Cabin electronic equipment can be effected by electrostatic discharge due to environmental and installation conditions, such as low relative humidity and the use of poor or nonconductive materials for carpets, seat textiles, arm rests, etc., which exist in all locations within the aircraft. For ESD testing, different Human Body Models, such as the MIL-STD-883 and the RTCA DO-160D (comparable to IEC 1000-4-2) were applied to the passenger entertainment system to reproduce the same system failures observed by different customers. Comparison of the models showed that only the contact discharge with a modified network of the DO-160D standard is the appropriate test method to recreate the problems observed on current equipment and to obtain reproducible test results. Therefore, it is recommended that section 25 of the DO-160D for cabin electronic equipment be modified.
HBM ESD Test Equipment
MIL-STD-883 ESD Generators
The MIL-STD-883 ESD generator requires a discharge resistor of 1500 ohms (±1%) and an energy storage capacitor of 100 pf (±10%), and shall be capable of generating a pulse of 15,000 volts, in both positive and negative polarities. The ESD generator shall also have a standard air discharge tip. The ESD generator shall be calibrated to produce a positive and negative 15,000 volt (+10%, -0%) peak output pulse. The generator setting required to produce this output shall be recorded.