JP2017117678A - Contact device, electromagnetic contactor, and gas sealing method for arc extinguishing of contact device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a contact device capable of inhibiting pressure in a container in which a contact mechanism is housed from rising equal to or higher than set pressure and also provide an electromagnetic contactor using the contact device.SOLUTION: A contact device includes: a pair of fixed contractors 23, 24; a movable contractor 25 capable of coming into contact with and being separated from the pair of these fixed contractors; a contact housing part 5 having airtightness in which the pair of fixed contractors and a movable contractor are housed and which seals gas for arc extinguishing for extinguishing arc generated when the movable contractor is separated from the pair of fixed contractors; an extinguishing gas discharge member 14 for generating gas for arc extinguishing arranged the contact housing part; and a pressure regulating mechanism 40 for discharging gas for arc extinguishing to the outside when inner pressure provided in the contact housing part is equal to or more than set pressure.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a contact device that opens and closes a current path, an electromagnetic contactor that uses the contact device, and a gas sealing method for arc extinguishing of the contact device.

Conventionally, for example, those described in Patent Documents 1 to 3 are known as contact devices for opening and closing a current path.
In the contact devices described in Patent Documents 1 to 3, a pair of fixed contacts and a movable contact that can be contacted and separated from these fixed contacts are arranged in an airtight container, and the movable contact is separated from the fixed contact in the airtight container. An arc-extinguishing gas that extinguishes the arc generated when the arc is generated is enclosed. Further, an arc extinguishing member that discharges arc extinguishing gas by being heated in the airtight container is arranged.

JP 2001-118451 A JP2015-49937A JP2015-49940A

By the way, in the contact device described in Patent Documents 1 to 3, an arc-extinguishing gas is filled in an air-tight container equipped with a contact mechanism, and an air-tight container is prepared in preparation for leakage of the arc-extinguishing gas. An arc extinguishing member that discharges an arc extinguishing gas by heating is arranged inside.
For this reason, in the contact devices described in Patent Documents 1 to 3, the arc extinguishing member is heated by an arc generated when the movable contact is separated from the fixed contact, and the arc extinguishing gas is released into the hermetic container. The Therefore, in the contact device that frequently contacts and separates the movable contact with the fixed contact, the arc extinguishing gas generated from the arc extinguishing member increases the pressure in the hermetic container, causing a problem that the hermetic container is deformed. There is a problem of fear.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made paying attention to the problems of the conventional examples described in Patent Documents 1 to 3, and suppresses the pressure in the container containing the contact mechanism from rising above a set pressure. It is an object of the present invention to provide a contact device that can be used, an electromagnetic contactor using the contact device, and a gas sealing method for arc extinguishing of the contact device.

  In order to achieve the above object, a contact device according to an aspect of the present invention includes a pair of fixed contacts, a movable contact that can be contacted and separated from the pair of fixed contacts, and a pair of fixed contacts and a movable contact. And an airtight contact housing portion containing an arc extinguishing gas for extinguishing an arc generated when the movable contact member is separated from the pair of fixed contacts, and the contact housing portion is disposed in the contact housing portion. An arc extinguishing gas discharge member that generates an arc extinguishing gas and a pressure adjusting mechanism that discharges the arc extinguishing gas to the outside when the internal pressure provided in the contact housing portion is equal to or higher than a set pressure.

Moreover, the electromagnetic contactor which concerns on 1 aspect of this invention is provided with the contact device which has the said structure, and the electromagnet apparatus which moves a movable contactor.
Furthermore, an arc extinguishing gas sealing method for a contact device according to one aspect of the present invention is formed on an airtight contact housing portion that houses a pair of fixed contacts and a movable contact, and a wall surface of the contact housing portion. When the internal pressure of the contact storage unit is higher than the set pressure, the contact storage unit communicates with the outside of the contact storage unit. A pressure adjustment mechanism is provided, and after the contact accommodating portion is arranged in the hermetic chamber, the arc extinguishing gas is filled in the hermetic chamber at a set pressure, and the arc extinguishing gas is brought into contact with the pressure adjusting mechanism in a communicating state. The gas is introduced into the storage portion, and then the pressure adjusting mechanism is returned to the airtight state, and then the arc extinguishing gas in the airtight chamber is discharged, and the contact storage portion is taken out from the airtight chamber.

According to one aspect of the present invention, even when an arc-extinguishing gas discharge member that discharges arc-extinguishing gas is disposed in an airtight contact housing part, an increase in pressure in the contact housing part due to the arc-extinguishing gas discharge member is suppressed. can do.
Moreover, according to one aspect of the present invention, the arc-extinguishing gas can be sealed in the contact housing part without providing a separate arc gas introducing part by using the pressure adjusting mechanism as the arc extinguishing gas introducing part. .

It is sectional drawing which shows the electromagnetic contactor which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a disassembled perspective view of the contact apparatus of FIG. It is the perspective view which made the cross section the principal part which shows an example of the pressure adjustment mechanism which can be applied to 1st Embodiment, (a) shows an airtight state, (b) shows a communication state. It is sectional drawing which shows an example of the pressure adjustment mechanism shown in FIG. 1, (a) shows an airtight state, (b) shows a communication state. It is a schematic diagram of the airtight chamber explaining the gas sealing method of the contact apparatus of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows 2nd Embodiment of the pressure adjustment mechanism which can apply this invention, (a) shows an airtight state, (b) shows a communication state. It is a bottom view of the pressure adjustment mechanism of FIG.

  Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description of the drawings, the same or similar parts are denoted by the same or similar reference numerals. However, it should be noted that the drawings are schematic, and the relationship between the thickness and the planar dimensions, the ratio of the thickness of each layer, and the like are different from the actual ones. Therefore, specific thicknesses and dimensions should be determined in consideration of the following description. Moreover, it is a matter of course that portions having different dimensional relationships and ratios are included between the drawings.

Further, the embodiment described below exemplifies an apparatus and a method for embodying the technical idea of the present invention, and the technical idea of the present invention is the material, shape, structure, The layout is not specified as follows. The technical idea of the present invention can be variously modified within the technical scope defined by the claims described in the claims.
Hereinafter, embodiments of an electromagnetic contactor including a contact device according to the present invention will be described.

