Wrist strap and Footwear Tester

The Desco Combo Tester X3 verifies the functionality of an operator’s wrist strap and footwear. It determines if an operator’s wrist strap and footwear will act as a path-to-ground and ensures the presence of a current-limiting resistor in the personnel grounding devices. The operator’s wrist strap and footwear will test simultaneously with no need for separate tests. Green lights indicate that the wrist strap and footwear are passing. Red lights and an audible alarm indicate when the wrist strap and/or footwear (left or right) are failing. If failure occurs, the tester will also display if the grounding device’s resistance is too low or too high.

 

The Combo Tester X3 features a reliable and durable solid state switch which replaces the traditional mechanical test switch with a spring and moving parts. The outer and inner portions of the solid state switch are designed to be bridged by a person’s skin. Use the EMIT 50755 ESD Glove Test Fixture to perform tests while wearing gloves.

 

The factory test limits are set to:
Wrist Straps: 750 kilohms and 10 megohms
Footwear: 750 kilohms and 35 megohms

 

Each Combo Tester X3 is calibrated with accepted procedures and standards traceable to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and includes a NIST certificate.

 

Per ANSI/ESD S20.20 section 7.3 “A Compliance Verification Plan shall be established to ensure the Organization’s fulfillment of the technical requirements of the ESD Control Program Plan. Process monitoring (measurements) shall be conducted in accordance with a Compliance Verification Plan that identifies the technical requirements to be verified, the measurement limits and the frequency at which those verifications shall occur. The Compliance Verification Plan shall document the test methods and equipment used for process monitoring and measurements. … The test equipment selected shall be capable of making the measurements defined in the Compliance Verification Plan.”

 

Per ANSI/ESD S1.1 Annex A.3 Frequency of System Testing “The wrist strap system should be tested daily to ensure proper electrical resistance.” Per ESD Handbook ESD TR20.20 section 5.3.2.4.2 Additional User Wrist Strap Testing “Proper testing of the wrist strap includes the resistance of the groundable point on the end of the cord, the cord itself, the resistor, the cord-to-cuff snap connector, the resistance of the interface of the cuff, the cuff/wrist interface, and the resistance of the person between the wrist and the hand that contacts the test electrode.”

 

Per ESD Handbook ESD TR20.20 section 5.3.2.2.2 Wrist Strap Ground Cord “At first glance, the ground cord appears to be a relatively simple assembly. However, the design requirements are considerable, given the wide range of user applications and the durability requirements of constant tugging, flexing, and dragging over the edge of workstation tops and equipment chassis.”

 

“Compliance verification should be performed prior to each use (daily, shift change, etc.). The accumulation of insulative
materials may increase the foot grounder system resistance. If foot grounders are worn outside the ESD protected area
testing for functionality before reentry to the ESD protected area should be considered.” (ESD SP9.2 APPENDIX B - Foot Grounder Usage Guidance)

 

“Compliance verification records shall be established and maintained to provide evidence of conformity to the technical requirements.” [ANSI/ESD S20.20 section 7.3]