The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a standards-making body in the field of electrical and electronics technologies. The IEC works with National Committees in different countries in preparing and maintaining standards in this space. IEC is one of the oldest standards making bodies in existence.
The IEC standards making process, similar to many other standards making processes, is handled by various technical committees (TC) and subcommittees (SC). TCs report to the SMB (Standardization Management Board). Each TC defines its scope (or area of activity) which is submitted to the SMB for approval. Any TC can form one or more SCs depending on the extent of its work programme. SCs define their scope under the parent TC to which they report directly.
TC membership is composed of the IEC NCs (National Committees), all of which are free to take part in the work of any given TC.
IEC has more than technical experts working on standards voluntarily.
This list is intended to detail the various technical committees of IEC, the scope of the committees, their key members and the key relevance and outputs of these committees.
Each technical committee and its standardization efforts is vast and is carried out by various working groups within the technical committees.
| Technical Committee | Description | |
|---|---|---|
| TC 1 | Terminology | |
| TC 2 | Rotating machinery | |
| TC 3 | Information structures and elements, identification and marking principles, documentation and graphical symbols | |
| SC 3C | Graphical symbols for use on equipment | |
| SC 3D | Product properties and classes and their identification | |
| TC 4 | Hydraulic turbines | |
| TC 5 | Steam Turbines | |
| TC 7 | Overhead electrical conductors | |
| TC 8 | Systems aspects for electrical energy supply | |
| SC 8A | Grid Integration of Renewable Energy Generation | |
| SC 8B | Decentralized Electrical Energy Systems | |
| TC 9 | Electrical equipment and systems for railways | |
| TC 10 | Fluids for electrotechnical applications | |
| TC 11 | Overhead lines | |
| TC 12 | (Disbanded, work taken over by TC 100) Radio communication | |
| TC 13 | Electrical energy measurement and control | |
| TC 14 | Power transformers | |
| TC 15 | Solid electrical insulating materials | |
| TC 16 | (Disbanded, work taken over by TC 3) Basic and safety principles for man-machine interface, marking and identification | |
| TC 17 | High-voltage switchgear and controlgear | |
| SC 17A | Switching devices | |
| SC 17B | (Transformed into SC 121A) Low-voltage switchgear and controlgear | |
| SC 17C | Assemblies | |
| SC 17D | (Transformed into SC 121B) Low-voltage switchgear and controlgear assemblies | |
| TC 18 | Electrical installations of ships and of mobile and fixed offshore units | |
| SC 18A | Electric cables for ships and mobile and fixed offshore units | |
| TC 20 | Electric cables | |
| TC 21 | Secondary cells and batteries | |
| SC 21A | Secondary cells and batteries containing alkaline or other non-acid electrolytes | |
| TC 22 | Power electronic systems and equipment | |
| SC 22E | Stabilized power supplies | |
| SC 22F | Power electronics for electrical transmission and distribution systems | |
| SC 22G | Adjustable speed electric drive systems incorporating semiconductor power converters | |
| SC 22H | Uninterruptible power systems (UPS) | |
| TC 23 | Electrical accessories | |
| SC 23A | Cable management systems | |
| SC 23B | Plugs, socket-outlets and switches | |
| SC 23C | (Disbanded, work taken over by SC 23B) World-wide plug and socket-outlet systems | |
| SC 23E | Circuit-breakers and similar equipment for household use | |
| SC 23F | (Disbanded, work taken over by TC 23) Connecting devices | |
| SC 23G | Appliance couplers | |
| SC 23H | Plugs, Socket-outlets and Couplers for industrial and similar applications, and for Electric Vehicles | |
| SC 23J | Switches for appliances | |
| SC 23K | Electrical Energy Efficiency products | |
| TC 25 | Quantities and units | |
| TC 26 | Electric welding | |
| TC 27 | Industrial electroheating and electromagnetic processing | |
| TC 28 | Insulation co-ordination | |
| TC 29 | Electroacoustics | |
| TC 31 | Equipment for explosive atmospheres | |
| SC 31G | Intrinsically-safe apparatus | |
| SC 31J | Classification of hazardous areas and installation requirements | |
| SC 31M | Non-electrical equipment and protective systems for explosive atmospheres | |
| TC 32 | Fuses | |
| SC 32A | High-voltage fuses | |
| SC 32B | Low-voltage fuses | |
| SC 32C | Miniature fuses | |
| TC 33 | Power capacitors and their applications | |
| TC 34 | Lamps and related equipment | |
| SC 34A | Lamps | |
| SC 34B | Lamp caps and holders | |
| SC 34C | Auxiliaries for lamps | |
| SC 34D | Luminaires | |
| TC 35 | Primary cells and batteries | |
| TC 36 | Insulators | |
| SC 36A | Insulated bushings | |
| SC 36B | (Disbanded, work taken over by TC 36) Insulators for overhead lines | |
| SC 36C | (Disbanded, work taken over by TC 36) Insulators for substations | |
| TC 37 | Surge arresters | |
| SC 37A | Low-voltage surge protective devices | |
| SC 37B | Components for low-voltage surge protection | |
| TC 38 | Instrument transformers | |
| TC 39 | (Disbanded, work taken over by TC 36) Electronic tubes | |
| TC 40 | Capacitors and resistors for electronic equipment | |
| TC 42 | High-voltage and high-current test techniques | |
| TC 44 | Safety of machinery - Electrotechnical aspects | |
| TC 45 | Nuclear instrumentation | |
| SC 45A | Instrumentation, control and electrical power systems of nuclear facilities | |
| SC 45B | Radiation protection instrumentation | |