(First embodiment)
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the electromagnetic contactor 1 includes a contact device 2 and an electromagnet unit 3 that drives the contact device 2.
The contact device 2 includes a contact storage portion 5 that stores the contact mechanism 4. The contact housing portion 5 includes a metal rectangular tube 6 and a flat plate-like, for example, ceramic insulating plate 7 that closes the upper end of the rectangular tube 6. The rectangular cylinder 6 has a flange portion 6a protruding outward at the lower end portion. This flange portion 6 a is sealed and joined to the upper surface of a magnetic yoke 8 (described later) constituting the contact housing portion 5. A pair of through-holes 7a and 7b are formed in the insulating plate 7 at a predetermined interval.

  The contact mechanism 4 includes a pair of first fixed contact 23 and second fixed contact 24 fixed to the insulating plate 7 via a pair of first conductor portion 21 and second conductor portion 22, The movable contact 25 is provided so as to be able to contact and separate from the first fixed contact 23 and the second fixed contact 24. The first conductor portion 21 is inserted and fixed in the through hole 7 a of the insulating plate 7. The second conductor portion 22 is inserted through the through hole 7b of the insulating plate 7 and fixed.

  Here, the first fixed contact 23 is a C-shaped conductive plate made of a conductive metal portion in a side view, and has an upper plate portion 23a extending outward along the lower surface of the insulating plate 7, and an upper plate portion 23a. An intermediate plate portion 23b extending downward from the outer end portion and a lower plate portion 23c extending inward from the lower end portion of the intermediate plate portion 23b in parallel with the upper plate portion 23a. The lower plate portion 23c includes a first contact portion 23d that extends below the movable contact 25 and contacts the first contact portion of the movable contact 25 on the upper surface thereof.

  On the other hand, the second fixed contact 24 is also a C-shaped conductive plate in a side view made of a conductive metal part that is plane-symmetric with the first fixed contact 23. The second fixed contact 24 includes an upper plate portion 24a extending outward along the lower surface of the insulating plate 7, an intermediate plate portion 24b extending downward from an outer end portion of the upper plate portion 24a, and an intermediate plate portion 24b. And a lower plate portion 24c extending inward in parallel with the upper plate portion 24a. The lower plate portion 24c includes a second contact portion 24d that extends below the movable contact 25 and contacts the second contact portion of the movable contact 25 on the upper surface thereof.

The first fixed contact 23 and the second fixed contact 24 are fixed to pins that protrude from the lower end surfaces of the first conductor portion 21 and the second conductor portion 22. Examples of the fixing method of the first conductor portion 21 and the first fixed contact 23 and the second conductor portion 22 and the second fixed terminal 24 include brazing and screwing.
In addition, a U-shaped magnetic plate 28 as viewed from above is provided so as to cover the inner surface of the intermediate plate portion 23b of the first fixed contact 23 and the inner surface of the intermediate plate portion 24b of the second fixed contact 24. It is installed. Thereby, the magnetic field generated by the current flowing through the intermediate plate portions 23b and 24b can be shielded.

  Further, the first fixed contact 23 is provided with an insulating cover 26 made of synthetic resin that restricts the generation of arc. The second fixed contact 24 is also provided with an insulating cover 27 made of synthetic resin that restricts the generation of arc. As a result, only the first contact portion 23 d on the upper surface side of the lower plate portion 23 c is exposed on the inner peripheral surface of the first fixed contact 23. Further, only the second contact portion 24d on the upper surface side of the lower plate portion 24c is exposed on the inner peripheral surface of the second fixed contact 24.

  The movable contact 25 is a conductive plate elongated in the left-right direction in FIG. 1 using a conductive metal as a material. The movable contact 25 is disposed in the first fixed contact 23 and the second fixed contact 24 so that both ends thereof are disposed. The movable contact 25 is supported by a connecting shaft 37 fixed to a movable plunger 35 described later of the electromagnet unit 3. A through hole through which the connecting shaft 37 is inserted is formed at the center of the movable contact 25.

  A flange portion 37 a is formed to protrude outward at a substantially central portion in the vertical direction of the connecting shaft 37. The movable contact 25 is placed on the flange portion 37 a through the through hole from above the connecting shaft 37. Then, the contact spring 39 is inserted from above the connecting shaft 37, the fixing member 38 is inserted from above the connecting shaft 37 to the connecting shaft 37, and the contact spring 39 applies a predetermined contact pressure to the upper end of the contact spring 39. Is stopped by the fixing member 38.

  The movable contact 25 is in a released state, and the first contact portion and the second contact portion at both ends are respectively the first contact portion 23d of the first fixed contact 23 and the second contact portion 24d of the second fixed contact 24. They are in a state of being separated from each other at a predetermined interval. The movable contact 25 is in the closing position, and the first contact portion and the second contact portion at both ends are the first contact portion 23d of the first fixed contact 23 and the second contact portion 24d of the second fixed contact 24, respectively. These are set so as to come into contact with a predetermined contact pressure by the contact spring 39.

  Moreover, as shown in FIG. 1, the insulating cylinder 14 formed in the shape of a bottomed square cylinder is arrange | positioned at the internal peripheral surface of the square cylinder 6 of the contact accommodating part 5. As shown in FIG. As will be described later, the insulating cylinder 14 is heated by an arc generated when the movable contact 25 is separated from the contact portions 23d and 24d of the first fixed contact 23 and the second fixed contact 24, and arc extinguishing is performed. It is formed of an arc extinguishing gas discharge member that generates, for example, hydrogen, which is a working gas. The arc gas discharge member is made of a hydrogen storage alloy that stores hydrogen. The hydrogen storage metal alloy is an alloy of a metal having a strong affinity for hydrogen and a metal having a low affinity for hydrogen. Examples of the hydrogen storage alloy include iron (Fe) -titanium (Ti), titanium (Ti) -nickel (Ni), and lanthanum (La) -nickel (Ni). The arc gas releasing member is not limited to a hydrogen storage alloy, and for example, ammonium decachromate that releases nitrogen can also be used. Further, an unsaturated polyester that is an insulating material, or a chain compound obtained by adding a metal hydroxide or a hydrate can also be applied. As the chain compound, nylon 6 or nylon 66 is preferable. As the metal hydroxide, magnesium hydroxide is preferable. By using the insulating material as the insulating cylinder 14, the breakdown voltage deterioration characteristics can be improved.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the insulating cylinder 14 has a connecting shaft 37 inserted vertically through an insertion hole 14e formed in the flat plate portion 14a. In this state, the permanent magnet 11 and the auxiliary yoke 12 described later are inserted. Are disposed in the contact accommodating portion 5 so as to cover the outside of the contact mechanism 4. Specifically, the insulating cylindrical body 14 covers the upper side of the foreign matter intrusion prevention member 13 with the flat plate portion 14a, and the outside of the foreign matter intrusion prevention member 13, the auxiliary yoke 12 and the permanent magnet 11 with the pair of lower extending portions 14b. The outer side of the contact mechanism 4 is covered with the peripheral wall portion 14d.

Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the electromagnet unit 3 has a U-shaped lower magnetic yoke 31 as viewed from the side, and a fixed plunger 32 is disposed at the center of the bottom plate portion of the lower magnetic yoke 31. . A spool 33 is disposed outside the fixed plunger 32.
As shown in FIG. 1, the spool 33 includes a central cylindrical portion 33a through which the fixed plunger 32 is inserted, a lower flange portion 33b projecting radially outward from a lower end portion of the central cylindrical portion 33a, and an upper end portion of the central cylindrical portion 33a. And an upper flange portion 33c protruding outward in the radial direction. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, an exciting coil 34 is wound around a storage space formed by a central cylindrical portion 33a, a lower flange portion 33b, and an upper flange portion 33c of the spool 33.

A plate-like magnetic yoke 8 is fixed to the upper end that is the open end of the lower magnetic yoke 31. A movable plunger through hole 8 a is formed at the center of the magnetic yoke 8.
Further, a cap 9 formed in a bottomed cylindrical shape is disposed on the upper portion of the fixed plunger 32 disposed in the central cylindrical portion 33 a of the spool 33, and radially outwardly provided on the open end of the cap 9. The protruding flange portion 9 a is sealed and joined to the lower surface of the magnetic yoke 8. As a result, a sealed contact device 2 is formed in which the contact housing portion 5 and the cap 9 are communicated with each other via the movable plunger through hole 8 a of the magnetic yoke 8.

  And inside this cap 9, the movable plunger 35 is accommodated so that a vertical movement is possible. The movable plunger 35 includes a cylindrical portion 35a that is accommodated in the cap 9 so as to be movable in the vertical direction, and a peripheral flange portion 35c that is provided at the upper end of the cylindrical portion 35a and projects outward in the radial direction. . The cylindrical portion 35a of the movable plunger 35 is vertically inserted through the movable plunger through hole 8a of the magnetic yoke 8, and the peripheral flange portion 35c of the movable plunger 35 has a larger outer diameter than the movable plunger through hole 8a. 8 is disposed above.

The cylindrical portion 35a of the movable plunger 35 is formed with a return spring accommodating recess 35b extending upward from its lower end surface. A return spring 36 that urges the movable plunger 35 upward is disposed between the bottom of the cap 9 and the upper end surface of the return spring accommodating recess 35b.
Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the permanent magnet 11 formed in an annular shape with a square center opening and a circular center opening is provided on the upper surface of the magnetic yoke 8 with the peripheral flange portion 35 c of the movable plunger 35. It is fixed to surround. The permanent magnet 11 is magnetized in the vertical direction, that is, in the thickness direction so that the upper end side is, for example, the N pole and the lower end side is the S pole.

An auxiliary yoke 12 having a through hole 12 a having the same outer shape as the permanent magnet 11 and having an inner diameter smaller than that of the peripheral flange portion 35 c of the movable plunger 35 is fixed to the upper surface of the permanent magnet 11. The connecting shaft 37 is inserted through the through hole 12a in the vertical direction.
Further, an elastic plate-like foreign matter intrusion preventing member 13 is fixed to the upper surface of the auxiliary yoke 12. This foreign matter intrusion prevention member 13 has an outer shape that is substantially the same size as the auxiliary yoke 12, and has a through hole 13 a that passes through the connecting shaft 37 in the vertical direction at the center and has an inner diameter that contacts the outer peripheral surface of the connecting shaft 37. . The foreign matter intrusion preventing member 13 is made of rubber, for example. This foreign matter intrusion prevention member 13 is configured so that foreign matters such as melts and soot generated in the vicinity of the first contact portion 23 d of the first fixed contact 23 and the second contact portion 24 d of the second fixed contact 24 It has a function of preventing this foreign matter from entering the movable plunger 35 side when it falls downward through the insertion hole 14e. Further, the foreign matter intrusion preventing member 13 has elasticity and has a function of urging the insulating cylinder 14 on the upper side of the foreign matter intrusion preventing member 13 upward.

  Then, a plate-like magnetic yoke 8 having a movable plunger through-hole 8a that passes through the movable plunger 35 in the vertical direction, a contact storage portion 5 that is joined to the upper surface of the magnetic yoke 8 and stores the contact mechanism 4 therein, and magnetic A sealed contact housing portion 5 that houses the contact mechanism 4, the connecting shaft 37, and the movable plunger 35 is configured by the cap 9 that is joined to the lower surface of the yoke 8 and that houses the movable plunger 35 therein. An arc extinguishing gas such as hydrogen is sealed in the sealed contact housing 5.

  Further, as described above, the insulating cylinder 14 is disposed inside the contact housing portion 5. As shown in FIG. 1, the insulating cylinder 14 has a connecting shaft 37 inserted vertically through an insertion hole 14 e formed in the flat plate portion 14 a, and the permanent magnet 11, the auxiliary yoke 12, and the movable plunger 35. A contact mechanism accommodation space A is formed so as to surround the peripheral flange portion 35c with the flat plate portion 14a and the pair of downward extending portions 14b and to cover the side surface of the contact mechanism 4 with the peripheral wall portion 14d. At the upper end of the peripheral wall portion 14d of the insulating cylinder 14, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the contact mechanism housing space A on the contact mechanism 4 side, the insulating cylinder 14, the square cylinder 6, and the magnetic yoke 8 are provided. A cylinder communication portion 14f that communicates with the external space B between the two is formed. For this reason, the internal pressures of the contact mechanism accommodating space A inside the insulating cylinder 14 and the external space B outside the insulating cylinder 14 are equal.

