If you’re reading this, you probably already know at least a little bit about laser safety glasses. You may, for example, know that they protect the eyes from direct, reflected, or scattered laser light exposure; that they’re available in a number of styles and a multitude of filter types to protect against various laser wavelengths; that they’re designed to factor in optical density as a means of reducing laser beam intensity to a safe degree.

But what exactly are the requirements for laser safety glasses, the specific regulations to which they must adhere and the system by which those regulations are developed? If you’re still reading this, you’re probably already familiar with the acronym that answers these questions, even if you never knew what it stood for: ANSI.

ANSI, or American National Standards Institute, is a private non-profit organization that oversees the development of voluntary consensus standards for products, services, processes, systems, and personnel in the United States. These guidelines are universally agreed upon by manufacturers of products, goods, or services as the minimum standard they must meet in a competitive U.S. marketplace. ANSI standards set the baseline and the organization functions as a consumer watchdog group.