EP0296183A1 - Circuit breaker contact assembly. - Google Patents

Circuit breaker contact assembly.

Info

Publication number
EP0296183A1
EP0296183A1 EP87907568A EP87907568A EP0296183A1 EP 0296183 A1 EP0296183 A1 EP 0296183A1 EP 87907568 A EP87907568 A EP 87907568A EP 87907568 A EP87907568 A EP 87907568A EP 0296183 A1 EP0296183 A1 EP 0296183A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
movable blade
circuit breaker
contact
blade
upper blade
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Granted
Application number
EP87907568A
Other languages
German (de)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP0296183A4 (en
EP0296183B1 (en
Inventor
John M Winter
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Schneider Electric USA Inc
Original Assignee
Square D Co
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Square D Co filed Critical Square D Co
Publication of EP0296183A1 publication Critical patent/EP0296183A1/en
Publication of EP0296183A4 publication Critical patent/EP0296183A4/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP0296183B1 publication Critical patent/EP0296183B1/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • HELECTRICITY
    • H01ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01HELECTRIC SWITCHES; RELAYS; SELECTORS; EMERGENCY PROTECTIVE DEVICES
    • H01H73/00Protective overload circuit-breaking switches in which excess current opens the contacts by automatic release of mechanical energy stored by previous operation of a hand reset mechanism
    • H01H73/02Details
    • H01H73/04Contacts
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H01ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01HELECTRIC SWITCHES; RELAYS; SELECTORS; EMERGENCY PROTECTIVE DEVICES
    • H01H1/00Contacts
    • H01H1/12Contacts characterised by the manner in which co-operating contacts engage
    • H01H1/14Contacts characterised by the manner in which co-operating contacts engage by abutting
    • H01H1/22Contacts characterised by the manner in which co-operating contacts engage by abutting with rigid pivoted member carrying the moving contact