  By the way, as described above, the insulating cylinder 14 is composed of an arc extinguishing gas discharge member that generates an arc extinguishing gas such as hydrogen by heating with an arc when the contact is opened. For this reason, even when there is leakage of the arc extinguishing gas from the contact accommodating part 5, it is possible to prevent the amount of arc extinguishing gas in the contact accommodating part 5 from decreasing. However, since it is difficult to quantitatively control the amount of arc extinguishing gas in the contact housing portion 5, the amount of arc extinguishing gas released by the arc extinguishing gas discharge member is set to be large.

As described above, when the amount of arc extinguishing gas discharged from the arc extinguishing gas releasing member constituting the insulating cylinder 14 at the time of arc generation is increased, the internal pressure of the contact housing portion 5 increases every time an arc is generated. End up. As a result, the pressure in the contact storage portion 5 becomes excessive, and the contact storage portion 5 is deformed to affect the operation of the contact mechanism 4.
For this reason, in this embodiment, when the internal pressure of the contact housing part 5 becomes equal to or higher than the set pressure, the pressure adjustment is performed to release the internal arc extinguishing gas to the outside. A mechanism 40 is provided. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the pressure adjusting mechanism 40 has a through hole 41 formed so as to penetrate to the right front position inside one corner of the rectangular tube 6 of the magnetic yoke 8. A pressure regulating valve 42 is disposed in the through hole 41 so as to be movable in the axial direction.

  The pressure regulating valve 42 includes a sealing portion 43 and an elastic biasing portion 44 that are connected via a through hole 41. The sealing part 43 has a bottomed cylindrical part 43a. The bottomed cylindrical portion 43a includes a cylindrical portion 43b and a bottom plate portion 43c that closes the end of the cylindrical portion 43b opposite to the magnetic yoke 8. A flange portion 43d extending outward in the radial direction is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the end portion of the cylindrical portion 43b on the bottom plate portion 43c side.

In addition, a shaft portion 43e that extends in the axial direction of the cylindrical portion 43b and is inserted into the through hole 41 is formed at the center portion of the bottom plate portion 43c. As for this axial part 43e, the free end protrudes from the open end surface of the cylindrical part 43b. Further, the shaft portion 43e is set to have a diameter shorter than that of the through hole 41 and forms a fluid passage having a predetermined cross-sectional area between the shaft portion 43e and the through hole 41.
On the other hand, an annular groove 45 is formed at a position facing the open end of the cylindrical portion 43 b of the bottomed cylindrical portion 43 a of the magnetic yoke 8, and an O-ring 46 is disposed in the annular groove 45.

The elastic biasing portion 44 has a bottomed cylindrical portion 44a. The bottomed cylindrical portion 44a includes a cylindrical portion 44b and a bottom plate portion 44c that closes an end of the cylindrical portion 44b opposite to the magnetic yoke 8.
Further, a shaft portion 44d that extends in the axial direction of the cylindrical portion 44b and is inserted into the through hole 41 is formed at the center portion of the bottom plate portion 44c. The shaft portion 44d has a free end protruding from the open end surface of the cylindrical portion 44b. Further, the shaft portion 44 d is set to have a diameter shorter than that of the through hole 41 and forms a fluid passage having a predetermined cross-sectional area between the shaft portion 44 d and the through hole 41.

A compression coil spring 44e as an elastic body is disposed around the shaft portion 44d of the bottomed cylindrical portion 44a. The compression coil spring 44 e is interposed between the bottom plate portion 44 c of the bottomed cylindrical portion 44 a and the upper surface around the through hole 41 of the magnetic yoke 8.
The sealing portion 43 and the elastic urging portion 44 are screwed in a state where the shaft portions 43e and 44d are brought into contact with each other in the through hole 41 and the compression coil spring 44e is compressed to a predetermined compression length. It is fixed by fixing means. Therefore, the open end surface of the cylindrical portion 43b of the sealing portion 43 is set as a sealing position where it is pressed against the O-ring 46 by the elastic force of the compression coil spring 44e, and the periphery of the through hole 41 is sealed. For this reason, leakage of the arc extinguishing gas sealed in the contact housing portion 5 is prevented. Here, the pressing force acting on the bottom plate portion 43c of the sealing portion 43 when the compression load of the compression coil spring 44e becomes equal to or higher than the set pressure of the arc extinguishing gas sealed in the contact housing portion 5. Is set to be compressed.

  Further, the cylindrical portion 44b of the elastic biasing portion 44 has, for example, a circular through-hole 44f having a circular cross section serving as a gas flow path that penetrates the outer peripheral surface and the inner peripheral surface at a position that is a predetermined height away from the open end surface. For example, four locations are formed at equal intervals in the direction. Further, a guide member 47 for guiding the outer peripheral surface of the elastic biasing portion 44 is formed on the upper surface of the magnetic yoke 8. Here, the height of the guide member 47 is such that when the elastic biasing portion 44 moves against the compression coil spring 44e and the open end surface of the cylindrical portion 44b comes into contact with the upper surface of the magnetic yoke 8, The height is selected so as not to be blocked.

Further, the pressure adjusting mechanism 40 functions as an arc extinguishing gas input valve when the arc extinguishing gas is sealed in the contact housing portion 5.
Next, a method for filling the arc extinguishing gas into the contact housing 5 using the pressure adjusting mechanism 40 will be described.
In order to enclose the arc extinguishing gas into the contact accommodating part 5, first, as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG.

  Thus, by fixing the contact device 2, the sealing portion 43 is disposed to face the switching device 52. Although not shown, the opening / closing device 52 includes a device main body 53 containing an actuator composed of a fluid cylinder such as an air cylinder, and two grips held by the device main body 53 so as to be movable in the XY directions on a horizontal plane. Arms 54 and 55 are provided. The gripping arms 54 and 55 are formed in plane symmetry on a plane including the axial direction of the sealing portion 43. That is, the gripping arm 54 extends from the left end surface of the apparatus main body 53 in the left direction, the arm portion 54b extending forward from the tip of the base portion 54a, and the left extending from the front end of the arm portion 54b. And an engaging arm portion 54d extending rearward from the left end of the arm portion 54c. Similarly, the gripping arm 55 includes a base portion 55a protruding leftward from the left end surface of the apparatus main body 53, an arm portion 55b extending rearward from the tip of the base portion 55a, and a left end from the rear end of the arm portion 54b. An arm portion 55c that extends and an engagement arm portion 55d that extends forward from the left end of the arm portion 55c are provided.

