FR2853762A1 - Shaft operating device for e.g. vehicle battery cut-off, has core with two hubs, where one hub has groove for positioning shaft in one stable position and recess placed between hubs for positioning shaft in another stable position - Google Patents

Abstract

The device has a spool displacing a mobile core (30) threaded on a shaft (20). The core has two hubs (31, 32), where the hub (31) with larger diameter is supported on a stop to drive the shaft and the hub (32) with smaller diameter include a groove (34) to position the shaft in one stable position. The core has a recess (33) placed between the hubs and supported against fixed parts, to position the shaft in another position.

Description

i

  The present invention relates to a device for bistable operation, in translation, of a shaft movable between a first and a second position

stable.

  The invention finds a particularly advantageous application in the production of a circuit breaker for a storage battery of an electrical installation on board a vehicle.

  Other advantageous applications of the invention are in particular the production of devices for operating solenoid valves or electromechanical, electro-hydraulic or even electropneumatic control devices.

  More particularly, the invention relates to a bistable operating device comprising means for moving in translation a movable core, threaded on the shaft, said core comprising two barrels of different diameters, namely a first large diameter barrel capable of bearing. on a stop 15 integral with the shaft for driving said shaft in translation and a second small diameter barrel comprising means for positioning the shaft in one of the two stable positions.

  Document WO 02/065497 already discloses a bistable maneuvering device as mentioned above in which there is provided, as means for positioning the shaft in its two stable positions, a track formed hollow in the small barrel. diameter of the core and at least one guide pin integral with a bearing, capable of cooperating with this track. This track comprises several identical modules, each track module having two stable positions and two intermediate positions for receiving the corresponding pin, arranged between the two stable positions, as well as ramps for passing from one position to the next position.

  Compared to the aforementioned state of the art, the present invention provides a new bistable operating device, in translation, of a movable shaft, which is simplified and which makes it possible to obtain a compact unit, with low inertia, a very short response time, a reduced number of parts, in particular moving parts, while increasing the reliability of the operating device, in particular by the precise positioning of the shaft in its two stable positions, and by reducing the consumption of energy required to move the tree.

  More particularly, the invention provides a bistable maneuvering device as defined in the introduction, characterized in that said core 5 comprises a step formed at the junction between the first and the second barrels, capable of bearing against a fixed part of the device maneuver to position the shaft in the other stable positions.

  Thus, in the bistable operating device according to the invention, the recess situated at the junction between the first and the second barrels of the core is advantageously used to form a stop capable of bearing on a fixed part of the operating device in order to position the shaft in one of its stable positions, the other stable position of the shaft being given by positioning means integral with the small diameter barrel of the core.

  Other non-limiting and advantageous characteristics of the bistable operating device according to the invention are as follows: - it comprises means for guiding said core around the shaft in rotation; the means for guiding in rotation comprise a track formed hollow in the core and at least one pin integral with said fixed part and intended to cooperate with said track; - Said track comprises three identical juxtaposed modules each covering an angular sector of 1200 and there are provided three pins arranged at 1200 on said fixed part; the track comprises, by module, a stable position and two intermediate positions for receiving the corresponding pin, arranged on either side of the stable position, as well as ramps for passing from one position to the next position; - The track and each pin form said means for positioning the shaft in the second stable position. Said fixed part comprises a bearing in which the second barrel of the core is engaged; - The bistable operating device comprises a return spring interposed between said core and another fixed part of said operating device; the means for translating said core include a coil intended to be supplied with electric current to generate a magnetic field generating the tensile force of said core; - The core is arranged in the body of the coil where it is movable in translation; - The bistable operating device comprises a carcass containing said coil and of which each fixed part of said operating device is integral; the recess of the core is intended to position the shaft in the first stable position which is a projecting position, and said means for positioning the second barrel of the core are capable of positioning the shaft in the second stable position which is a recessed position; - the core is in one piece; and the bistable operating device is part of a circuit breaker for a storage battery of an electrical installation on board a vehicle.