| TC 46 | Cables, wires, waveguides, RF connectors, RF and microwave passive components and accessories | |
| SC 46A | Coaxial cables | |
| SC 46C | Wires and symmetric cables | |
| SC 46F | RF and microwave passive components | |
| TC 47 | Semiconductor devices | |
| SC 47A | Integrated circuits | |
| SC 47B | (Disbanded, work taken over by JTC 1/SC 25) Microprocessor systems | |
| SC 47D | Semiconductor devices packaging | |
| SC 47E | Discrete semiconductor devices | |
| SC 47F | Micro-electromechanical systems | |
| TC 48 | Electrical connectors and mechanical structures for electrical and electronic equipment | |
| SC 48B | Connectors | |
| SC 48D | Mechanical structures for electronic equipment | |
| TC 49 | Piezoelectric, dielectric and electrostatic devices and associated materials for frequency control, selection and detection | |
| TC 51 | Magnetic components, ferrite and magnetic powder materials | |
| TC 55 | Winding wires | |
| TC 56 | Dependability | |
| TC 57 | Power systems management and associated information exchange | |
| TC 59 | Performance of household and similar electrical appliances | |
| SC 59A | Electric dishwashers | |
| SC 59C | Heating appliances | |
| SC 59D | Performance of household and similar electrical laundry appliances | |
| SC 59F | Surface cleaning appliances | |
| SC 59K | Performance of household and similar electrical cooking appliances | |
| SC 59L | Small household appliances | |
| SC 59M | Performance of electrical household and similar cooling and freezing appliances | |
| TC 61 | Safety of household and similar electrical appliances | |
| SC 61B | Safety of microwave appliances for household and commercial use | |
| SC 61C | Safety of refrigeration appliances for household and commercial use | |
| SC 61D | Appliances for air-conditioning for household and similar purposes | |
| SC 61E | (Disbanded, taken over by TC 61) Safety of electrical commercial catering equipment | |
| SC 61H | Safety of electrically operated farm appliances | |
| SC 61J | Electrical motor-operated cleaning appliances for commercial use | |
| TC 62 | Electrical equipment in medical practice | |
| SC 62A | Common aspects of electrical equipment used in medical practice | |
| SC 62B | Diagnostic imaging equipment | |
| SC 62C | Equipment for radiotherapy, nuclear medicine and radiation dosimetry | |
| SC 62D | Electromedical equipment | |
| TC 64 | Electrical installations and protection against electric shock | |
| TC 65 | Industrial-process measurement, control and automation | |
| SC 65A | System aspects | |
| SC 65B | Measurement and control devices | |
| SC 65C | Industrial networks | |
| SC 65E | Devices and integration in enterprise systems | |
| TC 66 | Safety of measuring, control and laboratory equipment | |
| TC 68 | Magnetic alloys and steels | |
| TC 69 | Electric road vehicles and electric industrial trucks | |
| TC 70 | Degrees of protection provided by enclosures | |
| TC 72 | Automatic controls for household use | |
| TC 73 | Short-circuit currents | |
| TC 76 | Optical radiation safety and laser equipment | |
| TC 77 | Electromagnetic compatibility | |
| SC 77A | EMC - Low frequency phenomena | |
| SC 77B | High frequency phenomena | |
| SC 77C | High power transient phenomena | |
| TC 78 | Live working | |
| TC 79 | Alarm and electronic security systems | |
| TC 80 | Maritime navigation and radiocommunication equipment and systems | |
| TC 81 | Lightning protection | |
| TC 82 | Solar photovoltaic energy systems | |
| TC 85 | Measuring equipment for electrical and electromagnetic quantities | |
| TC 86 | Fibre optics | |
| SC 86A | Fibres and cables | |
| SC 86B | Fibre optic interconnecting devices and passive components | |
| SC 86C | Fibre optic systems and active devices | |
| TC 87 | Ultrasonics | |
| TC 88 | Wind energy generation systems | |
| TC 89 | Fire hazard testing | |
| TC 90 | Superconductivity | |
| TC 91 | Electronics assembly technology | |
| TC 93 | (Disbanded, work taken over by TC 91) Design automation | |
| TC 94 | All-or-nothing electrical relays | |
| TC 95 | Measuring relays and protection equipment | |
| TC 96 | Transformers, reactors, power supply units, and combinations thereof | |
| TC 97 | Electrical installations for lighting and beaconing of aerodromes | |
| TC 99 | System engineering and erection of electrical power installations in systems with nominal voltages above 1 kV a.c. and 1,5 kV d.c., particularly concerning safety aspects | |
| TC 100 | Audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment | |
| TA 1 | Terminals for audio, video and data services and contents | |
| TA 2 | Colour measurement and management | |
| TA 4 | Digital system interfaces and protocols | |
| TA 5 | Cable networks for television signals, sound signals and interactive services | |
| TA 6 | Storage media, storage data structures, storage systems and equipment | |
| TA 8 | Multimedia home systems and applications for end-user network | |
| TA 9 | (Disbanded) Audio, video and multimedia applications for end-user network | |
| TA 10 | Multimedia e-publishing and e-book technologies | |
| TA 11 | Quality for audio, video and multimedia systems | |
| TA 12 | AV energy efficiency and smart grid applications | |
| TA 13 | Environment for AV and multimedia equipment (tentative title) | |
| TA 14 | Interfaces and methods of measurement for personal computing equipment | |
| TA 15 | Wireless Power Transfer | |
| TA 16 | Active Assisted Living (AAL), accessibility and user interfaces | |
| TA 17 | Multimedia systems and equipment for cars | |
| TC 101 | Electrostatics | |
| TC 103 | Transmitting equipment for radiocommunication | |