  Then, the gripping arms 54 and 55 are in a standby state, and the gripping arms 54 and 55 open to the outside in the front-rear direction as shown by a one-dot chain line in FIG. The position is located outside the outer peripheral edge of the flange portion 43 d of the sealing portion 43, and is a position spaced to the right from the sealing portion 43. When the gripping state is changed from this state, as shown by the solid line in FIG. 5, the base portions 54 a and 55 a are moved leftward so that the engaging arm portions 54 d and 55 d face the magnetic yoke 8 of the flange portion 43 d of the sealing portion 43. The movement is stopped behind the surface to perform. Next, the base portions 54 a and 55 a are moved inward, and the engaging arm portions 54 d and 55 d are positioned to face the flange portion 43 d of the sealing portion 43 from the left side. Thereafter, the base portions 54a and 55a are moved to the right by a predetermined amount, whereby the flange portion 43d of the sealing portion 43 is moved to the right against the compression coil spring 44e of the elastic biasing portion 44, and the through hole 41 is moved. Is an open position that communicates with the outside. Thereafter, the base portions 54a and 55a are opened outward to release the engagement state of the engagement arm portions 54d and 55d with the flange portion 43d of the sealing portion 43, and then return to the standby position. As a result, the sealing portion 43 returns to the sealing position by the compression coil spring 44e of the elastic biasing portion 44.

  Then, in order to enclose the arc extinguishing gas in the contact accommodating portion 5 of the contact device 2, first, as shown in FIG. 5, the opening / closing door 50e provided in the hermetic chamber 50 is opened, and a transfer robot (not shown). Thus, the contact mechanism 4 is fixed to the fixing jig 51 in the hermetic chamber 50. At this time, the opening / closing device 52 is set to a standby position. Thereafter, the transfer robot is withdrawn from the hermetic chamber 50 and the door 50e is closed.

Next, the electromagnetic on-off valve 50b provided at the gas inlet 50a provided in the hermetic chamber 50 is opened. At this time, the electromagnetic on-off valve 50d provided in the gas tight chamber 50 and provided in the gas discharge port 50c is closed.
Thereby, when the arc extinguishing gas is introduced into the hermetic chamber 50 and the internal pressure of the hermetic chamber 50 reaches a predetermined pressure (for example, 2 to 3 atm), the electromagnetic on-off valve 50b of the gas inlet 50a is closed.

  In this way, the opening / closing device 52 is operated in a state where the arc extinguishing gas is filled in the hermetic chamber 50 at a predetermined pressure, and the gripping arms 54 and 55 are moved from the standby position to the gripping position. As a result, the gripping arms 54 and 55 come into contact with the flange portion 43 d of the sealing portion 43 from the magnetic yoke 8 side. In this state, by moving the gripping arms 54 and 55 to the open position, the sealing portion 43 is moved to the right against the compression coil spring 44e of the elastic biasing portion 44 to be in an open state. For this reason, the open end surface of the cylindrical portion 43 b of the sealing portion 43 is separated from the O-ring 46, and the through hole 41 communicates with the hermetic chamber 50. Therefore, the arc extinguishing gas in the hermetic chamber 50 passes through the opening between the cylindrical portion 43 b of the sealing portion 43 and the O-ring 46, passes through the through-hole 41, and passes through the through-hole 44 f of the elastic biasing portion 44. It is introduced into the contact housing part 5.

  After that, when a predetermined time required for filling the arc-extinguishing gas into the contact housing part 5 elapses, the gripping arms 54 and 55 of the switchgear 52 are opened outward and returned to the standby position. As a result, the sealing portion 43 moves to the magnetic yoke 8 side by the elastic force of the compression coil spring 44e of the elastic biasing portion 44, and the open end surface of the cylindrical portion 43b returns to the sealing position where it abuts on the O-ring 46. To do. Thereby, the communication state with the outside of the through hole 41 is blocked.

Thereafter, the electromagnetic opening / closing valve 50d of the gas discharge port 50c is opened, and the arc extinguishing gas in the hermetic chamber 50 is discharged. When the discharge of the arc extinguishing gas is completed, the opening / closing door 50e of the hermetic chamber 50 is opened, and the contact device 2 is held by a transfer robot (not shown) and transferred to the outside.
Thereafter, the new contact device 2 is fixed to the fixing jig 51 by the transfer robot, and the arc extinguishing gas filling operation is repeated.

Thus, by providing the pressure adjusting mechanism 40 with the function of sealing the arc extinguishing gas into the contact accommodating portion 5, it is not necessary to provide a separate arc extinguishing gas introducing portion, and the contact mechanism 4 can be made compact. Can be achieved.
In addition, in a state where the arc extinguishing gas is introduced into the hermetic chamber 50 at a predetermined pressure, the sealing portion 43 of the pressure adjusting mechanism 40 is moved to the right against the compression coil spring 44e of the elastic biasing portion 44. In some cases, the arc extinguishing gas is not smoothly introduced into the contact housing portion 5 when the open state is established. In this case, the arc extinguishing gas can be smoothly introduced into the contact accommodating part 5 by maintaining the inside of the contact accommodating part 5 of the contact device 2 at a negative pressure in advance. In order to make the inside of the contact accommodating part 5 into a negative pressure, before introducing the arc extinguishing gas into the hermetic chamber 50, the contact part 2 is opened and the sealing part 43 is opened in a state where the hermetic chamber is once under a negative pressure. After the inside of the storage unit 5 is set to a negative pressure, the sealing unit 43 is returned to the sealed state, or before the contact device 2 is arranged in the airtight chamber 50, the inside of the contact storage unit 5 is set to a negative pressure.

