Electrical Safety PDF

BG 3105
Biomedical Instrumentation
Electrical Safety
Asst Prof Manojit Pramanik
School of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering
Nanyang Technological University
manojit@ntu.edu.sg
Office: N1.3-B2-11
Electrical Safety
1 Introduction
2 Electrical safety and medical applications
2.1 Electrical shock
2.2 Protection against shock
2.3 Safety tester
Biomedical Instrumentation - wk 5
1. Introduction
Electricity is the main power source for:
Lighting, equipment, life support
Electrical safety is the limitation/elimination of hazardous condition
Electrical shock
Explosion
Fire
Damage to equipment and buildings.
1. Introduction
Electrical shock refers to both macroshock and
microshock.
Electrical shock may occur to patients, staff and visitors
to hospitals.
Shock results from improperly wired or maintained
electrical equipment or power systems.
2. Electrical safety and medical applications

Electrical current passing through the human body has
three primary effects
Injury to tissues
Uncontrollable muscle contraction
unconsciousness
Electrical shock is measured in terms of current
intensity at specified frequencies.
The frequency of the current is also important when
considering the shock phenomenon.
Effects of Electrical Shock
Current intensity
1 s contact
Effect
1 mA
Threshold of perception.
5 mA
Accepted as maximum harmless current intensity.
10-20 mA
Let-go current before sustained muscular contraction.
50 mA
Pain. Possible fainting, exhaustion, mechanical injury; heart and

respiratory functions continue.
100-300 mA
Ventricular fibrillation will start, but respiratory center remains

intact.
6A
Sustained myocardial contraction followed by normal heart

rhythm. Temporary respiratory paralysis. Burns if current density
is high.
Effects of 60-Hz electric shock (current) through the body

of an average human
2.1 Electrical Shock

Macroshock
Macroshock is a shock due to touching H (hot) and
N (neutral) wires with two limbs.
The current which may cause ventricular fibrillation
is 50~250 mA for 50 Hz voltage.
Fault
230 V
50 Hz
Chassis
Electric
device
Water pipe
The hot wire is shorted to chassis

Chassis is not grounded
A man touches the chassis with his foot
grounded
The equivalent circuit is shown

Rbody
The shorted component results in a macroshock when a

patient simultaneously touches the chassis and a
grounded object.
Fault
230 V
50 Hz
Electric
device
Protection:
If the chassis is grounded, then
when a fault occurs, the most
current flows safely to ground.
10
The equivalent circuit is shown
Chassis
grounded
11
Microshock
Microshock is shock due to current directly passing
through the heart.
It is caused by the leakage current from needle and
catheter inserted inside the heart.
Microshock current of 10~100 A can cause
ventricular fibrillation.
Catheter
Ventricular fibrillation is a condition in

which there is uncoordinated contraction
of the cardiac muscle of the ventricles in
the heart, making them quiver rather than
contract properly.
Superior
vena cava
Right
atrium
12
Leakage Current
Leakage current is defined as the low-value electrical current (A)
that inherently flows (leaks) from the energized electrical portion of
an appliance or instrument to the metal chassis.
All electrically operated equipment has some leakage current.
This current is not a result of a fault but is a natural consequence
of electrical wiring and components.
Typically capacitive leakage current is the main contributor
compared to resistive leakage current.
Ground
Chassis
13
Catheter
Ground
Chassis
A catheter is inserted inside heart of a patient

There may be leakage currents due to stray capacitors
(very small) between chassis and power lines
The chassis is grounded
14
Equivalent circuit
H
catheter
Ileak
N
As the chassis is grounded,
most of the currents will
return through the ground
wire and safe.
But, if the ground wire is

broken, then the leakage
current will pass through
Ground
the patient
Catheter
broken
Chassis
R resistance between heart and foot (500)

15
Equivalent circuit
H
Ileak
catheter
N
G
If the current flowing through the patient is

higher than 10 A, then ventricular fibrillation
may occur.
16
2.2 Protection against shock

Two fundamental methods are:
The patient can be completely isolated and insulated
from all grounded objectives and all sources of
electric current.
All conductive surfaces within reach of patient can
be maintained at the same potential.
17
Isolation Transformer (Method 1)

IH
IH=IN
IN
Equipment are connected after the isolation transformer

So that protection can be provided
18
Example 1:
H
IH
Isolated
output
N
The equivalent circuit is as follows

Body
resistance
The isolation transformer provides

protection against macroshock
This is because that the person
touches the hot lead, but = 0 as
both hot and neutral leads are
isolated.
No return path !
19
Example 2: If an equipment is connected to the isolated

power and chassis is grounded
No fault
IH
Isolated
transformer
IN
Equipement
Clearly, the hot lead current is equal to

=
20
Suppose the hot lead is fault to the chassis

IH
Vi
V0
Isolated
transformer
Fault
Equipment
IN
ILeak
is the stray capacitor (very small) formed

between the neutral lead and the ground
wire
21
Then, the leakage current is

=
- is the voltage (isolated power)

- is angular frequency
- is a wire resistance
Since is very small, is very small.

