Interlock联锁
An interlock is a control or safety mechanism that prevents a machine from operating unless certain conditions are met, such as a guard being closed or a previous step being complete. In risk assessments, electrical schematics, and lockout/tagout procedures, interlocks appear as safeguards that reduce hazardous access or sequence errors, and they can be mechanical, electrical, or software-based.
Updated
Angel Translation editorial reference · Confirm the rendering against your source and approved project terminology.
Check source meaning → confirm the preferred term → record approved variants and references.
Where this term appears
Safety manuals, risk assessment reports, and PLC program descriptions bring interlock terminology into localization projects. Translators must distinguish between hardware interlocks, safety interlocks, and logic interlocks, and keep the terminology aligned with functional safety documents and on-screen alarm messages. Miswording here can affect how emergency procedures are understood by machine operators.
Translation checks
A common mistake is translating interlock as “blocking” or “jamming,” which suggests an unwanted stoppage rather than a protective condition. This can make operators override a safeguard because the translated label does not convey that a guard must remain closed for safe operation. Another error is using the same term for mechanical and software interlocks when the source differentiates them.
Chinese document application
Interlock in context · safety instruction
- English source
- The interlock prevents operation while the guard is open.
- Chinese rendering to review
- 防护装置打开时，联锁装置阻止设备运行。
Illustrative wording only. Confirm the rendering against the actual source and approved project terminology.
Check the distinction in context
Keep the condition and prevented action together. An interlock description is not permission to bypass it, and Chinese wording should not suggest such an action. Preserve references to the relevant guard, state and procedure instead of using a generic device label.
Check the returned Chinese file
Compare the Chinese condition clause with the depicted guard and the source action. The wording should describe the same blocked operation without introducing a bypass instruction, a reset sequence or an unsupported functional guarantee.
Prepare the connected files
Send the manual passage and relevant diagram. Technical owners should resolve ambiguity about the described function before the warning is finalized.
Keep the term aligned across your files
Check equipment names, units, safety instructions and interface labels against the source and approved references. Confirm any market-specific document requirements separately.
Provide approved terms and previous translations with the source files. Agree how variants, ambiguous wording and revisions will be reviewed. Terminology maintenance and any termbase handback are confirmed in the project scope. See the 8-step AI + expert workflow.
Related document experience
XCMG Import & Export
Portuguese → ChinesePortuguese-to-Chinese translation of construction-machinery technical documents, operating manuals and service guides.
Read the published project →
HF TireTech Group
English → Chinese / Thai / Malay / HindiTire-technology files, product manuals and technical standards translated from English into Chinese, Thai, Malay and Hindi.
Read the published project →Published scope shows related industry experience; it does not confirm that this specific term was used or reviewed in the project.
Working on smart manufacturing documentation?
Include the source and target languages, file types, intended use, deadline and any approved termbase. Agree handling before sending sensitive files. Acknowledged in 4 hours, quoted in 24.
Prepare an inquiry email →Smart Manufacturing solutions →File handling →A glossary entry is not an official standard or evidence of regulatory acceptance. Confirm current requirements for your project separately.