Abstract
Recently, DC distribution systems have become a hot issue because of the increase in digital loads and DC generation systems according to the expansion of renewable energy technologies. To obtain the practical usage of DC electricity, safety should be guaranteed. The main concerns for safety are twofold: one side is human protection against electric shocks, and the other is facility protection from short faults. "Effects of current on human beings and livestock" (IEC 60479) defines a human body impedance model in electric shock conditions that consists of resistive components and capacitive components. Although the human body impedance model properly works in AC electricity, it does not well match with the electric shock behavior in DC electricity. In this study, the contradiction of the human body impedance model defined by IEC 60479 in case of DC electricity is shown through experiments for the human body. From the analysis of experimental results, a novel unified human body impedance model in electric shock conditions is proposed. This model consists of resistive components, capacitive components, and an inductance component. The proposed human impedance model matches well for AC and DC electricity environments in simulation and experiment.
