Development of an artificial neural network software tool for the assessment of the electromagnetic field radiating by electrostatic discharges

Artificial neural networks (ANNs) are addressed in order to assess the electric and magnetic field radiating by electrostatic discharges (ESDs). Actual input and output data collected from hundreds of measurements carried out in the high voltage laboratory of the National Technical University of Athens are used in the training, validation and testing process. The developed ANN method is coded in a comprehensive software tool to be used by laboratories involved in ESD tests, which either face a lack of suitable measuring equipment or want to compare their own measurements. The electromagnetic field produced by radiating ESDs, can be assessed very easily and accurately by simply measuring and providing to the tool the discharge current. The authors strongly believe that the proposed ANN software tool can be extremely useful for laboratories involved in ESD tests according to the current IEC Standard, as the forthcoming revised version of this standard will almost certainly include measurements of the radiating electromagnetic field during the verification of ESD generators.