At 01:16 PM 10/5/99 EDT, you wrote:
>On Mon, 4 Oct 1999 10:25:04 -0700 "William K. Borsum" <borsum@DASCOR.COM>
>writes:
>>At 05:47 PM 10/3/99 -0500, you wrote:
>
>>On the general topic of FCC testing for sales in the US, a couple of
>>the >labs I talked to told me independently and rather emphatically that
>>"scientific instruments" are generally exempt, and that up to five
>>prototypes of any given model can be built and put into service
>>without formal testing.  However anything placed into production for
>resale
>>MUST be tested.
>>
>
>        I see an exemption for test equipment (see 15.03(c)), but not for
>"scientific instruments."  Perhaps they are the same thing... but maybe
>not.  Note also that the "no interference" and "availability for FCC
>inspection" requirements of 15.5 and 15.29 still apply.
>        I'd be interested in seeing the section that allows up to five
>prototypes to be put into service, as I can't find it.  The closest thing
>I find is 15.23, which allows 5 HOME BUILT devices to be used for
>personal use.  A kit does not qualify as a home built device.
>
>Harold

Fascinating subject!

How are "test equipment", "Home Built" and "personal use" defined?  Or
perhaps, I should ask how those terms are consistently interpreted by the
enforcers?

Would the first five proto's of a data logger  used in environmental tests
that I personally built for testing its operation be exempt?

And, just how nasty does the enforcement get?

Thanks,
Kelly



William K. Borsum, P.E. -- OEM Dataloggers and Instrumentation Systems
<borsum@dascor.com> & <www.dascor.com>San Diego, California, USA