  The description which follows with reference to the appended drawings, given by way of nonlimiting examples, will make it clear what the invention consists of and how it can be implemented.

  In the accompanying drawings: - Figure 1 is a schematic exploded perspective view of a bistable operating device according to the invention; FIGS. 2A to 2C are views in longitudinal section of the bistable maneuvering device according to the invention in three different positions of the shaft, namely its first and second stable positions as well as an intermediate position; - Figure 3A shows a schematic perspective view of a circuit breaker incorporating the bistable operating device according to the invention, with a partial cutaway at its carcass and its supply coil; - Figures 3B and 3C show detailed views of the core of the bistable operating device 5 shown in Figure 3A positioned in two positions of the shaft, namely an intermediate position and the second position

stable; and

  - Figure 4 shows a detailed view of a module of the guide track carried by the second small diameter barrel of the core of the bistable operating device 10 according to the invention.

  FIG. 3A shows a circuit breaker 1 for a storage battery of an electrical installation to be carried on a vehicle.

  This circuit breaker 1 comprises a housing 1A in which are arranged two fixed contacts 3 and a movable contact 2 intended to come into contact with the 15 fixed contacts 3. Each fixed contact 3 is connected by means of a metal rod 9 to a electric current supply terminal 4. One of the fixed contacts 3 is connected to the negative pole terminal while the other fixed contact 3 is connected to the positive pole terminal identified by a colored ring 4 '.

  The movable contact 2 able to be moved in translation between two positions, namely a first position in which the movable contact 2 is in abutment against the fixed contacts 3 and a second position in which it is placed at a distance from the fixed contacts 3.

  This movable contact 2 is secured by means of a nut 7 of a movable shaft 20 between a first and a second stable position 25 corresponding to the first and second positions of the movable contact 2 explained above.

  The housing 1A of the circuit breaker 1 also contains, and this is the object of the present invention, a bistable operating device 100 of the shaft 20.

  This bistable operating device 100 is able to move the shaft 20 in translation between its first and second stable positions.

  As shown more particularly in Figures 1, 2A, 2B and 2C, this bistable operating device 100 comprises a carcass 10 of cylindrical shape of revolution and internally defining a housing 11 closed at the front by a front flange 90 and at rear by a rear flange 40.

  The shaft 20 is positioned inside the carcass 10, centered along its axis and protrudes through the front flange 90.

  The shaft 20 is preferably made of non-magnetic material.

  As shown more particularly in Figure 1, the front flange 90 is a disc traversed in its center by a bore which opens, on the side of its inner face facing the carcass 10, on a cylindrical bearing 91.

  The front flange 90 comprises on either side of the bearing 91 holes 92 10 in which engage fixing members 82, here screws, of a coil 80.

  The shaft 20 carries near its end located on the side of the rear flange 40 a movable core 30.

  This core 30, here in one piece and made of magnetic material, comprises two barrels 31, 31 of different diameters, namely a first barrel 31 of large diameter and a second barrel 32 of small diameter. The first and second barrels 31, 32 of the core 30 have a cylindrical shape of revolution and are pierced with an axial bore in which the shaft 20 is engaged. At the junction between the first and the second barrels 31, 32, it an annular recess 33 is formed. The rear flange 40 also has the shape of a disc pierced in its center with a bore which opens, on the side of its inner face turned towards the carcass 10, on a bearing 41 whose internal diameter corresponds to the play close to the diameter outside of the second barrel 32 of small diameter of the core 30. The second barrel 32 of small diameter of the core 30 is engaged in the bearing 41 25 carried by the rear flange 40. At the free end of the bearing 41, a seal is provided ring finger 50.

  The front and rear flanges 90, 40 are fixed to the carcass 10, by crimping for example and are therefore fixed parts of the operating device

bistable 100.

  On the side of the front flange 90, the shaft 20 carries a return spring 70 threaded on the shaft 20 and engaged at least partially in the bearing 91 of the front flange 90. The return spring 70 is held on the shaft 20 between two stops 71, 72 carried by cylinders threaded on the shaft, one of the cylinders carrying the front stop 71 being engaged in the bore of the front flange 90 and coming into abutment against the bottom of said bearing 91. On the side of the rear stop 72, there is provided a clip 60 forming a stop engaged in an annular groove of the shaft to be secured to the latter.