Next, operation | movement of the electromagnetic contactor 1 of 1st Embodiment is demonstrated.
First, the first conductor portion 21 connected to the first fixed contact 23 is connected to, for example, a power supply source that supplies a large current, and the second conductor portion 22 connected to the second fixed contact 24 is connected to the load. It is assumed that In addition, it is assumed that the internal pressure of the contact housing portion 5 is maintained at a predetermined pressure lower than the set pressure. In this state, the elastic biasing portion 44 is lifted by the elastic force of the compression coil spring 44e of the elastic biasing portion 44 of the pressure adjusting mechanism 40 as shown in FIGS. Yes. Therefore, the open end surface of the cylindrical portion 43b of the sealing portion 43 abuts on the O-ring 46 and the periphery of the through hole 41 formed in the magnetic yoke 8 is sealed with the sealing portion 43, and the contact storage portion 5 is airtight. Kept in a state.

At this time, it is assumed that the exciting coil 34 in the electromagnet unit 3 is in a non-excited state and the electromagnet unit 3 is in a released state in which no exciting force for lowering the movable plunger 35 is generated.
In this released state, the movable plunger 35 is urged upward by the return spring 36 away from the magnetic yoke 8. At the same time, the attractive force due to the magnetic force of the permanent magnet 11 acts on the auxiliary yoke 12, and the peripheral flange portion 35c of the movable plunger 35 is attracted. For this reason, the upper surface of the peripheral flange portion 35 c of the movable plunger 35 is in contact with the lower surface of the auxiliary yoke 12.

  Therefore, the first contact portion and the second contact portion of the movable contact 25 of the contact mechanism 4 connected to the movable plunger 35 via the connecting shaft 37 are the first contact portion 23d and the first contact portion 23d of the first fixed contact 23, respectively. The second fixed contact 24 is spaced apart from the second contact portion 24d by a predetermined distance. For this reason, the current path between the first fixed contactor 23 and the second fixed contactor 24 is in an interrupted state, and the contact mechanism 4 is in an open state.

When the exciting coil 34 of the electromagnet unit 3 is energized from this released state, an exciting force is generated in the electromagnet unit 3, and the movable plunger 35 is moved downward against the urging force of the return spring 36 and the attracting force of the permanent magnet 11. Press down. The lowering of the movable plunger 35 stops when the lower surface of the peripheral flange portion 35 c hits the upper surface of the magnetic yoke 8.
In this manner, when the movable plunger 35 is lowered, the movable contact 25 connected to the movable plunger 35 via the connecting shaft 37 is also lowered, and the first contact portion and the first contact portion of the movable contact 25 of the contact mechanism 4 are lowered. Each of the two contact portions comes into contact with each of the first contact portion 23 d of the first fixed contact 23 and the second contact portion 24 d of the second fixed contact 24 with the contact pressure of the contact spring 39.

For this reason, a large current of the power supply source is in a closed state in which it is supplied to the load through the first fixed contact 23, the movable contact 25 and the second fixed contact 24.
Then, when the current supply to the load is interrupted from the closed state of the contact mechanism 4, the energization to the excitation coil 34 of the electromagnet unit 3 is stopped.
When energization of the exciting coil 34 is stopped, the exciting force that moves the movable plunger 35 downward by the electromagnet unit 3 disappears, so that the movable plunger 35 is raised by the urging force of the return spring 36, and the peripheral flange portion 35c becomes the auxiliary yoke. As the value approaches 12, the attractive force of the permanent magnet 11 increases.

  As the movable plunger 35 rises, the movable contact 25 connected via the connecting shaft 37 rises. Accordingly, when contact pressure is applied by the contact spring 39, the first contact portion and the second contact portion of the movable contact 25 are respectively connected to the first contact portion 23d and the second contact portion 23 of the first fixed contact 23. Each of the second contact portions 24d of the fixed contact 24 is in contact with each other. Thereafter, when the contact pressure of the contact spring 39 disappears, the movable contact 25 is in an open state in which the movable contact 25 is separated upward from the first fixed contact 23 and the second fixed contact 24.

In such an open state, the first contact portion and the second contact portion of the movable contact 25, the first contact portion 23d of the first fixed contact 23, and the second contact portion 24d of the second fixed contact 24 are provided. An arc is generated between the current and the current conduction state by the arc.
An arc generated between the first contact portion and the second contact portion of the movable contact 25 and the first contact portion 23d of the first fixed contact 23 and the second contact portion 24d of the second fixed contact 24. Is stretched by the Lorentz force generated by Fleming's left-hand rule from the relationship between the current flow of these arcs and the magnetic flux generated by an arc extinguishing permanent magnet (not shown), and the arc enclosed in the contact housing 5 It is cooled and extinguished by the arc extinguishing gas.

In addition, the arc extinguishing gas is released from the arc extinguishing gas releasing material that forms the insulating cylinder 14 by heating the inside of the contact housing portion 5 by the generation of the arc. For this reason, even if the arc extinguishing gas leaks from the airtight contact storage 5 to the outside, the gas pressure in the contact storage 5 is maintained without being insufficient.
However, if the arc extinguishing gas is repeatedly released from the insulating cylinder 14 due to the occurrence of an arc by repeating the opening and closing states of the contact mechanism 4, the internal pressure of the contact housing portion 5 increases. When the internal pressure of the contact housing part 5 reaches the set pressure, the pressure applied to the bottom plate part 43c of the sealing part 43 exceeds the elastic force of the compression coil spring 44e, and the sealing part 43 and the elastic biasing part As shown in FIGS. 3B and 4B, 44 descends against the compression coil spring 44e.

For this reason, the open end surface of the cylindrical portion 43 b of the sealing portion is spaced downward from the O-ring 46 to form an opening. Therefore, the arc extinguishing gas in the contact housing part 5 passes through the through hole 44f of the elastic biasing part 44, passes through the inner surface of the cylindrical part 44b and the space of the shaft part 44d, passes through the through hole 41, and further into the cylindrical part 43b. Through the opening of the open end face and the O-ring 46.
At this time, the flow rate of the arc extinguishing gas released to the outside is regulated by the cross-sectional area of the through-hole 44 f formed in the cylindrical portion 44 b of the elastic biasing portion 44. For this reason, at the time of forming the opening portion by lowering the sealing portion 43, the arc extinguishing gas in the contact housing portion 5 is prevented from being released to the outside at once, and the arc extinguishing gas is gradually released. The When the arc extinguishing gas is released and the internal pressure of the contact housing part 5 falls below the set pressure, the pressing force acting on the sealing part 43 decreases. For this reason, the elastic urging portion 44 is raised by the elastic force of the compression coil spring 44e as shown in FIGS. 3A and 4A, and the sealing portion 43 is also raised simultaneously. Therefore, the open end surface of the cylindrical portion 43b of the sealing portion 43 abuts on the O-ring 46 to seal the through hole 41, and the discharge of the arc extinguishing gas to the outside is stopped.

