The Different Types of Product Testing:
Functional, Safety, and Environmental Explained
The importance of product validation through different types of product testing including performance, safety, and compliance with industry standards.
Why Validation is Essential
Whether you realise it or not, pretty much everything (man-made) would have had to have undergone some form of testing. How a product is tested, and the level of rigour applied, is mostly determined by the purpose of its use. In this blog, we will explore the three main types of Product Testing Criteria.
1. Functional Testing
Functional testing determines whether a product performs as intended for its specific use case. For example, in the case of a TV remote control. Functional testing would check whether pressing each button successfully changes the relevant channel within an expected response time.
Functional testing can consist of many individual tests. Typically, the more complex a product is, the more functions there are to verify. Which in turn has an overall impact on test times.
2. Safety Testing
Safety testing evaluates the potential risks a product poses to humans and the environment, in the event of operation or failure. These tests are typically mandated by various organisations often known as governing or notified bodies. The British Standards Institution (BSI) and the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) are responsible for the upkeep of these critical documents and standards.
Before bringing a product to market, manufacturers must consider these standards to determine the necessary tests and how to apply them. For example, a mobile phone must conform to a set of standards to mitigate the risk of its battery overheating and perhaps exploding if a diverse set of conditions are created.
3. Environmental Testing
This type of testing verifies that a product can meet its functional and safety standards under various environmental conditions. ASTM International and NASA develop standards specifically for environmental testing.
For example, a mission-critical item, such as a flight recorder (often known as a Black Box) should operate reliably in a set of extreme environmental conditions depending on wherever in the world that the plane is located. At altitude, temperatures as low as −55°C can be present, with other areas around the world reaching temperatures of +50°C.
Other environmental factors to consider are humidity, water, shock & vibration locations environmental conditions such as water submersion, shock & vibration.
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Learn more about how our Automated Test Equipment can help improve your product verification processes. Contact us on sales@abvi.co.uk or call 01865 408 352.