Dielectric withstand test

A dielectric withstand test or high potential or hipot

test is an electrical test performed on a component or
product to determine the eectiveness of its insulation.
The test may be between mutually insulated sections of
a part or energized parts and electrical ground. The test
is a means to qualify a devices ability to operate safely
during rated electrical conditions.[1] If current through a
device under test is less than a specied limit at the required test potential and time duration, the device meets
the dielectric withstand requirement. A dielectric withstand test may be done as a factory test on new equipment,
or may be done on apparatus in service as a routine maintenance test.[2]

onds or more. The applied voltage, rate of application and

test duration depend on the specication requirements of
the equipment. Dierent test standards apply for consumer electronics, military electrical devices, high voltage cables, switchgear and other apparatus.[2]
Typical hipot equipment leakage current trip limit settings range between 0.5 and 20 mA[3] and are set by the
user according to test object characteristics and rate of
voltage application. The objective is to choose a current
setting that will not cause the tester to falsely trip during
voltage application, while at the same time, selecting a
value that minimizes possible damage to the device under
test should an inadvertent discharge or breakdown occur.

Control panel of a portable high voltage (hipot) tester ; this instrument can test up to 100 kV DC
An insulation test set; in this pattern, a hand-cranked generator
provides the high voltage and the scale is directly calibrated in
Megohms.

1 See also

Voltage withstand testing is done with a high voltage

source and voltage and current meters. A single instrument called a hipot tester is often used to perform this
test. It applies the necessary voltages to a device and monitors leakage current. The current can trip a fault indicator. The tester has output overload protection. The test
voltage may be either direct current or alternating current
at power frequency or other frequency, like resonant frequency (30 to 300 Hz determined by load) or VLF (0.01
Hz to 0.1 Hz), when convenient. The maximum voltage is
given in the test standard for the particular product. The
application rate may also be adjusted to manage leakage
currents resulting from inherent capacitive eects of the
test object. The duration of the test may be up to 60 sec-

Electrical Isolation Test

Electrical breakdown
VLF cable testing
Dielectric loss
Impulse generator

2 References
[1] MIL-STD-202G, Method 301, Dielectric Withstanding
Voltage

[2] Paul Gill (2009), Electrical Power Equipment Maintenance

and Testing, Second Edition, CRC Press, 1574446568,
page 459
[3] Condor Application Note 5/00, pg. 2

External links
Insulation Resistance Testing: How and Why?".
Electrical Construction & Maintenance (EC&M).
Retrieved 2008-11-16.
Understanding Insulation Resistance Test Methods. TestGuy - Electrical Testing and Engineering
Resource. Retrieved 2014-05-10.

EXTERNAL LINKS

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