Insulation tool (gloves and boots) testers are key equipment for conducting preventive tests on safety tools in the power industry. They are mainly used to test the withstand voltage performance of insulating boots and gloves to ensure that workers are protected from electric shock during operations. This article will provide a detailed explanation from three aspects: core components, mainstream classifications, and key selection points.
This type of equipment generally adopts a split structure, physically isolating the high-voltage part from the control part to ensure the safety of the operation process.
I. Core Components
The insulation tool gloves and boots testing system mainly consists of a high-voltage test device and a low-voltage control and measurement box.
The high-voltage test device, also known as a water tank or test bench, contains a test transformer, a stainless steel water tank, an electrode support frame, and a milliampere meter. The test transformer is used to generate the required high voltage for the test, the stainless steel water tank is used to hold water and ground to form a test circuit, the electrodes are responsible for introducing high voltage into the test samples, and the milliampere meter is used to accurately measure the leakage current of each test sample.
The low-voltage control and measurement box integrates a voltage regulator, a PLC microcomputer, a display screen, operation buttons, and a printer. It can provide adjustable voltage to the test transformer, automatically complete the entire process of voltage increase, timing, and voltage decrease, display the voltage and leakage current values in real time, and automatically save and print the test results.
II. Mainstream Classifications
Insulation tool gloves and boots testing systems can be classified from multiple dimensions:
By degree of automation: They are divided into manual control type and fully automatic type. Manual type requires manual operation for voltage increase and timing, which is less efficient and has greater errors; fully automatic type only needs to set parameters to complete all test processes with one click, and is the mainstream product in the current market.
By the number of test positions: Common types include 3-position, 6-position, 8-position, and 16-position. The 8-position type can test 8 pairs (4 pairs) of insulating boots or gloves at once, suitable for most testing scenarios, and is a highly efficient mainstream choice; the 16-position type is often used for large-scale centralized tests in power companies and large testing centers.
By functional integration: They are divided into dedicated type and comprehensive expansion type. The dedicated type is only suitable for testing insulating boots and gloves; the comprehensive expansion type can be expanded to test various tools such as insulating rods, voltage detectors, and insulating mats by replacing the test support and electrodes, achieving multiple uses with one machine and offering higher cost performance.
By voltage generation method: The most common type is the power frequency withstand voltage type, which can generate 50Hz AC high voltage consistent with the grid frequency, simulating actual working conditions.
III. Key Selection Points
When purchasing insulation tool gloves and boots testing equipment, the following aspects can be focused on:
Core performance parameters
Output voltage and capacity: The preventive test voltage for insulating boots and gloves usually does not exceed 30kV. The mainstream equipment has a maximum output voltage of 30kV–50kV, and a capacity of 3kVA–5kVA is sufficient to meet the usage requirements. It is necessary to ensure that the equipment’s voltage level covers the higher test voltage of the items to be tested.
Leakage current measurement accuracy: As a key indicator for determining whether the test sample is qualified, it is recommended to choose equipment with high measurement accuracy and a resolution of 0.01mA, which can sensitively identify insulation defects.
Core safety configuration
It is recommended to prioritize equipment that uses wireless transmission, infrared communication, or optical fiber communication technology, which can physically cut off the risk of high voltage entering the low-voltage control circuit, ensuring the safety of operators. At the same time, it is suggested to choose models where each test sample has an independent high-voltage disconnection mechanism. When one sample is broken down, the corresponding circuit can be automatically disconnected without affecting the normal testing of other samples, balancing equipment protection and test efficiency.
Humanized design and functions
For insulating boot tests, it is advisable to choose equipment that supports the dry test method (with built-in steel balls), eliminating the cumbersome process of filling water and drying the boots, protecting the insulating boots and simplifying the operation. In terms of human-machine interaction, it is recommended to equip devices with large-screen Chinese interfaces (such as touch screens), as well as data storage and printing functions, to make the operation of experiments more intuitive and the management of results more convenient.
Post time: Mar-04-2026