Electrostatic high voltage isolation system with internal charge generation

A method of applying electrostatically charged coating material to objects to be coated comprising the steps of:

• transferring coating material from a source of coating material to a supply of coating material, which is electrically isolated from the source of coating material, by forming transferred coating material into discrete droplets;
• inducing an electrostatic charge on the discrete droplets of transferred coating material to establish an electrostatic charge on coating material in the supply of coating material;
• and
• coupling the electrostatically charged coating material in the supply of coating material by means of a fluid conduit to a coating material dispenser for applying electrostatically charged coating material to objects to be coated.

An electrostatic spray coating system comprising:

• a source of coating material including a grounded coating material reservoir having a nozzle aperture in a bottom portion thereof;
• a spray gun for spraying electrostatically charged coating material onto objects to be coated;
• a supply container having an opening in an upper portion thereof for coating material, which is electrically isolated from the coating material reservoir and from ground;
• means for coupling coating material by means of a fluid conduit from the container to the spray gun;
• means for transferring coating material from the reservoir to the container by producing a pulsed jet droplet flow of coating material from the nozzle aperture into the opening of the container;
• and
• means for inducing an electrostatic charge on droplets in the pulsed jet droplet flow of transferred coating material to establish an electrostatic charge on coating material in the container which is coupled to the spray gun.