Thanks to all who replied publicly and privately to my question on ESD to metal surfaces with non-paint coatings. It seems everyone agrees to treat them the same as paint.
As Brian points out, the Standard I'm looking at (BS EN 61000-4-2:2009) is a bit fuzzy using the term "paint" then switching to "coating". So now I'm just left with a rhetorical question. Has anyone heard such a declaration from a manufacturer? In my decades of EMC work, I have not. Thanks again, Bob From: Brian Kunde <bkundew...@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, September 19, 2023 9:45 AM To: EMC-PSTC@LISTSERV.IEEE.ORG Subject: [EXTERNAL] Re: [PSES] ESD testing - Contact Mode to plated metal surfaces? The standard I have says this in section 8. 3. 2: "In the case of painted surfaces covering a conducting substrate, the following procedure shall be adopted: If the coating is not declared to be an insulating coating by the equipment manufacturer, The standard I have says this in section 8.3.2: "In the case of painted surfaces covering a conducting substrate, the following procedure shall be adopted: If the coating is not declared to be an insulating coating by the equipment manufacturer, then the pointed tip of the generator shall penetrate the coating so as to make contact with the conducting substrate. Coating declared as insulating by the manufacturer shall only be submitted to the air discharge. The contact discharge test shall not be applied to such surfaces. In the case of air discharges, the ESD generator shall approach the EUT as fast as possible until contact between the electrode and the EUT is made (without causing mechanical damage). After each discharge, the ESD generator (discharge electrode) shall be removed from the EUT. The generator is then retriggered for a new single discharge. This procedure shall be repeated until the discharges are completed. In the case of an air discharge test, the discharge switch, which is used for contact discharge, shall be closed." The standard probably should not call out "painted" but worded in a way that would include all types of coatings. Maybe the newer versions of the standard clarifies this. The Other Brian On Mon, Sep 18, 2023 at 9:13 PM Brent DeWitt <bdew...@ix.netcom.com<mailto:bdew...@ix.netcom.com>> wrote: I believe the language said something like: "the contact discharge tip shall be applied to any coating not expressly declared as insulative" Could be wrong though. Brent DeWitt Milford, MA On 9/18/2023 7:39 PM, Ken Wyatt wrote: Always had the impression the sharp end of the CD tip was designed to punch through any coated metal. Kenneth Wyatt Woodland Park, CO Sent from my iPhone. On Sep 18, 2023, at 09:48, Sykes, Bob <bob.sy...@gilbarco.com><mailto:bob.sy...@gilbarco.com> wrote: Worldly Experts, I have a question regarding the suitability of contact mode ESD testing to plated metal surfaces. I understand the wording in IEC 61000-4-2 regarding painted and bare metal. Does the same logic used for painted metal surfaces also apply to other coatings (anodized, plated, passivated etc.)? These are not addressed in the Standard. adTHANKSvance, Bob Sykes ________________________________ Please be advised that this email may contain confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify us by email by replying to the sender and delete this message. ________________________________ This message is from the IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society emc-pstc discussion list. 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