Patent ID: 8790336

Claim:
An electrosurgical apparatus comprising an electrosurgical appliance and a neutral electrode connected thereto, the neutral electrode having at least two electrodes which can be applied to a skin segment of a patient and are electrically insulated from each other, and a cover film attached to active surfaces of the at least two electrodes, wherein the cover film is removable prior to application to the patient and the cover film has a known resistance so that a defined resistance is created between the active surfaces of the at least two electrodes, the electrosurgical appliance comprising: a resistance-measuring device for measuring the resistance between the active surfaces of the at least two electrodes of the neutral electrode when the cover film is attached; a decoding device configured to determine a type of the neutral electrode on the basis of the resistance value that is measured when the cover film is attached; and a display and/or recording device to, respectively, display and/or record the type of the neutral electrode determined by the decoding device.