Monday, January 21, 2008

Basic common sense

Sometimes it is appalling on the apathy shown towards customers by large corporates. A very large computer vendor seems to have a problem with earthing.

Electrical circuits may be connected to ground (earth) for several reasons. In power circuits, a connection to ground is done for safety purposes to protect people from the effects of faulty insulation on electrically powered equipment. A connection to ground helps limit the voltage built up between power circuits and the earth, protecting circuit insulation from damage due to excessive voltage. Connections to ground may be used to limit the build-up of static electricity when handling flammable products or when repairing electronic devices. In some types of telegraph and power transmission circuits, the earth itself can be used as one conductor of the circuit, saving the cost of installing a separate run of wire as a return conductor. For measurement purposes, the Earth serves as a (reasonably) constant potential reference against which other potentials can be measured. An electrical ground system should have an appropriate current-carrying capability in order to serve as an adequate zero-voltage reference level.

The use of the term ground (or earth) is so common in electrical and electronics applications that circuits in vehicles such as ships, aircraft, and spacecraft may be spoken of having a "ground" connection without any real connection to the Earth. (from wikipedia)

So what is the solution. there are two. One, ensure that the customer does not touch the earth directly whilst operating the device, that includes wearing shoes etc, or secondly, go to the source. Ensure that there is correct earthing from the supply.

When they deny that this is a cause, and are still not doing anything, you wonder if its the right thing to do?

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