Classifications

• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01H—ELECTRIC SWITCHES; RELAYS; SELECTORS; EMERGENCY PROTECTIVE DEVICES
  • H01H1/00—Contacts
  • H01H1/50—Means for increasing contact pressure, preventing vibration of contacts, holding contacts together after engagement, or biasing contacts to the open position
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01H—ELECTRIC SWITCHES; RELAYS; SELECTORS; EMERGENCY PROTECTIVE DEVICES
  • H01H3/00—Mechanisms for operating contacts
  • H01H3/32—Driving mechanisms, i.e. for transmitting driving force to the contacts
  • H01H3/50—Driving mechanisms, i.e. for transmitting driving force to the contacts with indexing or locating means, e.g. indexing by ball and spring
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01H—ELECTRIC SWITCHES; RELAYS; SELECTORS; EMERGENCY PROTECTIVE DEVICES
  • H01H3/00—Mechanisms for operating contacts
  • H01H3/60—Mechanical arrangements for preventing or damping vibration or shock
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01H—ELECTRIC SWITCHES; RELAYS; SELECTORS; EMERGENCY PROTECTIVE DEVICES
  • H01H33/00—High-tension or heavy-current switches with arc-extinguishing or arc-preventing means
  • H01H33/60—Switches wherein the means for extinguishing or preventing the arc do not include separate means for obtaining or increasing flow of arc-extinguishing fluid
  • H01H33/66—Vacuum switches
  • H01H33/666—Operating arrangements