  As shown in Figures 2A to 2C and Figure 3A, the first barrel 31 of large diameter of the core 30 is supported on the clip 60 forming a stop.

  The return spring 70 is a spring which works in compression and, as will be described later, it is capable of bringing the shaft 20 from its second stable position to its first stable position.

  The work of the return spring 70 is helped by another return spring mounted on the end of the shaft 20 which protrudes from the bistable operating device 100. This other more important return spring 5 is compressed between the nut 7 which maintains the movable contact 2 and a washer 8 fixed to the shaft 20 by means of a clip 6 engaged in another annular groove of the shaft 20.

  In addition, there are provided in the bistable operating device 100 means for translational movement of the core 30 from the rear flange 40 to the front flange 90.

  Here, according to the example shown, the means for translational movement of the core 30 comprises a coil 80 positioned in the housing 11 inside the carcass 10 so that its body 80A surrounds the core 30, this coil 80 being intended to be powered by pulses of electric current to generate a magnetic field generating the tensile force of the core 30 from the rear flange 40 to the front flange 90.

  As shown in the figures, the cylindrical body 80A of revolution of the coil 80 has an internal bore 83 whose diameter is equal to the clearance close to the external diameter of the first barrel 31 of large diameter of the core 30. The body 80A of the coil 80 carries, at each end, flanges 81, 84 which are positioned against the internal faces of the rear 40 and front 90 flanges closing the carcass 10. The body 80A of the coil 80 externally carries a winding of conductive wires 80B to form the reel 80.

  Furthermore, as shown in Figures 1, 2A to 2C and 3A to 3C, the second barrel 32 of small diameter of the core 30 includes positioning means 34 of the shaft 20 in one of its stable positions. Here, these positioning means 34 carried by the second barrel 32 of the core are capable of positioning the shaft 20 in the second stable position which is a recessed position materialized in FIGS. 2C and 30. This second stable position corresponds to the setting in contact with the movable contact 2 with the fixed contacts 3. 5 These positioning means comprise a track 34 hollowed out on the second barrel 32 of small diameter of the core 30 and at least one pin 42 secured to the bearing 41 and intended to cooperate with runway 34.

  This track 34 associated with the pin 42 also forms means for guiding the core 30 in rotation around the shaft 20.

  Here, the track 34 comprises three identical modules, one of which is shown in detail in FIG. 4, juxtaposed and each covering an angular sector of 1200. There are also provided on the bearing 41 three pins 42 arranged at 120 one of the 'other.

  As shown more particularly in FIG. 1, each pin 42 is engaged in a hole passing through the cylindrical wall of the bearing 41 so that it protrudes inside the bearing 41 to cooperate with the track 34 of the second barrel 32 of the core 30 engaged in said bearing 41.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the track 34 carried by the second barrel 32 of the core 30 comprises, by module, a stable position P5 and two intermediate positions P3, P7 for receiving the corresponding pin 42, arranged on either side from the stable position P5, as well as ramps R1-R4 for moving from one position to the next position.

  Advantageously, and this is more particularly the object of the present invention, the annular recess 33 formed at the junction between the first and the second barrels 31, 32 of the core 30 is able to bear against the circular edge of the bearing 41 , fixed part of the bistable operating device 100, for positioning the shaft 20 in the other of the stable positions, here in its first stable position corresponding to the position in which the movable contact 2 is placed at a distance from the fixed contacts 3 so to be out of electrical contact. 30 In particular, in this first stable position of the shaft 20, the recess 33 of the core 30 is positioned in abutment against the annular seal 50 carried by the end of the bearing 41 and projects outwards from the rear flange 40.

  With reference to FIGS. 2A to 2C, 3A to 3C and 4, we will now describe the operation of the bistable maneuvering device 100.