Definitions

  • Circuit breakers often have a moving contact mounted on a fixed pivotable blade that is controlled by an operating mechanism.
  • a pair of links are directly connected to the movable blade to open and close the circuit breaker contacts as shown in Figure 1.
  • constriction forces between the contacts may cause the contacts to blow apart. This problem is eliminated by increasing the contact force in any one of a number of ways.
  • One method used in the prior art as shown in Figure 2 is to place a flat spring and/or coil spring between the movable blade and the blade carrier. The lower contact exerts an upward f orce A on the moving contacts at the right end of the movable blade.
  • the flat spring positioned between the blade carrier and movable blade exerts a consistent downward force B near the middle of the movable blade. Since the operating mechanism is connected to the blade carrier and controls the position of the movable blade via the flat spring, the flat spring acts as the pivot point for the movable blade. After applying forces A and B to the movable blade, the resultant force C is exerted by the line terminal upwards on the pivot end of the movable blade. At all times, even as the movable blade opens, an upwards force will be exerted against the pivot point of the movable blade because of the springs trying to force apart the movable blade and the blade carrier. This upwards force wears down both the load terminal and the pivot end of the blade as shown by the phantom lines in Figure 3.
  • the wearing of the terminal and the blade increases the resistance and the power loss of the circuit breaker.
  • the power loss of a circuit breaker is particularly important when the circuit breaker is mounted in a panelboard or other enclosure having specific heat rise limitations. It is an object of this invention to provide a circuit breaker with a movable blade pivot assembly having a low friction coefficient.
  • Figure 1 is a side view of a portion of the contact assembly and mechanism of a circuit breaker.
  • Figure 2 is a side view of a portion of the contact assembly and operating mechanism of a prior art circuit breaker.
  • Figure 3 is a side view of a moving blade pivot assembly of Figure 2.
  • Figure 4 is a side view of a circuit breaker having a floating pivot blade in the closed position.
  • Figure 5 is a side view of a circuit breaker having a floating pivot blade in the manually opened position.
  • Figure 6 is a side view of a circuit breaker having a floating pivot blade in the tripped position. Description of the Preferred Embodiment
  • the circuit breaker is indicated generally by the reference character 10.
  • the current path through the circuit breaker is via the load terminal 12, load side flexible connector 14.
  • upper blade 16 moving main contact 18 and moving arcing contact, lower main and arcing contacts 22 and 24, respectively, lower blade 26, line side flex connector 28 and line terminal 30.
  • the contacts are open and closed by moving the upper blade 16 via the operating mechanism, indicated generally as 34.
  • the operation of the operating mechanism is described in more complete detail in patent application
  • the contact springs 44 are the only components that creates contact force.
  • the lower main and arcing contacts, 22 and 24, respectively exert an upwards force on the right side of the upper blade 16 via the moving main and arcing contacts, as shown in Figure 4.
  • the lower link 38 exerts a downwards force near the center of the upper blade 16 via the upper blade carrier 40.
  • the upper blade carrier 40 is solidly connected to the upper blade 16.
  • the upper blade 16 is approximately rectangular in shape and has moving main contacts 18 and a moving arcing contact mounted at one end and a rounded pivot end 46 at the other end.
  • the pivot end 46 rests on a ledge 48 of the load terminal 12.
  • the pivot end 46 of the upper blade 16 is free floating and does not rotate about a fixed point.
  • the operating mechanism 34 causes the upper link 36 and lower link 38 to collapse.
  • the link pivot 50 moves to the left, as shown in Figures 5 and 6. causing the lower link 38 to move the upper blade carrier 40 and upper blade 16 in the upwards direction.
  • the other components of the operating mechanism have different positions in the tripped position than in the manually opened position. It is sufficient for the purposes herein to recognize that in both positions the upper link 36 and lower link 38 collapse, causing the contacts to separate. In the tripped or open position, the resultant force on the pivot end 46 is greatly reduced, essentially to zero, as soon as the contacts part.
  • the load terminal ledge 48 and the pivot end 46 provide a current path parallel to that of the line side flexible connector 14. In the design as shown, roughly half of the current flows through each current path, thus reducing the power loss and heat rise. In the circuit breaker shown and described herein, the overall heat loss of the circuit breaker was reduced by approximately ten percent by the use of the two parallel paths.
  • the pivot end 46 and load terminal ledge 48 provide a current path between the load terminal 12 and upper blade 16 via a pressure fit.
  • the pressure connection between these two current carrying members must be as smooth as possible. Any wear on the pivot end 46 or on the load terminal ledge 48 will cause that joint to deteriorate, resulting in a higher resistance in that current path.
  • the part dimensions of the load terminal and upper blade are critical when a fixed pivot is used but not with the use of the floating pivot design.
  • the upper blade 16 is made of copper or another material having a low electrical resistance. Since these materials also often are relatively soft, the pivot end 46 of the upper blade 16 wears very poorly. Thus it is important to reduce the upwards force on the pivot as quickly and as much as possible. By eliminating the prior art spring positioned between the upper blade carrier 40 and the upper blade 16, the downwards force previously applied by the blade spring to the upper blade continuously is eliminated as soon as the contacts part. The wear on the pivot end 46 is reduced considerably. The watts lost through the circuit breaker will stay approximately constant during the life of the circuit breaker.
  • the floating pivot design is a simple and inexpensive solution to a recurring problem.

Landscapes

  • Breakers (AREA)

Abstract

Le coupe-circuit (10) comporte une lame supérieure mobile (16) pourvue d'une extrémité à pivot flottant libre (46). Le mécanisme d'actionnement (34) est solidement connecté à la lame supérieure (16). La force de contact est produite par un ressort de contact (44) qui exerce une force montante sur la lame supérieure (26). Lors de la séparation des contacts (18, 22), la force qui s'exerce sur la lame supérieure (16) est virtuellement éliminée, ce qui réduit sensiblement la résistance au niveau de l'extrémité à pivot (46) de la lame supérieure (16). La borne de charge (12) et l'extrémité à pivot (46) de la lame supérieure (16) permettent la formation d'un trajet de courant parallèle à celui du connecteur flexible (15) du côté de la charge.The circuit breaker (10) has a movable upper blade (16) with a free floating pivot end (46). The actuating mechanism (34) is securely connected to the upper blade (16). The contact force is produced by a contact spring (44) which exerts a rising force on the upper blade (26). When the contacts (18, 22) are separated, the force exerted on the upper blade (16) is virtually eliminated, which significantly reduces the resistance at the pivot end (46) of the upper blade. (16). The charging terminal (12) and the pivot end (46) of the upper blade (16) allow the formation of a current path parallel to that of the flexible connector (15) on the load side.