Definitions

• the subject of the invention is an electrical apparatus comprising a movable part, serving in particular to move the apparatus from an open state to a closed state of a circuit, or from a closed state to a closed state. open state of the same circuit and whose dynamics of movement is improved.
• a preferred device for which the invention can find use is a vacuum bulb.
• such a vacuum interrupter comprises, in an envelope (1), a fixed part (2) and a movable part (3) which have a mutual electrical connection state where they are joined and a state disconnection where they are disjointed.
• the fixed part (2) is connected to a conductor (4) passing through the casing (1), and the movable part (3), which itself passes through the casing (1), is connected to another conductor (5).
• a device such as for example a flexible braid (6).
• the conductors (4 and 5) join to any circuit and not shown.
• a displacement device (7) which can assume very different shapes, moves the mobile part (3).
• a fixed stop (8) defines the open state by stopping the movement of the movable part (3).
• Circular springs that can be tightened to enter a groove (12) and establish a mechanical connection have also been proposed in electrical equipment, but on the one hand the positioning accuracy is not very good and on the other hand the springs may be broken by repeated and alternating friction on the moving part (3) when applied to small systems.
• Ball Ball products from Bal Seal and Omni Spring Saint Gobain, where the springs are formed of a coil spring closed loop.
• a reliable locking means is all the more necessary in a light bulb. empty, that the pressure difference between the outside and inside of the casing (1) exerts a force which tends to move and maintain the movable part (3) towards its closed position and can thus force the state of closing in case of lock failure.
• Another difficulty comes from the energy of the shocks at the stop of the movements, when a stop is reached: that can present dangers for the integrity of the apparatus, the parts being often fine and light.
• the main object of the invention is therefore to improve the characteristics of the dynamics of the movement of the moving part during its changes of state, in particular by means of an improved locking mechanism, when the moving element reaches the lock status or leave it.
• a passive locking system has been sought which is perfectly calibrated so as to withstand, for example, the aerostatic force due to the pressure difference while yielding of itself when a higher force, corresponding to a start of operation, is required.
• moving device is applied to the moving part.
• the locking device is also provided with a good ability to absorb shocks when the locking position is reached.
• an application force is exerted on the moving part in the state where the vacuum interrupter is closed, the fixed and movable parts being in contact, so as to improve the electrical resistance of contact between these two parts.
• the electrical connection between the mobile part and the driver that is connected to it is particularly neat, as will be detailed below.
• the invention in a general form, relates to an electrical apparatus comprising a movable part provided with a groove and a locking part, called a latch, which, apart from its locking position, slides relative to the moving part, and in its locking position, enters said groove when the movable portion reaches the field corresponding to a first stable state of the vacuum bulb said open state.
• the movable portion is characterized by an adapted profile comprising a groove delimited on either side by conical zones, one of which may be associated with a shoulder.
• the locking piece comprises at least one elastic wire extending between two supports on either side of the movable part and bent by the movable part.
• FIG. 1 already described illustrates a vacuum interrupter
• FIGS. 2a, 2b, 2c and 2d illustrate the movable part of an illustrative embodiment of the apparatus according to the invention in four positions: outside the lock, when the lock is crossed, when the lock is extremely extended and the lock is in the stabilized position. corresponding respectively in the “closed”, “crossing”, “overtravel” and “open” states,
• FIGS. 3a and 3b are views of the axially movable portion of the states of FIGS. 2a and 2b respectively,
• FIGS. 4a and 4b illustrate another element of the apparatus
• FIG. 5 illustrates an embodiment variant
• FIGS. 6a, 6b and 6c show complementary arrangements for electrical connection.
• the mobile part according to the invention further comprises a groove, now (12), but which is limited on one side by a conical face (13) and on the other by a shoulder ( 14) plane preceded by a conical zone (31) where the diameter of the movable portion (11) gradually increases towards the shoulder (14).
• the device further comprises two elastic threads (15) (only one could suffice) rubbing on a cylindrical zone (16) of the movable part (11) and extending, with respect to the groove (12), on the side of the face conical (13).
• the elastic threads (15) are metal springs of the "piano string” type, and extend perpendicularly to the direction of movement of the movable part (11). They are bent and spaced from each other by the contact of the cylindrical zone (16). Their plan of extension is indicated by the line Pl. Their extremities sink in the holes (18) of the supports (17) with a depression variable, and can slide there with a not insignificant friction.
• the holes (18) and the profile of the movable part (11) being dimensioned so as to deform them elastically, so that they exert a radial force on the cylindrical area (16) of the moving part (11).
• the thrust output of the movable part (11) is effected by a movement in the opposite direction.
• the elastic threads (15) protrude from the groove (12) by sliding on the conical face (13), without any additional means other than the force applied to the moving part (11) to be used to favor the spacing of the elastic threads (15).
• the reversible nature of this passive mechanism can however be improved by using the device represented in FIGS. 3a, 3b and 4a: an annular ring (19) surrounding the movable part (11) serves to support the elastic threads (15) in the direction identical to that of the shoulder (14) relative to the groove (12), and thus prevents the bending of the elastic threads (15) in this direction, which allows a regular process of output of the groove (12), without sudden relaxation of the elastic threads (15).
• annular ring (19) Another advantage of the annular ring (19), and of the holding of the elastic threads (15) that it produces, is that the abutment position is precisely defined even when a force remains applied at rest to the moving part (11). , like the aerostatic force of a vacuum bulb.
• 4b shows the bending of the elastic threads (15) at the position of FIG. 2c.
• An additional stop system (30) is added to limit the bending of the elastic threads (15) due to the movement of the moving body.
• FIG. 5 shows some possible improvements that can be adopted separately or not.
• the elastic threads (15) can firstly not penetrate themselves into the groove, if they are completed by knives (20) to which they transmit the force due to their flexion, said knives interposed between the throat (12) and the central zone of the elastic threads (15), rubbing on the movable part (11).
• the knives (20) can be profiled into a point (21) which penetrates into the groove (12) and can occupy it over its entire width, resting on one side on the shoulder (14) and on the other side on the conical face (13). This double support ensures the position of the moving part (11) with a very high precision in the state of lock.
• the tip (21) has the properties of dimension, rounding, etc. which will be found best to allow convenient locks and unlockings.
• Another improvement is represented by a conical zone (23) of the span (16) blooming towards the groove (12) and whose function is to create an axial component of force on the moving part (11) when the tightening of the elastic threads (15) is exerted on this conical zone (23), in order to to constrain the moving part (11) towards the other main state of the apparatus (the closed state in the case of a vacuum bulb) to better stabilize it and improve the electrical resistance of contact between the two parts ( 2) and (3), reinforcing the aerostatic force when it exists and correcting the consequences of them or friction in the apparatus.
• the position of the conical portion (23) is chosen so that the elastic threads (15) or knives (20) are on it when the "closed" state of the apparatus is reached.
• FIGS. 6a, 6b and 6c show that the electrical connection between the mobile part (11) and its conductor (5) can be provided by a conductive metallic braid (24) similar to the braid (6), crimped, welded or soldered to the movable portion (11) on the outside of the elastic threads (15); by a circular spring (25) formed by the winding on itself of a helical spring of conductive material, and which is housed in a groove (26) of a support (27), a conductive connection existing between the spring (25) and the conductor (5); or by a plurality of such springs (25) arranged in parallel in grooves adjacent to the support (27).
• the first solution is better suited to electrical equipment at low voltages, others to medium and high voltage electrical equipment.
• the movable portion (11) comprises at least one axisymmetric zone, or even is completely, so that its orientation with respect to the elastic son (15) is indifferent.
• the radial force exerted on the movable part (11) by the elastic threads (15) is determined at will by judicious choices of diameters, lengths, natures of these threads, as well as diameters of the movable part profile (11), positions of the elastic threads (15) at the supports (17), and therefore their spacing in the case of several threads, on which depends the bending exerted by the movable part (11) on the elastic threads (15) and the importance of the friction .
• the stops (29 and 30) define two planes, parallel to each other, perpendicular to the direction of movement of the movable part (11) and separated from each other by a distance greater than the diameter of the elastic threads (15) , this distance being chosen so as to allow a displacement of the elastic threads (15) in the moving direction of the movable part (11), an amplitude of this displacement being limited so that the elastic threads (15) remain in their elastic domain .
• the entire zone of the movable part (11) in which the elastic threads (15) are capable of rubbing does not comprise any sharp angle that can weaken the elastic threads (15) or the movable part (11).

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

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• 2011
  • 2011-02-02 FR FR1150817A patent/FR2971079B1/fr not_active Expired - Fee Related
• 2012
  • 2012-02-02 WO PCT/EP2012/051752 patent/WO2012104371A1/fr not_active Ceased
  • 2012-02-02 CN CN201280006507.7A patent/CN103329231B/zh active Active
  • 2012-02-02 EP EP12701759.8A patent/EP2671239B1/fr active Active
  • 2012-02-02 JP JP2013552202A patent/JP5984221B2/ja active Active
  • 2012-02-02 US US13/978,909 patent/US9202641B2/en active Active

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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