Workshop on

Safety Tests for Electrical

Products
Cairo, Egypt
3 – 4 December 2014

High voltage withstand

test
Dean Zekic
Higher market inspector
Croatian Ministry of economy
 High voltage withstand test
 A dielectric strength test, dielectric
withstand test, high potential test,
HIPOT test
 Electrical test performed on a
component or product to determine
the efectiveness of its insulation.
 Making sure that consumers do not
recive an electric shock because of
breakdown of electrical insulation
TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for
Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
 High voltage withstand test
 High voltage source applied between a
product’s current-carrying elements and
shielding
 Most important electrical safety test.
• Designing test
• Production line test
• Service test
• Routine maintenance test
 Must be performed on every appliance
before before placement on market
TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for
Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
 High voltage withstand test
 Verify quality of insulating material
used in EE
 Verify correctly performing of
electrical instalation. (spacings
betwen energised elements, and
grounding).
 Manufacturing fault discover
 Performing standard maintenance
measuring – predicting usable time
TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for

of EE Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4

December 2014.
High voltage withstand test
 Household
appliance with
impropper
grounding
 Insulation
breakdown –
insulation fault
between power line
and appliance case
 Consumer bridging
current ground
path
TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for
Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
 →ELECTRIC
 Type of HIPOT tests
 Regarding desired parameters of EE
• Dielectric breakdown test – measuring –
estimating dielectric breakdown voltage in
product design proces – destroying test – used
in random sample
• Dielectric voltage withstand Test – High
voltage test - 100% producting line test –
measuring amount of leakage current at
voltage below breakdown voltage
• Insulation resistance test – measuring
quantifiable resistance value – DC test
TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for
Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
Basic Tests on Electrical Insulation
Electrical
insulation
model

Insulation Touch (Leakage) Dielectric

Resistance Current Test Withstand
Test Test (Hi-pot)

TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for

Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
 Type of HIPOT tests
 Regarding applyed voltage
• AC measuring voltage
• DC measuring voltage

TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for

Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
Test performance
 Connecting high probe terminal of
tester to power and neutral lines
tied together, and low terminal to
ground or exposed case of EE
 Exposing connected appliance to
high voltage – gradualy
increasing (ramping test voltage)
 Monitoring current flow for
changes, comparing it with
current waveforms nad amounts
caracteristic ecspected to psysical
state.
 After programed time, or after
current exceeding presposed limit
(breakdown) ending of measuring
proces by turning off high voltage
 Discharging od EE

TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for

Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
 HIPOT tester
 Source of high voltage
 Current meter
 A switching matrix

TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for

Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
 AC testing - advantages
Presents operating tipe of transient voltage
for most of EE
 AC stresses the insulation oqualy in both

polarities
 No waiting required after applying a test
voltage
 Not necessary to discharge the product

after testing
 AC testing is more stressing for insulation

- accelerates the breakdown in flawed

material
TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for
Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
 AC testing - disadvantages
 Regarding capacitive
nature of insulation of
EE, reading of leakage
current flow through
insulation (real
component)is not
accurate.
• Total measured current
have real and reactive
component
• For EE with large
capacitance, leakage
current increasing hard
to detect
TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for
Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
 DC testing - advantages
 Gradualy Increasing test voltage –
non destructive testing- possibility to
predict insulation breakdown

TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for

Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
 DC testing - advantages
 Only choice for testig particular
components – capacitors and inverse
voltage readings of diodes
 More accurate leakage current
reading, regarding to absence of
reactive component of current

TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for

Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
 DC testing - disadvantages
 Less practical for high capacitive
devices since it is necessary to raise
the voltage slowly
 Not considered as equivalent to AC
test by most agencies
 Stresses insulation in one polarity
only

TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for

Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
 DC testing – insulation resistance
 Testing has four phases:
• Charge
• Dwell
• Measure
• Discharge
 Dielectric adsorbtion current
 Charging current
 Leakage current
TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for
Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
Testing – caracteristic demands for
measuring equipment
 Small changes in line voltage
significally affects output voltage
 Drop in output voltage regarding
current flow through internal
resistance of tester
• Output voltage dropping below level –
possibility of passing false product
• Modern testers monitoring output
voltage and compensating eventual
fluctuations – ensuring correct level of
output voltage
Testing – caracteristic demands for
measuring equipment
 Distortion of output AC voltage
(spike or high frequency transient)
produced by the tester in proces of
increasing voltage from zero to test
voltage
• Problem eliminated by electronically
controling the voltage and maintaining
an undistorted waveform of output
voltage during increasing voltage proces
TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for
Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
Testing – caracteristic demands for
measuring equipment
 Min/Max current
detection –
Low/high current
limits
• Max current limit
for succesiful Hipot
test – shutting
down hipot tester
• Min current limit for
detecting fault
fixture or cable
connection TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for
Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
 Hipot test shortcomings
 For some EE switches or relays
cannot be closed manually (double
pole relays, electronic switches)–
Hipot tester cannot energise all the
current carrying elements
• Performing HOT HIPOT procedure

TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for

Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
 electric strength
EN 60335 -1:2002+A2
 At operating temperature, electric
strength shall be adequate.
• test voltage is applied between live
parts and accessible parts with a
voltage having a frequency of 50 Hz or
60 Hz for 1 min, and value given in
table
• No breakdown shall occur during the
test

TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for

Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
electric strength

TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for

Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
CEI IETA laboratory measurement

TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for

Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
CEI IETA laboratory measurement

TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for

Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
CEI IETA laboratory measurement

TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for

Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
CEI IETA laboratory measurement

TAIEX Workshop on Safety Tests for

Electrical Products; Cairo, Egypt, 3-4
December 2014.
Thank you for your attention!
Dean Zekić, dipl. ing. el
High market inspector
Republic of Croatia
Inspection directorate in economy
Sector for market inspection
Regional unit – Service inspection in Split
Mob:00385 99 266 3104
Dean.zekic@mingo.hr