  In FIGS. 2A and 3A, the shaft 20 is positioned in its first stable position which is a projecting position, that is to say a position in which the second barrel 32 of small diameter of the core 30 projects from the rear flange 40 closing the interior housing of the carcass 10 of the bistable operating device 100.

  In this position, the recess 33 formed at the junction of the first and second barrels 31, 32 of the core 30 is in abutment against the end of the bearing 41 10 by compressing the seal 50, and each pin 42 is positioned in each module of the track 34 in position P1, P'1 at distance d from the bottom of track 34. This distance d is preferably of the order of a millimeter.

  When the coil 80 is powered by an electric current pulse, the core 30 is subjected to the action of a tensile force generated by the magnetic field generated by the coil 80 which tends to move the core 30 in translation rear towards the front, that is to say from the rear flange 40 towards the front flange 90. The stroke of the core is limited by the abutment of the front face of its first barrel 31 against the end of the bearing 91 carried by the front flange 90 (see Figure 2B).

  Simultaneously, the return spring 70 interposed between said core 30 and the front flange 90 is compressed and is completely housed in the bearing 91 carried by this front flange 90 (see FIG. 2B).

  The core 30, and more particularly the first barrel 31 of large diameter, bears on the stop 60 integral with the shaft 20 to drive in translation the shaft 20 of the amplitude of the translational movement of the core 30 so that that the movable contact 2 moves in the direction of the fixed contacts 3.

  Simultaneously, the return spring 5 also compresses.

  During this translational movement of the core 30, each pin 42 30 cooperates with the corresponding module of track 34 to assume the intermediate position P2 coming to bear against the ramp R1 of the corresponding module so that each ramp R1 guides each pin 42 towards the intermediate position P3. The movement of each of the pins 42 in each module of the track 34 causes the rotation of an angle of 30 of the core 30 concomitantly with its translational movement.

  When the core 30 reaches the position shown in FIG. 2B bearing against the bearing 91 carried by the front flange 90 of the operating device, each pin 42 has reached the intermediate position P3 in the corresponding module of track 34.

  The electrical impulse having stopped, the supply of the coil 80 being cut off, the core 30 is then subjected to the restoring force of the return spring 70 helped by the return spring 5 which tends to bring the core 30 towards its 10 initial position, that is to say projecting from the rear flange 40.

  During this translational movement of the core, each pin 42 navigates in each module of the track 34 so as to successively take the positions P4 and P5. The position P4 of each pin 42 corresponds to pressing against a ramp R2 of each module of the track 34, this ramp R2 tending to bring it to a stable position at the bottom of the track, the position P5.

  When each pin 42 passes from position P3 to position P5 which corresponds to a locked position of the pin at the bottom of each track module, the core 30 always pivots in the same direction by an angle of 300 around the shaft. 20. This position P5 of each pin 42 blocked at the bottom of a hollow in each module of the track 34 corresponds to the second stable position of the shaft 20 which is a recessed position inside the bistable maneuvering device 100 in which the movable contact 2 is in contact with the fixed contacts 3.

  In this second stable position of the shaft 20, the return spring is still compressed relative to the initial position of the shaft 20 corresponding to the first stable position shown in FIG. 2A.

  When a new electrical impulse is given to the coil 80, this generates a magnetic field generating a tensile force of the core 30 from the rear to the front, as described above.

  During this translational movement, each return spring, and in particular the return spring 70, compresses again. The core 30 drives the shaft 20 in translation by the abutment of its first barrel 31 against the stop 60 secured to the shaft 20, and each pin 42 carried by the bearing 41 moves in each module of the track 34 of so as to take the position P6 pressing against the ramp R4 to arrive at the position P7 which is an intermediate position. The passage from position P5 to position P7 of each pin 42 5 causes the rotation of an angle of 300 of the core 30 in the same direction as the previous rotations. There is no turning back.

  Finally, the supply of the coil 80 being cut again, the return spring 70 aided by the return spring 5 tends to relax and push the core 30 again towards the rear flange 40 of the bistable operating device 10 causing thus the shaft 20 towards its first stable position shown in FIG. 2A.

