ESPEC Technical Information

Technical Report
Outline of Environmental Condition and Testing Standards for Electrical and Electronic
Equipment in Road Vehicles (ISO 16750-4/JASO D014-4) and Description of Related Products

Hirokazu Tanaka, Development Headquarters, ESPEC CORP.

Abstract
In 1998, the ISO 16750 standard “Road vehicles — Environmental conditions and testing for
electrical and electronic equipment” was enacted. Subsequently, the Society of Automotive
Engineers of Japan (JSAE) enacted the JASO D014 standard “Automotive parts —
Environmental conditions and testing for electrical and electronic equipment” in 2006 complying
with ISO 16750. These standards comprise the following five parts. Part 1: General, Part 2:
Electrical loads, Part 3: Mechanical loads, Part 4: Climatic loads, Part 5: Chemical loads. This
report deals with part 4 (Climatic loads) of these standards (ISO 16750 -4/JASO D014-4),
providing a description of their content and introducing related products.

1. Introduction
In the automotive industry, the number of electric and electronic devices installed in cars has
been increasing year by year 1), driven by efforts to comply with emissions regulations, improve
fuel efficiency, and introduce advanced safety devices. This trend has further intensified in recent
years, prompted by developments aimed at autonomous driving and electronic control of
automobiles. In order to ensure durability, the International Organization for Standardization
(ISO) embarked on the task of establishing standards for environmental testing m ethods from
the 1980s2).
In Japan, JASO D001 (General rules of environmental testing methods for automotive
electronic equipment) had a long track record as a domestic standard, but JASO D014 based on
ISO 16750 was enacted in 2006 in accordance with the policy of harmonizing with international
standards.
These standards both were issued as a series consisting of five parts, specifying
environmental conditions and their respective testing methods for electrical and electronic
equipment (Table 1).

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Table 1 ISO 16750 series and JASO D014 series

No. International Organization for Standardization Japanese Automotive Standards Organization
（ISO16750 Series） （JASO D014 Series）
1 ISO16750-1:General JASO D-014-1： General
2 ISO16750-2: Electrical loads JASO D-014-2： Electrical loads
3 ISO16750-3: Mechanical loads JASO D-014-3： Mechanical loads
4 ISO16750-4：Climatic loads JASO D-014-4： Climatic loads
5 ISO16750-5: Chemical loads JASO D-014-5： Chemical loads

2. Outline of testing standards

2.1 Configuration of Part 4 “Climatic loads”3) 4)
(1) Test purpose
This part defines environmental conditions and testing and operating requirements based on
internationally accepted conventions about the type of environment which automotive electrical
and electronic equipment can be expected to encounter during their life cycle.
(2) Operation temperature range
The temperature range in which components must be able to operate continuously is shown
below (Table 2). The minimum operation temperature (Tmin) is specified as -40°C and the
maximum operation temperature (Tmax) as +160°C.

Table 2 Operation temperature range

Code Minimum operation temperature (Tmin), °C Maximum operation temperature (Tmax), °C

A -20 +65
B -30 +65
C to T -40 +65 to +160 (in 5°C steps)
Z By agreement By agreement

(3) Standard description

Table 3 shows the main items of ISO 16750-4 (Climatic loads).
The standard covers tests on weather resistance and corrosion resistance (high and low
temperature, temperature step, temperature cycle, rapid change of temperature with specified
transition duration, splash water, salt spray, humid heat cyclic test, damp heat, mixed gas, solar
radiation, dust protection, etc.).

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Among these, the temperature change related tests are especially important for ensuring the
durability of electric and electronic components. Performance in this area is assessed by two
items.
First, item 5.3.1 covers testing for a temperature cycle with specified change rate. This
simulates the electrical operation of a system or component within a range of changing ambient
temperature values. Failure modes are defined as electrical malfunctions at temperature pull -
down.
The test comprises 30 cycles according to IEC 60068-2-14Nb (JIS C 60068-2-14Nb, Constant-
rate temperature change). A switch is to be turned off when the temperature drops. The testing
setup makes use of a constant rate temperature change chamber.
The second item 5.3.2 covers testing for a rapid change of temperature with specified
transition duration. It simulates a very high number of temperature changes. Failure modes are
mechanical cracks or sealing failure of material caused by aging or differing thermal expansion
coefficients. Because these are mechanical faults, electrical operation is not considere d. The
test comprises 100 to 300 cycles according to IEC 60068-2-14Na (JIS C 60068-2-14Na, Rapid
temperature change). The testing setup makes use of a thermal shock test chamber.

Table 3 ISO 16750-4 (JASO D014-4) standard

Subclause Test Normative reference
5.1.1.1 Low-temperature tests, Storage IEC 60068-2-1
5.1.1.2 Low-temperature tests, Operation IEC 60068-2-1
5.1.2.1 High-temperature tests, Storage IEC 60068-2-2
5.1.2.2 High-temperature tests, Operation IEC 60068-2-2
5.2 Temperature steps
IEC 60068-2-14 Nb (Change of temperature
5.3.1 Temperature cycle with specified change rate
with specified rate of change）
IEC 60068-2-14 Na (Rapid change of
Rapid change of temperature with specified
5.3.2 temperature with prescribed time of
transition duration
transition）
5.4.2 Splash water method
5.4.3 Submersion test
5.5.1 Salt spray tests, Corrosion test IEC 60068-2-52 （Salt mist, cyclic）
5.5.2 Leakage and function test IEC 60068-2-11 (Salt mist）
Humid heat, cyclic test
5.6.2.2 IEC 60068-2-30
(Test １: Damp heat cyclic test）
Humid heat, cyclic test
5.6.2.3 (Test 2: Composite temperature/humidity IEC 60068-2-38
cyclic test）
Humid heat, cyclic test
5.6.2.4 IEC 60068-2-30
(Test 3: Dewing test）
5.7 Damp heat, steady-state test IEC 60068-2-78
5.8.1 Corrosion test with flow of mixed gas IEC 60068-2-60, test 4
5.9 Solar radiation
5.10 Dust test ISO 20653 / JIS D 5020
The recommended IP code of protection
7 Protection against dust and water
depending on mounting location

