EN 50578:2013

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
01-september-2013
Železniške naprave - Enosmerni signalni releji
Railways applications - Direct current signalling relays
Bahnanwendungen - Gleichstrom-Signalrelais
Applications ferroviaires - Relais de signalisation à courant continu
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: EN 50578:2013
ICS:
29.120.70 Releji Relays
45.020 Železniška tehnika na Railway engineering in
splošno general
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

EUROPEAN STANDARD
EN 50578
NORME EUROPÉENNE
June 2013
EUROPÄISCHE NORM
ICS 93.100
English version
Railways applications -
Direct current signalling relays

Applications ferroviaires -  Bahnanwendungen -
Relais de signalisation à courant continu Gleichstrom-Signalrelais

This European Standard was approved by CENELEC on 2013-05-20. CENELEC members are bound to comply
with the CEN/CENELEC Internal Regulations which stipulate the conditions for giving this European Standard
the status of a national standard without any alteration.

Up-to-date lists and bibliographical references concerning such national standards may be obtained on
application to the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre or to any CENELEC member.

This European Standard exists in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other
language made by translation under the responsibility of a CENELEC member into its own language and notified
to the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre has the same status as the official versions.

CENELEC members are the national electrotechnical committees of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus,
the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, France, Germany,
Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland,
Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom.

CENELEC
European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization
Comité Européen de Normalisation Electrotechnique
Europäisches Komitee für Elektrotechnische Normung

Management Centre: Avenue Marnix 17, B - 1000 Brussels

© 2013 CENELEC - All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved worldwide for CENELEC members.
Ref. No. EN 50578:2013 E
Contents
Foreword . 3
Introduction . 4
1 Scope . 5
2 Normative references . 5
3 Terms and definitions. 5
4 Classification . 7
5 Essential requirements of the relays and their construction . 8
5.1 Generic requirements for signalling relays . 8
5.1.1 Forcibly guided (mechanically linked) contacts . 8
5.1.2 Forcibly guided (mechanically linked) operation . 8
5.2 Specific requirements . 8
5.2.1 Relays of type N . 8
5.2.2 Relays of type C . 8
5.3 Mechanical construction of the signalling relays . 9
5.3.1 Connecting devices . 9
5.3.2 Materials . 9
5.4 Environmental conditions . 9
5.4.1 General . 9
5.4.2 Vibrations and shocks . 9
5.5 Magnetic system . 9
5.5.1 General . 9
5.5.2 Requirements for new relays . 9
5.5.3 Functioning during service . 10
5.6 Design of insulation . 10
5.6.1 General . 10
5.6.2 Overvoltage . 10
5.6.3 Test voltage . 11
5.6.4 Case of a supply circuit not connected to earth . 11
5.6.5 Pollution . 11
5.7 Contacts . 11
5.7.1 Spacing . 11
5.7.2 Break contact . 11
5.7.3 Contact heating . 11
5.7.4 Service life . 11
5.7.5 Minimum distance apart of the relay contact elements. 12
5.7.6 Contact force . 12
5.7.7 Self-cleaning . 12
5.7.8 Bounce . 12
Bibliography . 13

- 3 - EN 50578:2013
Foreword
This document (EN 50578:2013) has been prepared by SC 9XA, "Communication, signalling and
processing systems", of Technical Committee CENELEC TC 9X, "Electrical and electronic applications
for railways".
The following dates are fixed:

(dop) 2014-05-20
• latest date by which this document has
to be implemented at national level by
publication of an identical national
standard or by endorsement
• latest date by which the national (dow) 2016-05-20
standards conflicting with this
document have to be withdrawn
This document is a transposition of the UIC leaflet 736, Signalling relays.
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. CENELEC [and/or CEN] shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such
patent rights.
Introduction
This European Standard gives a set of generic and specific requirements for direct current signalling
relays.
This European Standard introduces a set of recommendations and requirements for signalling relay
characteristics, construction, magnetic system, contacts and insulation. Requirements are coordinated
with present international standards on all-or-nothing relays.

- 5 - EN 50578:2013
1 Scope
This European Standard gives requirements for direct current relays intended for safety-related
applications in railway signalling installations.
This European Standard is applicable to monostable relays. However it can also be used as a guide for
other relays such as with bistable relays.
2 Normative references
The following documents, in whole or in part, are normatively referenced in this document and are
indispensable for its application. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated
references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
EN 50124-1, Railway applications  Insulation coordination  Part 1: Basic requirements 
Clearances and creepage distances for all electrical and electronic equipment
EN 50125-3:2003, Railway applications  Environmental conditions for equipment  Part 3:
Equipment for signalling and telecommunications
EN 60664-1, Insulation coordination for equipment within low-voltage systems  Part 1: Principles,
requirements and tests (IEC 60664-1)
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
3.1
all-or-nothing relay
electrical relay, which is intended to be energised by a quantity, the value of which is either within its
operative range or effectively zero
Note 1 to entry: "All-or-nothing relays" include both "elementary relays" and "time relays".
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-444:2002, 444-01-02]
3.2
armature
moveable part of a relay that controls contact members
3.3
bistable relay
electrical relay which, having responded to an energising quantity and having changed its condition,
remains in that condition after the quantity has been removed; a further appropriate energisation is
required to make it change its condition
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-444:2002, 444-01-08]
3.4
bounce time
for a contact which is closing/opening its circuit, time interval between the instant when the contact
circuit first closes/opens and the instant when the circuit is finally closed/opened
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-444:2002, 444-05-04]

3.5
break contact (for elementary relays)
contact which is open when the relay is in its operate condition and which is closed when the relay is in
its release condition
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-444:2002, 444-04-18]
3.6
change-over contact
combination of two contact circuits with three contact members, one of which is common to the two
contact circuits; such that when one of these contact circuits is open, the other is closed
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-444:2002, 444-04-19]
3.7
contact gap
gap between the contact points when the contact circuit is open
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-444:2002, 444-04-09]
3.8
contact member (for elementary relays)
conductive part designed to co-act with another to close or open the output circuit
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-444:2002, 444-04-05]
3.9
contact force
force which two contact members exert against each other at their contact points in the closed position
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-444:2002, 444-04-10]
3.10
contact point
part of a contact member at which the contact circuit closes or opens
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-444:2002, 444-04-06]
3.11
contact wipe
relative rubbing movement of contact points after they have touched
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-444:2002, 444-04-12]
3.12
drop-away current
maximum current through the coil that, starting from the nominal current value, produces the opening
of all the make contacts
3.13
electromechanical relay
electrical relay in which the intented response results mainly from the movement of mechanical
elements
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-444:2002, 444-01-04]
3.14
elementary relay
all-or-nothing relay which operates and releases without any intentional time delay
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-444:2002, 444-01-03]
3.15
make contact (for elementary relays)
contact which is closed when the relay is in its operate condition and which is opened when the relay is
in its release condition
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-444:2002, 444-04-17]

- 7 - EN 50578:2013
3.16
monostable relay
electrical relay which, having responded to an energising quantity and having changed its condition,
returns to its previous condition when that quantity is removed
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-444:2002, 444-01-07]
3.17
nominal current
current passing through the coil of the relay when the coil is supplied with nominal voltage
3.18
operate condition (for elementary relays)
for a monostable relay, specified condition of the relay when it is energised by the specified energising
quantity and has responded to that quantity; for a bistable relay, the condition other than the release
condition as declared by the manufacturer
[SOURCE: IEC 60050-444:2002, 444-02-02]
3.19
pick-up current (compression)
minimum current through the coil that, starting from a null value, is necessary to move the armature
from the release position to the operate position and apply the specified contact force, c
...