  During this translational movement, each pin 42 moves in each module of track 34 so as to successively take the position P8 bearing on the ramp R4 of the corresponding module of track 34 towards the original position P'1 . This passage from position P7 to position P'1 causes the rotation of an angle of 30 of the core 30 in the same direction until the latter comes into abutment by its annular recess 33 against the end of the bearing 41 bearing against the annular seal 50.

  The displacement of the core 30 causes the displacement of the shaft 20 which 20 drives the movable contact 2 away from the fixed contacts 3. The shaft 20 then returns to its original position which is its first stable position in which it maintains the contact mobile 2 remote from fixed contacts 3.

  The present invention is in no way limited to the embodiment described and shown, but a person skilled in the art will know how to make any variant according to his spirit.

  In particular, provision may be made for the means of displacement of the core to be means of manual displacement. On the other hand, it will be noted that in each stable position of the core, the shaft is not completely integral with the core and can be pulled manually and moved independently of the latter. he

Claims (14)

  1. Device for bistable operation (100), in translation, of a shaft (20) movable between a first and a second stable position, comprising means (80) for moving in translation a movable core (30), threaded on the 'shaft (20), said core (30) comprising two barrels (31, 32) of different diameters, namely a first barrel (31) of large diameter capable of bearing on a stop (60) integral with the tree (20) for driving said shaft (20) in translation and a second barrel (32) of small diameter comprising positioning means (34) of the shaft (20) in one of the stable positions, characterized in that said core ( 30) comprises a recess (33) formed at the junction between the first 10 and the second barrels (31, 32), capable of bearing against a fixed part (40, 41) of said operating device for positioning the shaft (20 ) in the other stable positions.   2. A bistable operating device (100) according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises means for guiding in rotation of said core 15 (30) around the shaft (20).   3. A bistable operating device (100) according to claim 2, characterized in that the means for guiding in rotation comprise a track (34) formed hollow in the core (30) and at least one pin (42) integral with said fixed part (40, 41) and intended to cooperate with said track (34).   4. bistable operating device (100) according to claim 3, characterized in that said track (34) comprises three identical juxtaposed modules each covering an angular sector of 1200 and there are provided three pins (42) arranged at 1200 on said part fixed (40, 41).   5. Bistable operating device (100) according to one of claims 25 3 or 4, characterized in that the track (34) comprises, by module, a stable position (P5) and two intermediate positions (P3, P7) of reception of the corresponding pin (42), arranged on either side of the stable position (P5), as well as ramps (R1-R4) for passing from one position to the next position.   6. A bistable operating device (100) according to claim 5, characterized in that the track (34) and each pin (42) form said means for positioning the shaft (20) in the second stable position.   7. bistable operating device (100) according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that said fixed part (40, 41) comprises a bearing (41) in which is engaged the second barrel (32) of the core ( 30).   8. Bistable operating device (100) according to one of claims 5 1 to 7, characterized in that it comprises a return spring (70) interposed between said core (30) and another fixed part (90) of said operating device.   9. Bistable operating device (100) according to one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the means for translating said core (30) comprise a coil (80) intended to be supplied with electric current to generate a magnetic field generating the tensile force of said core (30).   10. Bistable operating device (100) according to claim 9, characterized in that the core (30) is disposed in the body (80A) of the coil (80) where it is movable in translation.   11. Bistable operating device (100) according to one of claims 9 or 10, characterized in that it comprises a carcass (10) enclosing said coil (80) and of which is fixed each fixed part (40, 90) of said operating device.   12. Bistable operating device (100) according to one of the preceding claims 20, characterized in that the recess (33) of the core (30) is intended to position the shaft (20) in the first stable position which is a projecting position, and said means for positioning the second barrel (32) of the core (30) are capable of positioning the shaft (20) in the second stable position which is a recessed position.   13. Bistable operating device (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the core (30) is in one piece.   14. Bistable operating device (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it is part of a circuit breaker (1) of storage battery of an electrical installation on board a vehicle.