Thereafter, when the releasing operation of the movable plunger 35 is completed, the upper surface of the peripheral flange portion 35c of the movable plunger 35 comes into contact with the lower surface of the auxiliary yoke 12, and the opening is completed.
Thus, according to the said 1st Embodiment, the insulation cylinder 14 of the contact accommodating part 5 is comprised by the arc extinguishing gas discharge | release member which discharge | releases arc extinguishing gas by heating of an arc. For this reason, every time the contact mechanism 4 is changed from the closed state to the open state, the arc extinguishing gas can be discharged into the contact accommodating portion 5 to supplement the leakage of the arc extinguishing gas. In addition, a pressure adjusting mechanism 40 is provided in the contact housing portion 5.

  Accordingly, when the internal pressure of the contact housing portion 5 increases due to the discharge of the arc extinguishing gas from the insulating cylinder 14, the arc extinguishing gas is released to the outside by the pressure adjusting mechanism 40. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the internal pressure of the contact storage portion 5 from being kept below the set pressure, and the internal pressure of the contact storage portion 5 from increasing to deform the contact storage portion 5. For this reason, it can prevent reliably affecting the opening operation | movement and closing operation | movement of the contact mechanism 4. FIG.

In addition, the pressure adjustment mechanism 40 can be configured simply by the pressure adjustment valve 42 having the through hole 41, the sealing portion 43, and the elastic biasing portion 44. Moreover, the internal pressure of the contact accommodating part 5 can be set only by adjusting the compression load of the compression coil spring 44e of the elastic biasing part 44.
Further, since the arc extinguishing gas is released to the outside through the through holes 44f formed in the cylindrical portion 44b of the elastic biasing portion 44, by setting the diameter and number of the through holes 44f, the gas discharge amount can be reduced. It can be set arbitrarily. Therefore, it is possible to prevent a sudden decrease in the internal pressure of the contact housing portion 5.

Furthermore, by using the pressure adjusting mechanism 40 as an arc extinguishing gas inlet when the arc extinguishing gas is sealed in the contact storage part 5, there is no need to provide a separate arc extinguishing gas introducing part, The contact mechanism 4 can be reduced in size.
In addition, by configuring the magnetic contactor 1 using the contact mechanism 4 having the above-described effect, the contact storage portion 5 is generated by the arc extinguishing gas released from the arc extinguishing gas discharge member by heating due to the generation of the arc. It is possible to provide an electromagnetic contactor that can prevent the internal pressure from rising above the set pressure, eliminate the influence on the opening operation and the closing operation, and guarantee a smooth operation.

In the first embodiment, the case where the pressure adjusting mechanism 40 is formed on the magnetic yoke 8 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the pressure adjusting mechanism 40 is provided on the rectangular cylinder 6 or the insulating plate 7. You may do it.
Moreover, although the said 1st Embodiment demonstrated the case where the pressure adjustment mechanism 40 was utilized at the time of enclosure of the arc extinguishing gas, it is not limited to this, When not using for enclosure of the arc extinguishing gas The flange portion 43d of the sealing portion 43 can be omitted.
Moreover, although the said 1st Embodiment demonstrated the case where the through-hole 41, the sealing part 43, and the elastic urging | biasing part 44 were formed in a cross-sectional cylindrical shape, it is not limited to this, A cross-sectional square cylinder shape or It can be formed in an arbitrary shape such as a polygonal cross section.

(Second Embodiment)
Next, a pressure adjusting mechanism for a contact device according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
In the second embodiment, the pressure adjusting mechanism is formed only outside the magnetic yoke.

  That is, in the second embodiment, the pressure adjustment mechanism 60 corresponding to the pressure adjustment mechanism 40 of the first embodiment is opposite to the rectangular cylinder 6 and the insulating cylinder 14 of the magnetic yoke 8 as shown in FIG. Is formed. The pressure adjusting mechanism 60 includes a through hole 61 formed through the magnetic yoke 8 and a pressure adjusting valve 62 that opens and closes the through hole 61. The pressure regulating valve 62 includes a sealing portion 63 that seals the through hole 61 and an elastic biasing portion 64 that biases the sealing portion 63.

  The sealing portion 63 includes a bottomed cylindrical body 63c having a cylindrical portion 63a and a bottom plate portion 63b, and a flange portion 63d formed to project outward in the radial direction from the outer peripheral surface of the end portion on the bottom plate portion 63b side. Here, as shown in FIG. 7, a radial groove 63e is formed in the flange portion 63d so as to reach the bottom plate portion 63b from the outer peripheral edge at intervals of 90 degrees in the circumferential direction, for example. An annular groove 65 is formed at a position facing the open end surface of the cylindrical portion 63 a of the sealing portion 63 of the magnetic yoke 8. An O-ring 66 is accommodated in the annular groove 65.

The elastic urging portion 64 includes an elastic body support portion 67 attached to the opposite side of the square yoke body 6 of the magnetic yoke 8 and a compression coil spring 68 supported by the elastic body support portion 67. The elastic body support part 67 has a disk part 67a and a mounting leg part 67b. The disc portion 67a is opposed to the bottom plate portion 63b of the sealing portion 63 with a predetermined distance from below. The attachment leg portion 67b is attached to the magnetic yoke 8 through the radial groove 63e formed in the flange portion 63d of the sealing portion 63 from the outer peripheral portion of the upper surface of the disc portion 67a.
The compression coil spring 68 is interposed between the bottom plate portion 63 b of the sealing portion 63 and the disc portion 67 a of the elastic body support portion 67 to urge the sealing portion 63 toward the O-ring 66. The compression load of the compression coil spring 68 is set to a predetermined set pressure in which the internal pressure of the contact housing portion 5 is higher than the set enclosed pressure of the arc extinguishing gas and is equal to or lower than the design withstand pressure of the contact housing portion 5.