22
This is considered safe even when a person

touches faulty wire
I
Fault
Isolated
V
transformer
IN
ILeak
should be
very small
23
For the case of the isolated transformer

faulty, for example, the neutral line is
shorted, then, no more isolated power
IH
Isolated
transformer
IN
Equipment
shorted
24
Line isolation monitor (LIM)

The LIM is a device that continuously monitors the
isolated power lines from fault.
It is done by detecting the impedance between the
power lines to ground wire.
25
How to operate:
Consider one branch of LIM.
It detects impedance between Hot wire to ground

IH
LIM
Vo
Isolated
transformer
IN
Equ. ILIM
26
The equivalent circuit is

Vo
Neutral
Clearly, the current is determined by

=
This current should be very small if no faulty

to the ground occurs
27
But, if the neutral line is shorted to the

ground
I
H
LIM
Vo
Isolated
transformer
ILIM
Equ.
IN
Fault
The equivalent circuit becomes

Vo
Neutral
R
28
Thus,
In this case, the ammeter indicates a

current showing a faulty.
Note: Similarly, for the hot lead shorted,
another part of LIM can detect it
29
Safety ground (Method 2)

Safety ground is a method to maintain the same
potential
Equipment is grounded
Metal bed is grounded
Regular checking of ground wires
30
Example 1: Suppose that the leakage current is 100 A. If

the ground wire resistance is 1.1 and a patient of 500-
resistance touches the instrument metal case, what is the
body current?
Chassis
1.1
Example 1
31
Answer: The equivalent circuit of Example 1 is
Vo
ILeak=100A
C, stray capacitor
I1
1.1
I2
I1 = 99.8 A,
500, body resistor

I2 = 0.2 A,
0.2 A of leakage current flows through the patient,

and
99.8 A flows through the safety ground.
Thus, the patient is safe.
32
Ground-fault interrupter (GFI)

A ground fault interrupter (GFI) protects against a shock.
relay
The GFI consists of:
A ring magnetic material

A sensing coil
Hot and neutral coils with the same number of turns on a magnetic material
but they are in opposite directions
A relay
33
How to operate?
When the system is in normal, =
In this case, the magnetic flux in the coil =
and the sensing coil does not have a voltage.
Therefore, the sensing amplifier output is zero
voltage.
However, when the hot lead faults, or is touched by

a person = ,
In this case, the net flux in the coil is not zero, i.e.
A voltage is induced by the sensing coil.
If , the relay actuates (interrupt power).

34
2.3 Safety tester

Receptacle Tester
The LIM and GFI are permanently attached to the power
lines for protection.
The receptacle tester is for inspecting equipment and
circuits by inserting in the power receptacle.
It can test:
G N H
Polarities reversals
Shorts
Tester
opens
35
A power receptacle tester
Normal condition: LED1 ON, LED2 OFF,

LED3 ON
36
An H to G short will turn all LEDs OFF

G N H
37
An open H lead will turn all LEDs OFF

open
G N H
open
38
If H to N are reversed, LED1 OFF, LED2

ON, LED3 ON
G N H
N
H
39
This table summarizes LEDs

states corresponding H lead fault.
Possible
wiring defect
LED state
Normal
ON
H to G short
OFF
H, N reversed OFF
OFF
OFF
ON
ON
OFF
ON
Determination of the other LED states can also

be done
40

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BG 3105

2. Electrical safety and medical applications

Effects of Electrical Shock

Accepted as maximum harmless current intensity.

Let-go current before sustained muscular contraction.

Pain. Possible fainting, exhaustion, mechanical injury; heart and

Ventricular fibrillation will start, but respiratory center remains

Sustained myocardial contraction followed by normal heart

Effects of 60-Hz electric shock (current) through the body

2.1 Electrical Shock

The hot wire is shorted to chassis

The equivalent circuit is shown

The shorted component results in a macroshock when a

The equivalent circuit is shown

Ventricular fibrillation is a condition in

A catheter is inserted inside heart of a patient

But, if the ground wire is

R resistance between heart and foot (500)

If the current flowing through the patient is

2.2 Protection against shock

Isolation Transformer (Method 1)

Equipment are connected after the isolation transformer

The equivalent circuit is as follows

The isolation transformer provides

Example 2: If an equipment is connected to the isolated

Clearly, the hot lead current is equal to

Suppose the hot lead is fault to the chassis

is the stray capacitor (very small) formed

Then, the leakage current is

- is the voltage (isolated power)

Since is very small, is very small.

This is considered safe even when a person

For the case of the isolated transformer

Line isolation monitor (LIM)

Consider one branch of LIM.

It detects impedance between Hot wire to ground

The equivalent circuit is

Clearly, the current is determined by

This current should be very small if no faulty

But, if the neutral line is shorted to the

The equivalent circuit becomes

In this case, the ammeter indicates a

Safety ground (Method 2)

Example 1: Suppose that the leakage current is 100 A. If

Answer: The equivalent circuit of Example 1 is

500, body resistor

0.2 A of leakage current flows through the patient,

Ground-fault interrupter (GFI)

The GFI consists of:

A ring magnetic material

However, when the hot lead faults, or is touched by

A voltage is induced by the sensing coil.

If , the relay actuates (interrupt power).

2.3 Safety tester

A power receptacle tester

Normal condition: LED1 ON, LED2 OFF,

An H to G short will turn all LEDs OFF

An open H lead will turn all LEDs OFF

If H to N are reversed, LED1 OFF, LED2

This table summarizes LEDs

Determination of the other LED states can also

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