Description

CIRCUIT BREAKER CONTACT ASSEMBLY This invention relates to circuit breakers and in particular to circuit breakers having a movable contact mounted on a pivotable blade. Cross Reference to Related Applications
The present invention is related to material disclosed in the following copending U.S. applications. all of which are assigned to the same assignee of the present application and are herein incorporated by reference:
Ser. No. 922,966 (DEC-56), "Circuit Breaker Arc Stack Assembly" filed October 24. 1986 by J. M. Winter;
Ser. No. 922,577 (DEC-57). "Trident Arc Horn for Circuit Breaker" filed October 24. 1986 by A. A. Maulandi. K. J. Green, G. A. Volesky;
Ser. No. 922,968 (DEC-58). "Circuit Breaker with Positive Contact Indication" filed October 24. 1986 by J. M. Winter. D. R. Schiefen;
Ser. No.922.967 (DEC-60), "Circuit Breaker Trip Solenoid Assembly" filed October 24, 1986 by J. M. Winter, R. F. Dvorak;
Ser. No. 922,575 (DEC-61). "Electronic Circuit Breaker with Withstand Capability" filed October 24, 1986 by J. M. Winter. Description of the Prior Art
Circuit breakers often have a moving contact mounted on a fixed pivotable blade that is controlled by an operating mechanism. In some designs a pair of links are directly connected to the movable blade to open and close the circuit breaker contacts as shown in Figure 1. As the current carried by the circuit breaker increases, constriction forces between the contacts may cause the contacts to blow apart. This problem is eliminated by increasing the contact force in any one of a number of ways. One method used in the prior art as shown in Figure 2, is to place a flat spring and/or coil spring between the movable blade and the blade carrier. The lower contact exerts an upward f orce A on the moving contacts at the right end of the movable blade. The flat spring positioned between the blade carrier and movable blade exerts a consistent downward force B near the middle of the movable blade. Since the operating mechanism is connected to the blade carrier and controls the position of the movable blade via the flat spring, the flat spring acts as the pivot point for the movable blade. After applying forces A and B to the movable blade, the resultant force C is exerted by the line terminal upwards on the pivot end of the movable blade. At all times, even as the movable blade opens, an upwards force will be exerted against the pivot point of the movable blade because of the springs trying to force apart the movable blade and the blade carrier. This upwards force wears down both the load terminal and the pivot end of the blade as shown by the phantom lines in Figure 3. The wearing of the terminal and the blade increases the resistance and the power loss of the circuit breaker. The power loss of a circuit breaker is particularly important when the circuit breaker is mounted in a panelboard or other enclosure having specific heat rise limitations. It is an object of this invention to provide a circuit breaker with a movable blade pivot assembly having a low friction coefficient.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a movable blade pivot assembly that has a parallel current path.
The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of this invention will be apparent from the following more particular description of a pref erred embodiment thereof , as i llustrated in the accompanying drawings and in the claims. Brief Description of the Drawings
Figure 1 is a side view of a portion of the contact assembly and mechanism of a circuit breaker.
Figure 2 is a side view of a portion of the contact assembly and operating mechanism of a prior art circuit breaker.
Figure 3 is a side view of a moving blade pivot assembly of Figure 2.
Figure 4 is a side view of a circuit breaker having a floating pivot blade in the closed position.
Figure 5 is a side view of a circuit breaker having a floating pivot blade in the manually opened position.
Figure 6 is a side view of a circuit breaker having a floating pivot blade in the tripped position. Description of the Preferred Embodiment
Referring now to the drawings and in particular to Figures 4 and 5, the circuit breaker is indicated generally by the reference character 10. The current path through the circuit breaker is via the load terminal 12, load side flexible connector 14. upper blade 16, moving main contact 18 and moving arcing contact, lower main and arcing contacts 22 and 24, respectively, lower blade 26, line side flex connector 28 and line terminal 30. The contacts are open and closed by moving the upper blade 16 via the operating mechanism, indicated generally as 34. The operation of the operating mechanism is described in more complete detail in patent application
Ser. No._________________(DEC-56 ) f or a "Circuit Breaker Arc Stack
As sembly" , as identif ied above. For the purposes of our discussion here, it is sufficient to note that in the circuit breaker closed position, as shown in Figure 4, the upper link 36 and lower link 38 form a nearly straight line to force the upper blade 16 and the upper blade carrier 40 down. The moving main contacts 18 and moving arcing contact then engage the lower main contacts 22 and lower arcing contact 24, depressing the contact springs 44 to provide the necessary contact force.
The contact springs 44 are the only components that creates contact force. In the circuit breaker closed position, the lower main and arcing contacts, 22 and 24, respectively, exert an upwards force on the right side of the upper blade 16 via the moving main and arcing contacts, as shown in Figure 4. The lower link 38 exerts a downwards force near the center of the upper blade 16 via the upper blade carrier 40. The upper blade carrier 40 is solidly connected to the upper blade 16.
The upper blade 16 is approximately rectangular in shape and has moving main contacts 18 and a moving arcing contact mounted at one end and a rounded pivot end 46 at the other end. The pivot end 46 rests on a ledge 48 of the load terminal 12. The pivot end 46 of the upper blade 16 is free floating and does not rotate about a fixed point.
When the circuit breaker is in the closed position, as shown in Figure 4. the downwards force exerted by the lower link 38 and the upwards force exerted by the lower main and arcing contacts create a resultant downwards force exerted by the pivot end 46 on the ledge 48. Since the lower link force is applied in approximately the middle of the upper blade 16, the upwards force at the contacts end of the upper blade 16 is approximately equal to the downwards force exerted by the pivot end 46.
When the circuit breaker is either manually opened or tripped, as shown in Figures 5 and 6, respectively, the operating mechanism 34 causes the upper link 36 and lower link 38 to collapse. The link pivot 50 moves to the left, as shown in Figures 5 and 6. causing the lower link 38 to move the upper blade carrier 40 and upper blade 16 in the upwards direction. The other components of the operating mechanism have different positions in the tripped position than in the manually opened position. It is sufficient for the purposes herein to recognize that in both positions the upper link 36 and lower link 38 collapse, causing the contacts to separate. In the tripped or open position, the resultant force on the pivot end 46 is greatly reduced, essentially to zero, as soon as the contacts part. In these positions, the upper link 36 and lower link 38 hold the upper blade 16 open so that the only downwards force on the moving blade pivot end 46 is a portion of its own weight and any downward bias from the flex connectors 14. As soon as the moving contacts separates from the lower main contacts 22 and lower arcing contact 24, the contact spring 44 no longer exerts a force on the upper blade 16. There is no downwards force on the upper blade as that which resulted from the flat spring between the upper blade and the upper blade carrier in the prior art. For the greater portion of the opening cycle, there is little force on pivot end 46 of the upper blade 16, greatly reducing the wear on the pivot end.
The load terminal ledge 48 and the pivot end 46 provide a current path parallel to that of the line side flexible connector 14. In the design as shown, roughly half of the current flows through each current path, thus reducing the power loss and heat rise. In the circuit breaker shown and described herein, the overall heat loss of the circuit breaker was reduced by approximately ten percent by the use of the two parallel paths.
The pivot end 46 and load terminal ledge 48 provide a current path between the load terminal 12 and upper blade 16 via a pressure fit. The pressure connection between these two current carrying members must be as smooth as possible. Any wear on the pivot end 46 or on the load terminal ledge 48 will cause that joint to deteriorate, resulting in a higher resistance in that current path. The part dimensions of the load terminal and upper blade are critical when a fixed pivot is used but not with the use of the floating pivot design.
The upper blade 16 is made of copper or another material having a low electrical resistance. Since these materials also often are relatively soft, the pivot end 46 of the upper blade 16 wears very poorly. Thus it is important to reduce the upwards force on the pivot as quickly and as much as possible. By eliminating the prior art spring positioned between the upper blade carrier 40 and the upper blade 16, the downwards force previously applied by the blade spring to the upper blade continuously is eliminated as soon as the contacts part. The wear on the pivot end 46 is reduced considerably. The watts lost through the circuit breaker will stay approximately constant during the life of the circuit breaker. The floating pivot design is a simple and inexpensive solution to a recurring problem.
While the invention has particularly been shown and described with reference to a preferred embodiment it will be understood by those skilled in the art that variations in form, construction and arrangement may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