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2.2 Comparison of test items in former JASO D001 and current JASO D014
A comparison of test items in the former JASO D001 standard and the current JASO D014
standard is shown in Table 4. It should be noted that the naming of items differs for the two
standards. The salt spray test of the former D001 standard has been augmented by the addition
of a salt cycle test to evaluate corrosiveness with regard to salt water and salt spray on roads in
winter.

Table 4 Comparison of test items in former JASO D001 and current JASO D014
Former item Name of item in D001 New item Name of item in D014
5.11 Temperature characteristics test 5.2 Temperature steps
5.12 Low temperature exposure test 5.1.1.1 Low-temperature tests, Storage
5.13 Low temperature operation test 5.1.1.2 Low-temperature tests, Operation
5.14 High temperature exposure test 5.1.2.1 High-temperature tests, Storage
5.15 High temperature operation test 5.1.2.2 High-temperature tests, Operation
Temperature cycle with specified
5.16 Thermal cycle test 5.3.1
change rate
Rapid change of temperature with
5.17 Thermal shock test 5.3.2
specified transition duration
Humid heat, cyclic test
Temperature and humidity cycle
5.18 5.6.2 (Test 2: Composite
test
temperature/humidity cyclic test）
5.19 Steady-state humidity test 5.7 Damp heat, steady-state test
Humid heat, cyclic test
5.20 Condensation test 5.6.1
(Test １: Damp heat cyclic test）
5.21 Water resistance test 7 Protection against dust and water
Corrosion test
5.5.1
(Salt spray cycle test)
5.22 Salt spray test
Leakage and function test
5.5.2
(Salt spray test)
5.25 Dust test 7 Protection against dust and water

3. Information about related products

3.1 Products for thermal cycle test and rapid change of temperature with specified transition
duration
Equipment suitable for testing in accordance with the standards covered in this report is shown
in Figure 1. Testing for item 5.3.1 (Temperature cycle with specified change rate) is performed by
testing operation during thermal cycling at a constant temperature change rate. Environmental
stress chambers with high-power ovens and rapid-rate temperature cycle capability (ESPEC AR
series) are suitable for this task.
Testing for item 5.3.2 (Rapid change of temperature with specified transition duration) requires
subjecting the product under test to rapid thermal shocks. Thermal shock chambers (ESPEC TSA
series or TSD and TSE models) are suitable for this task.

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Standard 5.3.1 Temperature cycle with specified 5.3.2 Rapid change of temperature with
number change rate specified transition duration
Normative IEC 60068-2-14Nb (Constant-rate IEC 60068-2-14Na (Rapid temperature
reference temperature change test) change test)
Related Environmental Stress Chambers (AR Series) Thermal Shock Chambers (TSA Series, TSD,
product name Rapid-Rate Temperature Cycle Type TSE)
Temperature
-70°C to +180°C (RH 10% to 98%) -70°C to +200°C
range

Chamber
exterior

Fig. 1 Related products (for thermal cycle test and rapid change of temperature with specified
transition duration)

3.2 Splash water test

When a car travels on a wet road in winter, water splashes can cause high -temperature
components to be cooled down extremely. This test simulates the presence or absence of water
in the component. It involves spraying a component that is at high temperature with cold water
from a nozzle. This cycle is repeated 100 times.
Figure 2 shows a test setup. A splash water system consisting of an environmental stress
chamber with automated water spraying function is suitable for this task.

Fig. 2 Water being sprayed for the splash water test

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4. Conclusion
This report deals with the ISO 16750-4/JASO D014-4 environmental testing standards for
electrical and electronic equipment in cars, whose application is bound to further increase in future.
The international standards consist of five parts that define testing methods for various types of
loads that are essential for assessing the performance of components. We presented an overview
of the many test requirements for assessing climatic loads, and introduced equipment suitable for
this task.
In March 2018, the International Standards Organization (ISO) established the ISO 19453
standard “Road vehicles — Environmental conditions and testing for electrical and electronic
equipment for drive system of electric propulsion vehicles”. Details of test methods for this
standard will also be published in this journal.

References
1） Takashi Hamasaka, “Responses to the advancement of electrical/electronic systems in
automobiles”, Journal of the Japan Automobile Research Institute (JARI), Vol. 29, No. 10, 2007
2） Society of Automotive Engineers of Japan, “Reasons for JASO Abolition and New/Old
Correspondence Table”
3） ISO 16750-4 、 Road vehicles — Environmental conditions and testing for electrical and
electronic equipment — Part 4: Climatic loads, 2010
4） JASO D014-4 “Automotive parts — Environmental conditions and testing for electrical and
electronic equipment — Part 4: Climatic loads”, 2014

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