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Design Considerations
CY8C20xx7/S CapSense
®
Design Guide
Doc. No. 001-78329 Rev. *E
49
5.2 ESD Protection
Robust ESD tolerance is a natural byproduct of thoughtful system design. By considering how contact discharge will
occur in your product, particularly in your user interface, it is possible to withstand an 18-kV discharge event without
incurring any damage to the CapSense controller.
CapSense controller pins can withstand a direct 2-kV event. In most cases, the overlay material provides sufficient
ESD protection for the controller pins.
lists the thickness of various overlay materials required to protect the
CapSense sensors from a 12-kV discharge, as specified in IEC 61000-4-2. If the overlay material does not provide
sufficient protection, ESD countermeasures should be applied in the following order: Prevent, Redirect, Clamp.
5.2.1 Prevent
Make sure that all paths on the touch surface have a breakdown voltage greater than potential high-voltage contacts.
Also, design your system to maintain an appropriate distance between the CapSense controller and possible sources
of ESD. If it is not possible to maintain adequate distance, place a protective layer of a high breakdown voltage
material between the ESD source and the CapSense controller. One layer of 5-mil-thick Kapton
®
tape will withstand
18 kV.
5.2.2 Redirect
If your product is densely packed, it may not be possible to prevent the discharge event. In this case, you can protect
the CapSense controller by controlling where the discharge occurs. A standard practice is to place a guard ring on
the perimeter of the circuit board that is connected to chassis ground. As recommended in
providing a hatched ground plane around the button or slider sensor can redirect the ESD event away from the
sensor and CapSense controller.
5.2.3 Clamp
Because CapSense sensors are purposely placed close to the touch surface, it may not be practical to redirect the
discharge path. In this case, including series resistors or special-purpose ESD protection devices may be
appropriate.
The recommended series resistance value is 560
Ω.
A more effective method is to provide special-purpose ESD protection devices on the vulnerable traces. ESD
protection devices for CapSense need to be low capacitance.
lists devices recommended for use with
CapSense controllers.
Table 5-2. Low-Capacitance ESD Protection Devices Recommended for CapSense
ESD Protection Device
Input
Capacitance
Leakage
Current
Contact
Discharge
Maximum Limit
Air Discharge
Maximum Limit
Manufacturer
Part Number
Littelfuse
SP723
5 pF
2 nA
8 kV
15 kV
Vishay
VBUS05L1-DD1
0.3 pF
0.1 µA <
±15 kV
±16 kV
NXP
NUP1301
0.75 pF
30 nA
8 kV
15 kV
5.3 Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) Considerations
5.3.1 Radiated Interference
Radiated electrical energy can influence system measurements and potentially influence the operation of the
processor core. The interference enters the PSoC chip at the PCB level, through CapSense sensor traces and any
other digital or analog inputs. Layout guidelines for minimizing the effects of RF interference include:
Ground Plane
: Provide a ground plane on the PCB.
Series Resistor
: Place series resistors within 10 mm of the CapSense controller pins.
The recommended series resistance for CapSense input lines is 560
Ω.
The recommended series resistance for communication lines such as I
2
C and SPI is 330
Ω.
Trace Length
: Minimize trace length whenever possible.