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Wireless speakers are considered by Anatel as communication equipment that utilizes frequencies that are under the agency’s supervision and therefore are required to undergo an approval process called homologation.
Brazil has approximately 25% of young adultsbetween the ages of 25 and 34 still living with their parents according to official statistics. This generation earns high wages and have plenty of disposable income to spend on hobbies, including high end audio equipment. At the same time, the country has become one of the places with thehighest adoption of smartphones worldwide, and this trend is also reflected in the interest in smartphone accessories such as cables, power banksand cheaper wireless speakers. These accessories have grown so popular in Brazil that they began to be commercialised not only online, but also in newsstands, bookstores, grocery chains, taxis, restaurants, vending machines, etc.
With all this interest in audio equipment, the number of wireless speakers sold in Brazil has skyrocketed over the last few years, and with manufacturers pouring new and innovative models, it is expected that people will not lose interest in speakers anytime soon.
Requesting the certification for wireless speakers with Anatel
Wireless speakers require approval from the local telecommunication agency, Anatel, before they are commercialised in Brazil. If you are a manufacturer or a legal representative for the equipment in the country, the first step for any certification process with Anatel in Brazil, is to locate a reliableOCD to conduct the homologation on your behalf. The OCD is an entity appointed by Anatel to coordinate the certification procedures, who will handle the documentation, recommend laboratories, and most importantly, issue the conformity certificate which is the base for Anatel approval of your equipment. We recommend the OCD Master Certificações, which has been working with Anatel certifications for over a decade and is acknowledged by Anatel as one of the best OCDs in the market.
The OCD will request a number of documents to evaluate the technical aspects of the product, such as datasheets, user manuals, internal and external photos of the product, amongst others, in order to provide the applicant with the precise list of tests required, and also suggest which laboratories can conduct these tests.
The tests conducted on the product to be certified will follow Anatel regulations and the OCD needs to verify the requirements product by product. Each product type needs to meet regulatory requirements determined by a combination of several decrees issued by Anatel. Locating an OCD with strong technical background is key at this point, as they will be able to understand your product and quickly define what tests are necessary.
Requirements for certification of wireless speakers by Anatel
Most wireless speakers use Wifi or Bluetooth technologies to peer with devices that will be used to stream audio so we will be focusing on these technologies.
Wi-Fi and Bluetooth speakers are considered to be category II products and need to meet both safety and compatibility criteria in order to be approved by Anatel. Among the criteria evaluated by Anatel set by the restricted radiation regulations are:
- For devices operating between 2400-2483,5 MHz, they must use spread spectrum technology or orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM)
- Measured field intensities, emissions limits, maximum output power, must be within the limit set by the regulation for the frequency
Aside from the requirements stated above, all wireless speakers must also undergo the following electromagnetic compatibility tests:
- Electromagnetic Compatibility based on IEC and ITU-T standards
- CISPR 11, CISPR 22 and CISPR 24
- Resistibility of telecommunication equipment based on ITU-T standards
- Radiated emission testing based on ITU-T standards
Wireless speakers also have to undergo safety tests related to acoustic pressure protection based on ITU-T standards.
Getting the Anatel approval and certification
Once the results of the tests have returned, the OCD will evaluate them to see if they are in accordance to Anatel’s regulations. At this stage, additional tests may also be required depending upon these results. If the OCD deems that the equipment is suitable to receive the approval, they will issue a document called Certificado de Conformidade, or conformity certificate. This document is submitted to Anatel as proof that the equipment is ready to receive its certification.
Anatel will require additional documents from the manufacturer of the product before they register the homologation on their database called Mosaico. All products certified with Anatel can be looked up on this database for the certification authenticity.
Once granted, Anatel’s homologation for wireless speakers is valid for a period of 2 years as long as there are no changes to the product, and can be renewed 3 months prior to its expiration. In case the manufacturer intends to change the product (whether it is its design, components, or manufacturing process), the OCD must be informed about the intended modifications, to evaluate the impacts related to the homologation already issued. Depending on the modifications additional tests might be required.
After the product is registered with Mosaico, the manufacturer must include Anatel’s seal on all products commercialised in Brazil. All specifications related to the Anatel seal such as its physical location on the product, size and presentation (sticker, engraving) will have to be defined together with the OCD beforehand and submitted to Anatel along with other documents. The seal will also contain a unique identification code with 12 characters that will allow the identification of the respective homologation.
Finding the right OCDs to handle your product homologation
As we have pointed out previously, an OCD with technical expertise is critical to avoid any delays in having your product approved to be sold in the Brazilian market. Master Certificações has been working with the Anatel homologation to process for all types of consumer products for a decade and are working with hundreds of international companies certifying their products for the Brazilian market.[:]