I Claim:
1. A circuit breaker comprising: a first contact mounted on a first movable blade, the first movable blade having a floating pivot adjacent one end; a second contact mounted on a second movable blade; an operating mechanism connected to the first movable blade, said operating mechanism moving said first movable blade between an open position and a closed position, wherein in said open position said first contact and said second contact are separated, wherein in said closed position said first contact and said second contact are engaged; and a resilient member acting on the second movable blade to move said second contact towards said first contact.
2. A circuit breaker as claimed in claim 1 wherein said operating mechanism is pivotally connected to said first movable blade to move said first movable blade without any associated time delay.
3. A circuit breaker as claimed in claim 2, said circuit breaker also including a first terminal and a first flexible connector, said first movable blade floating pivot being positioned on said first terminal, said first flexible connector being connected to said first terminal and to said first movable blade.
4. A circuit breaker as claimed in claim 1 wherein said operating mechanism is non-resiliently connected to said first movable blade.
5. A circuit breaker as claimed in claim 2 wherein said operating mechanism is non-resiliently connected to said first movable blade.
6. A circuit breaker as claimed in claim 3 wherein said first terminal has a flat portion and said first movable blade floating pivot is positioned on said flat portion in the first movable blade closed position.
7. A circuit breaker as claimed in claim 6 wherein said first movable blade floating pivot is positioned on said flat portion in the first movable blade open position.
8. A circuit breaker comprising: a first contact and a second contact; a first movable blade, said first contact being mounted on said first movable blade, said first movable blade having a curved free floating portion adjacent one end; a second movable blade, said second contact being mounted on said second movable blade, said second movable blade being mounted about a fixed pivot, said second movable blade being biased towards said first movable blade by a resilient member; and an operating mechanism connected to said first movable blade, said operating mechanism moving said first movable blade between an open position where said first contact is separated from said second contact and a closed position wherein said first contact is engaged with said second contact.
9. A circuit breaker as claimed in claim 8, said circuit breaker also including a first terminal and a first flexible connector, said first movable blade floating pivot being positioned on said first terminal, said first flexible connector being connected to said first terminal and to said first movable blade.
10. A circuit breaker as claimed in claim 8 wherein said operating mechanism is non-resiliently connected to said first movable blade.
11. A circuit breaker as claimed in claim 9 wherein said operating mechanism is non-resiliently connected to said first movable blade.
12. A circuit breaker as claimed in claim 9 wherein said first terminal has a flat portion and said first movable blade floating pivot is positioned on said flat portion in the first movable blade closed position.
13. A circuit breaker as claimed in claim 12 wherein said first movable blade floating pivot is positioned on said flat portion in the first movable blade open position.
EP19870907568 1986-10-24 1987-10-23 Circuit breaker contact assembly Expired - Lifetime EP0296183B1 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US92257686A 1986-10-24 1986-10-24
US922576 1986-10-24

