EP0880158B1 - Electromagnetic relay equipped with bi-stable safety test push-button - Google Patents

Electromagnetic relay equipped with bi-stable safety test push-button Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0880158B1
EP0880158B1 EP97203270A EP97203270A EP0880158B1 EP 0880158 B1 EP0880158 B1 EP 0880158B1 EP 97203270 A EP97203270 A EP 97203270A EP 97203270 A EP97203270 A EP 97203270A EP 0880158 B1 EP0880158 B1 EP 0880158B1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
button
push
cover
electromagnetic relay
contacts
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.)
Expired - Lifetime
Application number
EP97203270A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP0880158A3 (en
EP0880158A2 (en
Inventor
Piero Giordanino
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.)
Finder SpA
Original Assignee
Finder SpA
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 Finder SpA filed Critical Finder SpA
Publication of EP0880158A2 publication Critical patent/EP0880158A2/en
Publication of EP0880158A3 publication Critical patent/EP0880158A3/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP0880158B1 publication Critical patent/EP0880158B1/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01H—ELECTRIC SWITCHES; RELAYS; SELECTORS; EMERGENCY PROTECTIVE DEVICES
    • H01H50/00—Details of electromagnetic relays
    • H01H50/16—Magnetic circuit arrangements
    • H01H50/18—Movable parts of magnetic circuits, e.g. armature
    • H01H50/32—Latching movable parts mechanically
    • H01H50/326—Latching movable parts mechanically with manual intervention, e.g. for testing, resetting or mode selection

Definitions

  • the present invention refers to an electromagnetic relay equipped with bi-stable safety test push-button.
  • relays Various types of relay are known in the art, these relays being equipped both with Light Emitting Diodes (LED) indicating the active and inactive status of the relay itself, and with test push-buttons: by pressing these push-buttons, a user is able to close circuit contacts to detect its operation.
  • LED Light Emitting Diodes
  • test push-buttons are of two types: the first type, so-called “mono-stable”, allows, by pressing it, to close the circuit for the test, but, once released, returns into its rest position, opening the circuit again.
  • the second type of known push-button is the so-called "bi-stable" one (a type of bi-stable push-button is manufactured by Relpol) and is configured in such a way as to assume a circuit closing position both temporarily, after having pressed it, and permanently, that is by displacing it into a fixed position.
  • This possibility poses some problems, above all linked to plant and people safety: first of all, if the push-button is forgotten into its fixed actuation position, the circuit remains closed even when it should not be (that is, at the end of testing) and could damage plants or machines controlled thereby.
  • their fixed actuation can be simply and quickly carried out, even casually and by untrained people or by people that have no intention to carry out tests: all these generate risks that can be easily thought of.
  • EP 408544 discloses a relay having a housing supporting a magnet system, an armature and a test pin.
  • an operating device separated from the relay, is provided to operate the test pin which operating device can be inserted into the relay and, in its operating position, in which it holds the test pin in its operating position, can be locked with the relay and which can be separated from the relay again only by exercising force.
  • DE 8908125 discloses a device for switching on and off electric apparatuses including a relay, an armature operable by means of a coil and a control cam.
  • An attachment carrying an electric switch is arranged in a circuit associated to the coil and is operable by means of the control cam.
  • EP 534572 discloses a bistable electrical relay comprising a first contact, a movably mounted, essentially rigid arm coupled thereto and provided with a first connecting point, and a second contact coupled to an immovably mounted further arm which is provided with a second connecting point.
  • electromagnetic drive means are provided which act on the movable arm via spring means for producing contact force.
  • the drive means are provided with permanent magnets, while further spring means act on the movable arm to keep the contacts open.
  • US 3,733,568 describes a push button relay, in which the closing of the relay contacts is independent of the magnetic circuit of the relay, includes a coil, a magnetizable armature, one end of which normally exerts a force upon a movable contact carrying member to move its contacts out of contact with the stationary contacts of the relay, and a manually operable push button which, when depressed, contacts the armature to overcome the contact opening force exerted by the armature upon the movable contacts, and urges the contact carrying member and its contacts toward the stationary contacts.
  • US 4,378,543 describes a spring biased reciprocable latch-reset member provided for a relay of the type including an armature mounted on a support block for pivotal movement about an axis, a coil for displacing the armature from a first position to a second position when the coil is energized, a spring biasing the armature from the second position to the first position when the coil is de-energized, and an electrical contact controlled by the position of the armature.
  • Object of the present invention is solving the above prior art problems, providing an electromagnetic relay equipped with a bi-stable test push-button that allows realizing the two working positions in a simple, but simultaneously efficient way, and above all a safe way, since inadvertent and undesired actuations are practically prevented.
  • the electromagnetic relay of the present invention is composed of a cover 1, usually made of transparent plastic material, and of a body 3 including a support base 5 and a set of known electric components, that will not be described hereinbelow, apart from the major ones that have some relevance to the present invention.
  • the base 5 of the relay body 3 is equipped with a set of lamellar terminals 7, 7', 7" for the adequate connections, some of these terminals 7, 7' being equipped with enlarged internal ends 9, 9' in turn equipped with contacts 11, 11'.
  • a contact member 13 is placed (commonly realized as small copper blades) that in turn is equipped with two contacts 14, 14' on its two sides, and that can assume two different contact positions, in which the two different pairs of contacts 11, 11' will be contacted.
  • the two operating positions of the contact member 13 are controlled by energizing or de-energizing a coil 15, that attracts or releases the contact member 13 itself, that is supported by a support 15' and is taken back to its rest position by a resilient member 15".
  • the push-button 16 of the present invention is different from the known ones because, in order to actuate it, a set of specific operations are necessary, that make a casual actuation as well as an actuation carried out in any undesired way, impossible.
  • the push-button 16 is realized, in a first embodiment thereof, as best shown in Figures 7 to 9.
  • the push-button 16 is composed of a small elongated cylinder 18, at one end of which a projection 20 is obtained so that the push-button 16 gets the shape of a key.
  • the small cylinder 18 is equipped with a tooth 21 whose function is preventing the cylinder from coming out of the relay in its rest position.
  • the push-button is equipped with an elongated head 22 shaped as an arrow with a bit 24 on one side and a seat 26 for screwdrivers with normal or star bit.
  • the relay of the present invention must further be equipped with a suitable cover 1, that is best shown in Figures 4 to 6.
  • the cover 1 is shaped in order to have a housing 28 for the push-button 16 in its rest position, and an hole 30 with a keyway 32.
  • the hole allows inserting the small cylinder 18 of the push-button 16 inside a cylindric housing 34, also shaped in order to receive the cylinder 18 with the key projection 20 into the seat 32.
  • a plurality of holes 36 with varying diameters are provided, said holes being adapted to contain corresponding projections of the front plate 33 of the relay that will be placed on the upper side of the cover 1.
  • the cover 1 is finally equipped with a special safety feature, composed of a retainer tooth 38 made of plastic material, that can be easily broken down and detached from the cover 1 if one wishes to actuate the push-button 16 in its permanent test contact position. Otherwise, this retainer tooth 38 does not allow operating the push-button 16 by rotating it, only allowing it to be operated by pressing and releasing it as typical of mono-stable push-buttons.
  • the push-button 16 in Fig. 1 finds itself in a rest position, where a connection occurs between lower contacts 11 of the terminals 7 and upper contacts 14 of the contact member 13. From this position, by a finger pressure, the upper contacts 11' of the terminals 7 can be brought into connection with the lower contacts 14' of the contact member 13, as better shown in Fig. 2. Upon releasing the finger pressure, the push-button 16 will go back to the position in Fig. 1: it will therefore operate as mono-stable push-button.
  • the push-button 16 If one wishes to operate the push-button 16 as bi-stable, it will be firstly be necessary to break down and detach the retainer tooth 38 from the cover 1 and then, by acting through a suitable screwdriver, to push and simultaneously rotate (in a counterclockwise and upward direction with respect to the drawings) the push-button 16: in this way, this pushing actuates the connection between contacts 11' and 14' as shown in Fig. 2, and the rotation frees the projection 2 ⁇ from the keyway into the cylindric housing 34, so that, into the final contact position shown in Fig. 3, the projection 20 abuts against the cylindric housing 34 and keeps the push-button 16 into the connection position in Fig. 3.

