makes the document useful not just for testing, but also for comparing sensors, documenting validation work, and supporting product development decisions.

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
01-november-2026
Nosljive elektronske naprave in tehnologije - 403-1. del: Preskusna metoda
površinskih elektromiografskih senzorjev na podlahti in roki za nosljive aplikacije
(IEC 63203-403-1:2026)
Wearable electronic devices and technologies - Part 403-1: Test method of surface
electromyography sensors on forearm and hand for wearable applications (IEC 63203-
403-1:2026)
Tragbare elektronische Geräte und Technologien - Teil 403-1: Prüfverfahren für
Oberflächen-Elektromyographie-Sensoren an Unterarm und Hand für tragbare
Anwendungen (IEC 63203-403-1:2026)
Technologies et dispositifs électroniques prêts-à-porter - Partie 403-1: Méthode d'essai
des capteurs d’électromyographie de surface sur l'avant-bras et la main pour les
applications prêtes-à-porter (IEC 63203-403-1:2026)
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026
ICS:
31.020 Elektronske komponente na Electronic components in
splošno general
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

EUROPEAN STANDARD EN IEC 63203-403-1

NORME EUROPÉENNE
EUROPÄISCHE NORM September 2026
ICS 31.020
English Version
Wearable electronic devices and technologies - Part 403-1: Test
method of surface electromyography sensors on forearm and
hand for wearable applications
(IEC 63203-403-1:2026)
Technologies et dispositifs électroniques prêts-à-porter - Tragbare elektronische Geräte und Technologien - Teil 403-
Partie 403-1: Méthode d'essai des capteurs 1: Prüfverfahren für Oberflächen-Elektromyographie-
d'électromyographie de surface sur l'avant-bras et la main Sensoren an Unterarm und Hand für tragbare
pour les applications prêtes-à-porter Anwendungen
(IEC 63203-403-1:2026) (IEC 63203-403-1:2026)
This European Standard was approved by CENELEC on 2026-09-08. 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,
Türkiye 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
© 2026 CENELEC All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved worldwide for CENELEC Members.
Ref. No. EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026 E

European foreword
The text of document 124/390/FDIS, future edition 1 of IEC 63203-403-1, prepared by TC 124
"Wearable electronic devices and technologies" was submitted to the IEC-CENELEC parallel vote and
approved by CENELEC as EN IEC 63203-403-1:2026.
The following dates are fixed:
• latest date by which the document has to be implemented at national (dop) 2027-09-30
level by publication of an identical national standard or by endorsement
• latest date by which the national standards conflicting with the (dow) 2029-09-30
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.
Any feedback and questions on this document should be directed to the users’ national committee. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found on the CENELEC website.
Endorsement notice
The text of the International Standard IEC 63203-403-1:2026 was approved by CENELEC as a
European Standard without any modification.
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.cencenelec.eu.
Publication Year Title EN/HD Year
IEC 60050-702 1992 International Electrotechnical - -
Vocabulary (IEV) - Part 702:
Oscillations, signals and related devices
+ A1 2016
+ A2 2016
+ A3 2017
+ A4 2018
+ A5 2019
+ A6 2021
IEC 63203-403-1 ®
Edition 1.0 2026-08
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
Wearable electronic devices and technologies -
Part 403-1: Test method of surface electromyography sensors on forearm and
hand for wearable applications
ICS 31.020  ISBN 978-2-8327-1406-5

IEC 63203-403-1:2026-08(en)
IEC 63203-403-1:2026 © IEC 2026
CONTENTS
FOREWORD . 2
1 Scope . 4
2 Normative references . 4
3 Terms and definitions . 4
4 Test conditions . 5
4.1 Test environment . 5
4.2 Subject requirement . 5
5 Test equipment. 6
5.1 Classification . 6
5.2 Sensor selection . 6
5.3 Technical requirement . 6
5.4 Signal transmission . 7
6 Test procedure . 7
6.1 Test procedure . 7
6.2 Determination of muscles to test . 7
6.3 Sensor placement . 7
7 Measurement of sensor performance . 8
7.1 Baseline noise test . 8
7.2 SNR test . 9
7.3 Distinguishability test . 9
7.4 Repeatability test . 10
8 Test report . 10
Annex A (informative) Hand movements and muscle positions for sensor placement . 12
A.1 Wrist movements and muscle positions for sensor placement . 12
A.2 Finger movements and muscle positions for sensor placement . 12
A.3 Distribution map of forearm and hand muscles . 13
Annex B (informative) Feature extraction methods of sEMG signals . 16
Annex C (informative) Construction of confusion matrix . 18

Figure 1 – Sensor placement for armband-type sEMG sensor . 8
Figure 2 – Placement of multi-single sEMG sensor on forearm for wrist flexion . 8
Figure A.1 – Forearm muscle distribution and positions for sensor placement . 14
Figure A.2 – Hand muscle distribution and positions for sensor placement . 15
Figure B.1 – Feature extraction with sliding window technique . 16

Table 1 – Classification of sEMG sensors . 6
Table 2 – Recommended sampling rate for different applications . 7
Table A.1 – Wrist movements and related muscles . 12
Table A.2 – Finger movements and related muscles . 13
Table B.1 – Time-domain feature extraction methods for sEMG signals. 17
Table C.1 – Confusion matrix for a N-category classifier . 18

