This point is called the common point ground and is defined by ANSI/ESD S6.1 as ‘a system or method for connecting two or more grounding conductors to the same electrical potential.’ …The next step in completing the ground circuit is to connect the common point ground to the AC equipment ground or an auxiliary ground, as defined in ANSI/ESD S6.1.” “The first step in ensuring that everything in an EPA is at the same electrical potential is to ground all conductive components of the work area (i.e., worksurfaces, people, equipment, etc.) to the same electrical ground point. Do not clip a wrist strap to the edge of a dissipative mat.” ĭue to it lower retention force than installed in a banana jack, attaching a wrist strap cord to a mat with an alligator clip is problematic. Do not connect to a snap on a dissipative mat unless it is the groundable point for the mat. “Wrist strap ground cords must be connected to a groundable point or an equipotential bonding point. This process is not recommended as it can increase the total system resistance to ground to over the 35-megohm limit required in ANSI/ESD S20.20.” NOTE: Many wrist strap users clip the wrist cord to the edge of an ESD protective mat. The preferred grounding point for the groundable end of the cord would be a common point ground as defined in ANSI/ESD S6.1. Any electrical connector that could be attached to ground would be acceptable as long as it was mechanically durable. Alligator clip attached to dissipative mat is not recommended per ESD Handbook ESD TR20.20 wrist strap section 5.3.2.2.2 Wrist Strap Ground Cord: “The groundable end of the cord is most often equipped with a banana plug and a mating alligator clip.

If testing can demonstrate that operator’s resistance path is reliable, it might be OK, but it is certainly not best practice. Alligator Clip Connected to Mat – Poor Practice Correct Wrist Strap Setup

Alligator clip straps