Landscapes

  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Electromagnetism (AREA)
  • Switch Cases, Indication, And Locking (AREA)
  • Catching Or Destruction (AREA)
  • Emergency Protection Circuit Devices (AREA)
  • Testing Electric Properties And Detecting Electric Faults (AREA)
  • Alarm Systems (AREA)
  • Relay Circuits (AREA)
  • Fire Alarms (AREA)
EP97203270A 1997-05-20 1997-10-21 Electromagnetic relay equipped with bi-stable safety test push-button Expired - Lifetime EP0880158B1 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
IT97TO000426A IT1292317B1 (it) 1997-05-20 1997-05-20 Rele' elettromagnetico dotato di pulsante di test bistabile di sicurezza.
ITTO970426 1997-05-20

Publications (3)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP0880158A2 EP0880158A2 (en) 1998-11-25
EP0880158A3 EP0880158A3 (en) 1999-05-26
EP0880158B1 true EP0880158B1 (en) 2004-08-04

Family

ID=11415717

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP97203270A Expired - Lifetime EP0880158B1 (en) 1997-05-20 1997-10-21 Electromagnetic relay equipped with bi-stable safety test push-button

Country Status (4)

Country Link
EP (1) EP0880158B1 (it)
AT (1) ATE272893T1 (it)
DE (1) DE69730119T2 (it)
IT (1) IT1292317B1 (it)

Families Citing this family (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JP4218145B2 (ja) * 1999-08-31 2009-02-04 パナソニック電工株式会社 電磁リレー
CN110265263B (zh) * 2019-07-19 2021-04-23 旺荣电子(深圳)有限公司 一种电磁继电器

Family Cites Families (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3733568A (en) * 1971-09-30 1973-05-15 Essex Push button relay
US4378543A (en) * 1981-11-18 1983-03-29 Gulf & Western Manufacturing Company Latch relay with manual reset and test
DE8908125U1 (de) * 1989-07-04 1989-08-24 TRIPUS-Kunststoffteile GmbH, 89312 Günzburg Vorrichtung zum Ein- und Ausschalten elektrischer Geräte
DE59009783D1 (de) * 1989-07-12 1995-11-23 Schrack Components Ag Relais.
NL9101630A (nl) * 1991-09-26 1993-04-16 Holec Syst & Componenten Bistabiel elektrisch relais.

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
ITTO970426A1 (it) 1998-11-20
ITTO970426A0 (it) 1997-05-20
ATE272893T1 (de) 2004-08-15
DE69730119D1 (de) 2004-09-09
EP0880158A3 (en) 1999-05-26
EP0880158A2 (en) 1998-11-25
IT1292317B1 (it) 1999-01-29
DE69730119T2 (de) 2005-08-18

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