IEC 63203-403-1:2026 © IEC 2026
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
____________
Wearable electronic devices and technologies -
Part 403-1: Test method of surface electromyography sensors
on forearm and hand for wearable applications

FOREWORD
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all national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote international
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8) Attention is drawn to the Normative references cited in this publication. Use of the referenced publications is
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9) IEC draws attention to the possibility that the implementation of this document may involve the use of (a)
patent(s). IEC takes no position concerning the evidence, validity or applicability of any claimed patent rights in
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shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
IEC 63203-403-1 has been prepared by IEC technical committee 124: Wearable electronic
devices and technologies. It is an International Standard.
The text of this International Standard is based on the following documents:
Draft Report on voting
124/390/FDIS 124/395/RVD
Full information on the voting for its approval can be found in the report on voting indicated in
the above table.
The language used for the development of this International Standard is English.
IEC 63203-403-1:2026 © IEC 2026
This document was drafted in accordance with ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2, and developed in
accordance with ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1 and ISO/IEC Directives, IEC Supplement, available
at www.iec.ch/members_experts/refdocs. The main document types developed by IEC are
described in greater detail at www.iec.ch/publications.
A list of all parts in the IEC 63203 series, published under the general title Wearable electronic
devices and technologies can be found on the IEC website.
The committee has decided that the contents of this document will remain unchanged until the
stability date indicated on the IEC website under webstore.iec.ch in the data related to the
specific document. At this date, the document will be
– reconfirmed,
– withdrawn, or
– revised.
IEC 63203-403-1:2026 © IEC 2026
1 Scope
This document specifies test methods for surface electromyography (sEMG) sensors by
evaluating the quality of sEMG signals obtained from contracting the muscles of the forearm
and hand for wearable applications. It is applicable to sEMG sensors that are used to decipher
movement intentions and use them as control signals in situations such as virtual reality, game,
unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), robot control, and home automation. This document does not
apply to sEMG sensors intended for medical diagnosis or treatment. For medical devices,
national requirements can apply.
2 Normative references
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.
IEC 60050-702:1992, International Electrotechnical Vocabulary (IEV) - Part 702: Oscillations,
signals and related devices
IEC 60050-702:1992/AMD1:2016
IEC 60050-702:1992/AMD2:2016
IEC 60050-702:1992/AMD3:2017
IEC 60050-702:1992/AMD4:2018
IEC 60050-702:1992/AMD5:2019
IEC 60050-702:1992/AMD6:2021
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the terms and definitions given in IEC 60050-702 and the
following apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminology databases for use in standardization at the following
addresses:
– IEC Electropedia: available at https://www.electropedia.org/
– ISO Online browsing platform: available at https://www.iso.org/obp
3.1
surface electromyography
sEMG
technique in which electrodes are placed on the skin over muscles to detect the electrical
activity of the muscles
3.2
electrode
part of the sensor that transfers the electric potential on the skin to the electric circuit of the
sensor
3.3
sEMG sensor
device that produces a signal by measuring the electrical potential difference between the
electrodes
3.4
sEMG signal
electrical signal of muscles detected by sensors that are placed on the skin above those
muscles
IEC 63203-403-1:2026 © IEC 2026
3.5
subject
person or animal that is being tested or studied
Note 1 to entry: In this document, it is the person being tested.
3.6
palpation
act of examining part of the body by touching it
3.7
baseline noise
electrical signal acquired from sEMG sensors attached to the skin when targeted muscles are
relaxed as much as possible
3.8
signal-to-noise ratio
SNR
ratio, generally expressed in decibels, of the power of the wanted signal to that of the coexistent
noise at a specified point in a transmission channel under specified conditions
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-702:1992, 702-08-61, modified – Note to entry deleted.]
3.9
passive sEMG sensor
sEMG sensor that produces raw signals which can require further amplification or signal
processing
3.10
active sEMG sensor
sEMG sensor that is equipped with amplifier or signal processing circuit
4 Test conditions
4.1 Test environment
The test is carried out under the environmental operating range (ambient temperature, relative
humidity, atmospheric pressure) specified by the manufacturer. It is recommended to have the
test conducted in an environment that is isolated from power line sources, and other external
noise sources (such as vibrations from a machine, and crowded place).
4.2 Subject requirement
The requirements for subjects are as follows.
a) The test methods in this document apply to subjects with intact upper limbs.
b) The subjects shall be healthy and free from muscle or nerve-related disorders.
c) Subjects shall wear loose clothes that allow their forearms and hands to be exposed easily.
d) The subject shall clean their forearm to remove the oil and skin debris before the test, or
the test operator can choose not to clean the skin and record the testing condition of the
skin. It is also recommended to shave excessive hairs on the forearm.
e) The subjects shall maintain the posture they are comfortable with during the test, or the
experimenter can choose whether the subject should maintain the posture or move the
upper arm in a specific sequence and record the testing conditions.
IEC 63203-403-1:2026 © IEC 2026
5 Test equipment
5.1 Classification
The classification of the sEMG sensors is shown in Table 1.
a) Based on the conductive medium, the type of sEMG sensor is classified as dry, semi-dry
and wet.
b) Based on the channel configuration, the type of sEMG sensor can be classified a
...