| TC 104 | Environmental conditions, classification and methods of test | |
| TC 105 | Fuel cell technologies | |
| TC 106 | Methods for the assessment of electric, magnetic and electromagnetic fields associated with human exposure | |
| TC 107 | Process management for avionics | |
| TC 108 | Safety of electronic equipment within the field of audio/video, information technology and communication technology | |
| TC 109 | Insulation co-ordination for low-voltage equipment | |
| TC 110 | Electronic display devices | |
| TC 111 | Environmental standardization for electrical and electronic products and systems | |
| TC 112 | Evaluation and qualification of electrical insulating materials and systems | |
| TC 113 | Nanotechnology for electrotechnical products and systems | |
| TC 114 | Marine energy - Wave and tidal and other water current converters | |
| TC 115 | High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission for DC voltages above 100 kV | |
| TC 116 | Safety of motor-operated electric tools | |
| TC 117 | Solar thermal electric plants | |
| PC 118 | Smart grid user interface | |
| TC 119 | Printed Electronics | |
| TC 120 | Electrical Energy Storage (EES) Systems | |
| TC 121 | Switchgear and controlgear and their assemblies for low voltage | |
| SC 121A | Low-voltage switchgear and controlgear | |
| SC 121B | Low-voltage switchgear and controlgear assemblies | |
| TC 122 | UHV AC transmission systems | |
| TC 123 | Standardization of the management of assets in power systems | |
| TC 124 | Wearable Electronic Devices and Technologies | |
| CISPR | International special committee on radio interference | |
| CIS/A | Radio-interference measurements and statistical methods | |
| CIS/B | Interference relating to industrial, scientific and medical radio-frequency apparatus, to other (heavy) industrial equipment, to overhead power lines, to high voltage equipment and to electric traction | |
| CIS/D | Electromagnetic disturbances related to electric/electronic equipment on vehicles and internal combustion engine powered devices | |
| CIS/F | Interference relating to household appliances tools, lighting equipment and similar apparatus | |
| CIS/H | Limits for the protection of radio services | |
| CIS/I | Electromagnetic compatibility of information technology equipment, multimedia equipment and receivers | |
| CIS/S | Steering Committee of CISPR | |
| SyC AAL | Active Assisted Living | |
| SyC LVDC | Low Voltage Direct Current and Low Voltage Direct Current for Electricity Access | |
| SyC Smart Cities | Electrotechnical aspects of Smart Cities | |
| SyC Smart Energy | Smart Energy | |
| ISO/IEC JPC 2 | (Disbanded) Energy efficiency and renewable energy sources - Common international terminology | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1 | Information technology | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SWG 1 | (Disbanded) Accessibility (SWG-A) | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SWG 2 | (Disbanded) SWG - Directives | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SWG 3 | (Disbanded) Planning | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SWG 5 | (Disbanded) Internet of Things (IoT) | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SWG 6 | (Disbanded) Management | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/WG 7 | (Disbanded) Sensor Networks | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/WG 8 | (Disbanded) Governance of IT | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 2 | Coded character sets | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 6 | Telecommunications and information exchange between systems | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 7 | Software and systems engineering | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 17 | Cards and personal identification | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 22 | Programming languages, their environments and system software interfaces | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 23 | Digitally recorded media for information interchange and storage | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 24 | Computer graphics, image processing and environmental data representation | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 25 | Interconnection of information technology equipment | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 27 | IT security techniques | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 28 | Office equipment | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 29 | Coding of audio, picture, multimedia and hypermedia information | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 31 | Automatic identification and data capture techniques | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 32 | Data management and interchange | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 34 | Document description and processing languages | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 35 | User interfaces | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 36 | Information technology for learning, education and training | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 37 | Biometrics | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 38 | Cloud Computing and Distributed Platforms | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 39 | Sustainability for Data Centres and IT | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 40 | IT Service Management and IT Governance | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 41 | Internet of Things and related technologies | |
| ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 42 | Artificial Intelligence |