Test methods & calibration
ISO/IEC 10373-6 contactless test methods
ISO/IEC 10373-6 is the 'how to test' standard for contactless proximity cards. It defines the reference equipment and measurement methods that EMV® and NFC Forum analog test plans build on.
What is ISO/IEC 10373-6?
While ISO/IEC 14443 defines how a proximity card behaves, ISO/IEC 10373-6 defines how to measure it. It specifies the reference PICC and PCD assemblies, the calibration coil, the test-setup geometry, and the analog and digital measurements used to verify conformance.
Because EMV® and NFC Forum analog test plans are built on these methods, ISO 10373-6 is the common measurement foundation for contactless certification. The standard is revised over time (recent editions include Edition 4 and Edition 5).
Reference antennas and calibration
Accurate ISO 10373-6 testing depends on calibrated reference equipment — the reference PICC, the test PCD assemblies and the sense/calibration coils, all traceably calibrated.
cilab designs and builds these reference antennas and assemblies and calibrates them in-house under ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation, with fast turnaround.
Test it with cilab
Reference antennas, calibration and the test bench
cilab supplies ISO/IEC 10373-6 reference antennas and PICC/PCD assemblies with accredited calibration, and the ci230 runs the 10373-6 measurement methods for ISO 14443, EMV® and NFC Forum — absolute analog with margin to the limits.
Explore the ci230Frequently asked
What is the difference between ISO 14443 and ISO 10373-6?
ISO 14443 defines how a proximity card and reader behave; ISO 10373-6 defines how to test them — the reference assemblies, calibration and measurements.
What is a reference PICC or test PCD assembly?
They are the calibrated reference 'card' and 'reader antenna' used to measure a device under test in a repeatable, traceable way, as specified by ISO 10373-6.
How often should reference antennas be recalibrated?
Calibrated reference equipment is recalibrated periodically to stay within accreditation. cilab calibrates its assemblies in-house under ISO/IEC 17025 with a typical 7 to 10 day turnaround.
Related standards
ISO/IEC 14443 proximity card testing
ISO/IEC 14443 is the foundation of contactless — the 13.56 MHz proximity standard behind payment cards, transit, eID and access. Almost every NFC and EMV® contactless product builds on it.
Payment certificationEMV® Level 1 contact & contactless testing
EMV® Level 1 is the physical and protocol layer of payment — the analog and low-level digital behaviour every payment card, terminal and phone must pass before type approval, on both the contact (ISO 7816) and contactless (RF) interfaces.
Interoperability certificationNFC Forum certification (CR15)
NFC Forum certification proves an NFC device interoperates with the rest of the ecosystem. CR15 is the current certification release, extending the tested operating range and consolidating the analog, digital and wireless-charging requirements.
Test smart. Certify easy.
See how cilab runs ISO/IEC 10373-6 on your bench — book a demo with one of our engineers.
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