IEC TS 62941:2016
Terrestrial photovoltaic (PV) modules - Guideline for increased confidence in PV module design qualification and type approval

Standard No.

IEC TS 62941:2016

Release Date

2016

Published By

International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC)

Latest

IEC TS 62941:2016

Replace

IEC 82/994/DTS:2015

Scope

This Technical Specification is applicable to sites manufacturing photovoltaic (PV) modules certified to IEC 61215 or IEC 61646 for design qualification and type approval. The design qualification and type approval of PV modules depend on appropriate methods for product and process design, as well as appropriate control of materials and processes used to manufacture the product. This technical specification lays out best practices for product design, manufacturing processes, and selection and control of materials used in the manufacture of PV modules that have met the requirements of IEC 61215, IEC 61646, or IEC 62108. These guidelines also form the basis for factory audit criteria of such sites by various certifying and auditory bodies. The object of this technical specification is to provide more confidence in the ongoing consistency of performance and reliability of certified PV modules. The requirements of this technical specification are defined with the assumption that the quality management system of the organization has already fulfilled the requirements of ISO 9001 or equivalent quality management system. By maintaining a manufacturing system in accordance with this guideline, PV modules are expected to maintain their performance as determined from the test sequences in IEC 61215, IEC 61646, or IEC 62108. This technical specification is applicable to all PV modules independent of design and technology i.e. flat panel, concentrator photovoltaic (CPV). Quality controls for CPV and nonconventional flat-plate manufacturing will differ somewhat from those of more conventional designs; this technical specification has not considered these differences.

IEC TS 62941:2016 Referenced Document

• IEC 60812:2006 Analysis techniques for system reliability - Procedure for failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA)
• IEC 60891:2009 Photovoltaic devices - Procedures for temperature and irradiance corrections to measured I-V characteristics
• IEC 60904-1:2006 Photovoltaic devices - Part 1: Measurement of photovoltaic current-voltage characteristics
• IEC 60904-2:2015 Photovoltaic devices - Part 2: Requirements for photovoltaic reference devices
• IEC 60904-3:2008 Photovoltaic devices - Part 3: Measurement principles for terrestrial photovoltaic (PV) solar devices with reference spectral irradiance data
• IEC 60904-4:2009 Photovoltaic devices - Part 4: Reference solar devices - Procedure for establishing calibration traceability
• IEC 60904-7:2008 Photovoltaic devices - Part 7: Computation of the spectral mismatch correction for measurements of photovoltaic devices
• IEC 60904-9:2007 Photovoltaic devices - Part 9: Solar simulator performance requirements
• IEC 61215:2005 Crystalline silicon terrestrial photovoltaic (PV) modules - Design qualification and type approval
• IEC 61646:2008 Thin-film terrestrial photovoltaic (PV) modules - Design qualification and type approval
• IEC 61730-1:2004 Photovoltaic (PV) module safety qualification - Part 1: Requirements for construction
• IEC 61730-2:2004 Photovoltaic (PV) module safety qualification - Part 2: Requirements for testing
• IEC 61853-1:2011 Photovoltaic (PV) module performance testing and energy rating - Part 1: Irradiance and temperature performance measurements and power rating
• IEC 62108:2007 Concentrator Photovoltaic (CPV) modules and assemblies - Design qualification and type approval
• IEC 62759-1:2015 Photovoltaic (PV) modules - Transportation testing - Part 1: Transportation and shipping of module package units
• ISO/IEC GUIDE 98-3:2008 Uncertainty of measurement — Part 3: Guide to the expression of uncertainty in measurement (GUM:1995)

IEC TS 62941:2016 history

• 2016 IEC TS 62941:2016 Terrestrial photovoltaic (PV) modules - Guideline for increased confidence in PV module design qualification and type approval