Ground or no ground

[meatbal80]

I am running a single long legth of cable for the PC router to get rid of the plug in my e-chain. I didnt check the router before i bought the cable for a ground. I figured that it had one to my surprise it did not. Should i just not use the ground wire or should i find a spot to attach it to the router under the top cap?

[dana_swift]

Grounding- what a often misunderstood topic.

The ground would accomplish nothing in your case, the router should be "double insulated" against faults, which is what the ground wire provides with "single insulated" tools. The ground wire in some tools is to catch any current that might occur if a wire in the motor were to break and contact the case. Grounding prevents the current from going through the operator-to-ground, electrocuting them. When operated on a SB the SB itself usually provides that protection, in addition to the double insulated nature of the router construction. If the router motor delaminates and a live conductor contacts the case, the mount to the bot frame should conduct the current safely away from you.

This power-ground wire (when it exists) provides NO resistance to electrical noise. To have any significant effect on noise it needs to be sleeve conductor wired as a "shield". Shields are often connected to ground on one end to prevent ground-loops, so they are of little use for safety.

Shields also are more effective on wires that are susceptible to receiving electromagnetic interference. (For instance shields on single-ended signal wiring) Shields on conductors that emit radiation are there to control the impedance of the radiatable energy. (For instance the coax between radio transmitters and antennas.)

Probably this is more than most folks care to know. But the simple answer is leave it unconnected if the router has a two wire plug.

D

[ghostcreek]

Good info Dana, we all need to know alot about electrical interference. Thanks for the info.:)