Overview
ISO 9902-6:2018 - Textile machinery - Noise test code - Part 6: Fabric manufacturing machinery provides standardized procedures for measuring and declaring noise emissions from a wide range of fabric manufacturing machines. The standard covers weaving and knitting machines (as defined in ISO 5247 and ISO 7839), including full‑width and narrow weaving, jacquard machines, flatbed and circular knitting, raschel, warp knitting, stitch‑bonding and other fabric production equipment.
This part of the ISO 9902 series specifies how to determine both A-weighted sound power levels and emission sound pressure levels under defined installation and operating conditions, and how to report and declare results for product comparison, compliance and risk assessment.
Key topics and technical requirements
- Scope and machine types: Applies to shuttles, rapiers, projectiles, air-/water‑jet weft insertion, narrow fabric and various knitting machine families.
- Sound power determination: Use sound intensity methods (ISO 9614‑1 / ISO 9614‑2) or measurement‑surface methods (ISO 3744, ISO 3747; ISO 3746 where others are impracticable). ISO 3743‑1 may be an alternative for small, omnidirectional sources.
- Emission sound pressure: Determine A‑weighted emission sound pressure levels per ISO 11201 or ISO 11204; ISO 11202 only if the other two are impracticable.
- Measurement positions and distances: Typical measurement positions are defined by machine type - e.g., eight positions for most weaving and flatbed knitting machines, four for circular machines, one for narrow‑fabric machines - normally at 1 m distance and 1.6 m height. In constrained spaces the distance may be reduced to 0.5 m or 0.25 m (must be reported).
- Grade 1 methods: The standard notes that strict Grade 1 measurement conditions are normally not feasible for textile machinery.
- Operating and installation conditions: Tests must follow defined installation, mounting and operating parameters (referencing ISO 9902‑1 for common requirements), including reporting of variable parameters and uncertainties.
- Declaration and verification: Requires clarity on how reported noise values were obtained, including uncertainties and any correction factors or tabulated/graphical data.
Applications and users
ISO 9902-6:2018 is used by:
- Machine manufacturers for product development, internal noise control and noise declarations.
- Test laboratories and acoustic engineers for standardized noise testing and certification.
- OEMs, procurement teams and purchasers to compare machine noise performance.
- Occupational health and safety professionals for workplace noise assessments and compliance.
- Regulatory bodies and conformity assessors for verification and documentation of noise emission claims.
Practical uses include product datasheets, noise labelling, vendor selection, specification writing and workplace risk assessments.
Related standards
Keywords: ISO 9902-6:2018, textile machinery, noise test code, fabric manufacturing machinery, sound power level, emission sound pressure, weaving machines, knitting machines.