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CHAPTER 3
GENERAL INSTALLATION GUIDELINES
This chapter is presented as a tool in the hopes of avoiding common installation prob-
lems. It is not a substitute for the safety practices called out in local electrical codes or,
in the United States, the National Electrical Code published by the National Fire Protec-
tion Association. If any conflicts exist, local and national codes must be followed. It is
the responsibility of the user to determine what installation practices must be followed to
conform to all local and national codes
.
Safety is the single most important objective of any electrical installation. The system must be safe to use and
it must be able to detect unsafe conditions and remove power when these conditions occur.
The second important objective of an electrical installation is proper and consistent operation. Proper opera-
tion can be achieved through:
`
Proper Grounding
`
Suppression of electrical noise generated by the machine.
`
Suppression of electrical noise coming in from the environment. (Other machines, power surges, etc.)
Grounding
Proper grounding is the single most important consideration for a safe installation. Proper grounding also
ensures that unwanted electrical currents, such as those induced by electromagnetic noise, will be quickly
shunted to ground instead of flowing through the machine.
Earth ground connections on electronic controls are one of two types.
`
Protective Earth Connection:
Point that must be tied to Earth for the safe operation of the device.
(Protection against electric shock should the device be damaged.)
`
Functional Earth Connection:
Point that must be tied to Earth to improve noise immunity of the
device.
For the AMCI SD17060E, the Protective Earth Connection is any mounting surface of the unit. The Func-
tional Earth Connection of the SD17060E is the ground terminal (GND) on the power connector.
Grounding Electrode System
The Grounding Electrode System is the common name for the building's earth ground infrastructure. This
system defines earth-ground potential within a building and is the central ground for all electrical equipment.
Ground Bus
AMCI strongly suggests the use of a ground bus in each system enclosure. The ground bus is simply a metal
bar with studs or tapped holes for accepting grounding connections in the enclosure. The ground bus is the
only component in the enclosure that is directly connected to your Grounding Electrode System. Therefore,
the ground bus is becomes the central grounding point for the enclosure and its equipment.
This chapter gives general information on installing electronic controls in an industrial environ-
ment including the importance of proper wiring, grounding, and surge suppression. If you are
responsible for installing the SD17060E, make sure you are familiar with these practices and fol-
low them when installing the unit.
These instructions assume a solidly grounded system, which is used in a vast majority of modern
industrial systems. As defined by the IEEE, a solidly grounded system is one in which the neutral
of a generator, power transformer, or grounding transformer is directly connected to the system
ground or earth. The installation of ungrounded systems is not covered by these instructions.