Publications (3)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP0296183A1 true EP0296183A1 (en) 1988-12-28
EP0296183A4 EP0296183A4 (en) 1990-02-26
EP0296183B1 EP0296183B1 (en) 1993-02-03

Family

ID=25447246

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP19870907568 Expired - Lifetime EP0296183B1 (en) 1986-10-24 1987-10-23 Circuit breaker contact assembly

Country Status (4)

Country Link
EP (1) EP0296183B1 (en)
CA (1) CA1310046C (en)
DE (1) DE3784065T2 (en)
WO (1) WO1988003324A1 (en)

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JP2709251B2 (en) * 1992-02-27 1998-02-04 寺崎電気産業株式会社 Draw-out type circuit breaker

Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2600223A (en) * 1944-11-10 1952-06-10 Westinghouse Electric Corp Circuit interrupter
GB2033663A (en) * 1978-10-16 1980-05-21 Westinghouse Electric Corp Current limiting circuit interrupter
EP0145990A2 (en) * 1983-12-19 1985-06-26 Westinghouse Electric Corporation Circuit breaker with improved cross-bar and contact assembly
GB2166906A (en) * 1984-11-13 1986-05-14 Westinghouse Electric Corp Circuit breaker

Family Cites Families (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3593227A (en) * 1968-02-28 1971-07-13 Gennady Fedosievich Mitskevich Automatic electrodynamic blowoff breaker with stationary contact form of two series wound u-shaped members
JPH0658785B2 (en) * 1985-06-12 1994-08-03 株式会社東芝 Circuit breaker
US4680562A (en) * 1985-07-29 1987-07-14 Westinghouse Electric Corp. Integral circuit interrupter with separable modules
US4626811A (en) * 1985-10-15 1986-12-02 Westinghouse Electric Corp. Circuit interrupter with integral resilient stop means for contact arm

Patent Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2600223A (en) * 1944-11-10 1952-06-10 Westinghouse Electric Corp Circuit interrupter
GB2033663A (en) * 1978-10-16 1980-05-21 Westinghouse Electric Corp Current limiting circuit interrupter
EP0145990A2 (en) * 1983-12-19 1985-06-26 Westinghouse Electric Corporation Circuit breaker with improved cross-bar and contact assembly
GB2166906A (en) * 1984-11-13 1986-05-14 Westinghouse Electric Corp Circuit breaker

Non-Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Title
See also references of WO8803324A1 *

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
CA1310046C (en) 1992-11-10
EP0296183A4 (en) 1990-02-26
WO1988003324A1 (en) 1988-05-05
EP0296183B1 (en) 1993-02-03
DE3784065D1 (en) 1993-03-18
DE3784065T2 (en) 1993-07-15

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