  Accordingly, when the internal pressure of the contact accommodating portion 5 applied to the bottom plate portion 63b of the sealing portion 63 is less than the set pressure, the compression coil spring 68 causes the sealing portion 63 to be connected to the magnetic yoke 8 as shown in FIG. Press to the side. For this reason, the open end surface of the cylindrical portion 63 a of the sealing portion 63 is in pressure contact with the O-ring 66, and a sealed state is established in which communication to the outside of the through hole 61 is blocked. On the other hand, when the internal pressure of the contact accommodating part 5 applied to the bottom plate part 63b of the sealing part 63 becomes equal to or higher than the set pressure, the compression coil spring 68 is compressed and the sealing part 63 is compressed as shown in FIG. Descends away from the O-ring 66. For this reason, the through hole 61 communicates with the outside, and the arc extinguishing gas is discharged to the outside from the space between the mounting legs 67b. And when the internal pressure of the contact accommodating part 5 falls below setting pressure, the sealing part 63 will be pressure-contacted by the compression coil spring 68, and will return to a sealing state.

Similarly to the first embodiment, the sealing portion 63 of the pressure adjusting mechanism 60 is moved to the open position against the compression coil spring 68 by the opening / closing device 52 in the hermetic chamber 50, so that the inside of the contact accommodating portion 5 The arc-extinguishing gas can be sealed in. Further, the shaft portion 44 d is set to have a diameter shorter than that of the through hole 41 and forms a fluid passage having a predetermined cross-sectional area between the shaft portion 44 d and the through hole 41.
According to the second embodiment, the same operational effects as those of the first embodiment described above can be obtained. In addition, according to the second embodiment, the contact accommodating portion 5 only needs to be provided with the through hole 61 in the magnetic yoke 8, and the pressure adjusting mechanism 60 is formed outside the magnetic yoke 8. There is no need to provide the pressure adjusting mechanism 60 inside. For this reason, the internal pressure of the contact accommodating part 5 can be kept below a set pressure without changing the shape of the insulating cylinder 14.

The first and second embodiments of the present invention have been described above, but the present invention is not limited to this, and various changes and improvements can be made.
For example, although the case where the O-rings 46 and 66 are applied as the sealing members has been described, the present invention is not limited to this, and other types of sealing materials such as gackets can be applied. In short, it is only necessary to hold the contact accommodating portion 5 in an airtight state.

Further, the contact housing portion 5 is not limited to being configured by the rectangular tube body 6 and the insulating plate 7, but may be integrally formed in a bowl shape with an insulator such as ceramic.
Moreover, although each said embodiment demonstrated the case where the contact apparatus 2 was applied to the electromagnetic contactor 1, it is not limited to this, The contact part which generate | occur | produces an arc at the time of opening of a relay, a switch, etc. is provided. The contact device 2 can be applied to a device having the same.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Electromagnetic contactor, 2 ... Contact apparatus, 3 ... Electromagnet unit, 4 ... Contact mechanism, 5 ... Contact accommodating part, 8 ... Magnetic yoke, 14 ... Insulating cylinder, 23 ... 1st fixed contact, 24 ... 2nd Fixed contact, 25 ... movable contact, 35 ... movable plunger, 37 ... connecting shaft, 40 ... pressure adjusting mechanism, 41 ... through hole, 42 ... pressure adjusting valve, 43 ... sealing portion, 44 ... elastic biasing portion, 44e ... Compression coil spring, 50 ... Airtight chamber, 50a ... Gas inlet, 50b ... Electromagnetic on-off valve, 50c ... Gas outlet, 50d ... Electromagnetic on-off valve, 51 ... Fixing jig, 52 ... Opening / closing device, 60 ... Pressure adjustment Mechanism: 61 ... Through hole, 62 ... Pressure adjustment valve, 63 ... Sealing part, 64 ... Elastic urging part, 66 ... O-ring, 67 ... Elastic body support part, 68 ... Compression coil spring

Claims (5)

A pair of fixed contacts and a movable contact capable of contacting and separating from the pair of fixed contacts;
The pair of fixed contacts and the movable contact are housed, and has an airtightness in which an arc extinguishing gas is enclosed to extinguish an arc generated when the movable contact is separated from the pair of fixed contacts. A contact compartment;
An arc-extinguishing gas discharge member that generates the arc-extinguishing gas disposed in the contact housing portion;
And a pressure adjusting mechanism that discharges the arc-extinguishing gas to the outside when an internal pressure provided in the contact housing portion is equal to or higher than a set pressure.   The pressure adjusting mechanism includes a shaft portion that is inserted into a through-hole formed in a wall surface of the contact housing portion, a sealing portion that is formed at a position protruding outside the contact housing portion of the shaft portion, An elastic biasing portion formed at a position protruding from the contact housing portion of the shaft portion, and the elastic biasing portion is interposed between the wall surface and the sealing portion against the wall surface. The contact device according to claim 1, further comprising an elastic body in a sealed state.   The pressure adjusting mechanism includes a through-hole formed through the wall surface of the contact housing portion, a sealing portion disposed outside the through-hole so as to be movable forward and backward, and the sealing portion through the through-hole. An elastic urging portion for urging the sealing position to close the sealing member, and the elastic urging portion includes an elastic body support portion and the sealing portion supported by the elastic body support on the sealing position side. The contact device according to claim 1, further comprising an elastic body to be urged.   An electromagnetic contactor comprising: the contact device according to any one of claims 1 to 3; and an electromagnet unit that moves the movable contact. An airtight contact housing part that houses a pair of fixed contacts and a movable contact, and an airtight state that is formed on the wall surface of the contact housing part and that normally shuts off the inside and outside of the contact housing part, The arc extinguishing gas is supplied to the contact housing portion of the contact device including a pressure adjusting mechanism that communicates the inside and outside of the contact housing portion when the internal pressure of the contact housing portion is equal to or higher than the set pressure. A gas sealing method for arc extinguishing of a contact device to be sealed,
The contact device in an airtight chamber disposed, introduced in a state filled with the airtight chamber to the arc extinguishing gas in the set pressure, and the previous SL pressure adjustment mechanism in communication with the arc extinguishing gas in the contact housing portion And
After the arc container is filled with the arc extinguishing gas, the pressure adjusting mechanism is returned to an airtight state, and then the arc arc extinguishing gas in the hermetic chamber is discharged, and the contact accommodating part is taken out from the hermetic chamber. A gas sealing method for arc extinguishing of a contact device.

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