Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange Here's how it works: is a question and answer site for electronics and electrical engineering professionals, students, and ‘enthusiasts, Join them; it only takes a minute: ‘Anybody can ask ‘Anybody can ‘The best answers are voted question answer up and rise tothe top AC->DC supply, how to deal with chassis ground being connected to digital ground? MTS a STN a bs See how intel bridges the gap between concept & reality ne Thave an external triple-output AC-DC supply with the following output pinout: TERE OORT Fin eleovoa|Funcrioa) BLACK] cOwON [oeen|_crouno Jaron) +5 voc] > wire) 12 ¥0C Red |e WOE FRONT OF YEW On the power supply, “around! (pin 2) is internally connected to the ground wire of the mains plug. I'l refer to it as "earth ‘ground! (t's "AC GND" in my diagrams below). Current Configuration With the PCBs that I already had built, "common" (pin 1) is connected directly to the board-sized ground plane; let's call it "digital ground”, There are various connectors on the board, such as a USB jack and an analog input connector. The connector shields/shrouds are connected to the digital ground plane where they are soldered to the PCB, and the shields/shrouds are also connected to the chassis/enclosure, The image below shows the configuration: Tove Fenaw Aluminum Enclosure we use Connector Connector shroud Cameco enclosure sed DGHO on PCB omy Ta Digital/Anatog PCB ‘AE>DC Power Supply Connector ‘The device is used for measuring very small currents. The DC power supply's +12V and 2V outputs drive sensitive amplifier, DAC, and ADC circuits, My concern Is that since earth ground is left floating, the enclosure could theoretically become energized due to a fault. The voltages in my circuit max out at +12V / -12V, but does that even matter from a safety standpoint? Possible fix for existing boards I've read this answer to the question Should chassis ground be attached to digital ground?, and the way I understand it, I'll be OX if I just connect earth ground to the chassis at the power input connector, since my chassis is connected to the shrouds of all the input connectors already. Without making new boards, that’s realy the only thing I think can do right now anyway. Could this turn my device into an unintentional radiator since digital ground is connected to the shrouds too? Could it also put more noise in my power? Any other serious concerns? What to do with the next versionIdeally, I think the grounds should be hooked up like this, so that AC ground is isolated from the rest of the board, and there is no way for the chassis to pass current except through external faults or @ serious internal fault, but the current would go to ‘earth. I could change the layaut so that the next batch of boards are hooked up like the diagram below. Do I have the right Hawt should be(?) 1] cigtar/anaiog res use connector Connector shroud q Ermecis fo enclosure d [q ween) ‘AE>DC Power Supply Connector Idea? Plastic Enclosure Thave one more issue that complicates things further... This device Is intended to be produced in two different configurations: in the primary configuration, the enclosure is aluminum, However, in the other configuration, there is a plastic enclosure, This means the only exposed conductive parts are the connector shrouds. Of course I'd lke to use the same board if possible, FPP von Ganvdactive Enclosure Plastic Enclosure ing esiginal conductive ass eats} 7" a ta connector z Dighal/analog rca Gonna uaud owen } I cana oa ‘AE5DC Power Supply Connector ‘What's the safest way to deal with the exposed conductive connector shrouds? Should I leave them floating, or just connect them to digital ground? The plastic enclosure does have an internal conductive coating, but I don’t think I can make a reliable connection to it (let's assume I can't). {have already read his othr question that is vey ilar, but {have a ferent lsue since 'm working with an existing board that aeady connects chassis Kevin Vermor Stovon T. Soydor From the ether tread you mention in your get in your next version desgn should be your DGND ‘annecied to enasis round through meaning hles fr EMI concern? uerS044 Age 3"2 11715 (@Tom I understand thatthe answer I linked to suggests connecting DGND to chassis grou: the mounting nos, but soma comments there sy ie coulgturn Sure what youre asking. Steven T Shyer AprS"12 1314 1 Answer ‘Any long cables with RF clocks/data will radiate noise and when connected to AC ‘ground could also radiate via AC cable from path ground loops, Smart idea is make generous use of common mode chokes for interface cables and DC outputs to raise impedance of the common mode signals from AC ground, Beware that Hipot testing of AC/DC PSU may cause failure on secondary port when ‘grounded. This is due to dielectric breakdown of Hipot fram primary to secondary. Floating secondary is easier to protect if there is capacitive leakage and tester usesfast rising input. In this case modify Hipot tester to avoid discharge surge that would destruct PSU by using 2 current limiting series resistor Leakage can be minimized with prudent gaps, quality caps, and moisture protection ‘on conductors. (moist dust causes leakage) tod Apr 10°12 #1091 acsaoros Apr 0 "2 at solemn, Bye seem sae 29682 78