US1486855A - Safety-switch interlock - Google Patents

Description

- March 1-8 ,-1924.-

III II/ I H G BAXTER SAFETY SWITCH immmocx Filed Nov. 20, 1919 WITNESSES:

- INVENTOR} Harald dflaxzer Patented Mar. 18, 1924.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HAROLD G. BAXTER, OF BALDWIN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO WESTINGHOUSE ELECTRIC 6t MANUFACTURING COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

SAFETY-SWITCH INTERLOCK.

Application filed November 20, 1919. Serial No. 339,258.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, I'IAROLD G. BAXTER, a subject of the King of England, and a resident of Baldwin, in the county of Nassau and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Safety-Switch Interlocks, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to safety switchboards and particularly to safety switch boards of the dead-front type.

one object of my invention is to provide a dcad-front switch-board that shall have an operating handle mounted on the front face of its panel for actuating the switches that are mounted at the rear thereof and that shall also have a fuse-box at the rear of the panel provided with a door so interlocked with the handle, that an attendant must so actuate the latter, as to open the switches before the fuse-box door may be opened, and, moreover, the attendant must close the fuse-box door before the handle may be operated by him, to close the switches.

A further object of my invention is to provide a dead-front switch-board that shall be simple and rugged in construction and safe in operation.

In practicing my invention, I provide an operating handle on the front of a switchboard panel to actuate a plurality of switch members at the rear thereof, by means of a rod passing through the panel. The switch members are adapted to introduce, into an electrical circuit, a plurality of fuses, that are contained in a closed box on the rear of the panel, I provide further, an interlocking mechanism which is so disposed, that the rod, which is actuated by the handle, is prevented from actuating the movable switch members when the fuse-box door is open, and the door is so interlocked with the switch-operating mechanism that it may not be opened when the switch members have the fuses connected in th circuit. The interlocking mechanism is enclosed in a receptacle within the fuse-box.

Figure 1 is a side view, partially in section, and partially in elevation of a switchboard embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is a view, from the rear of the switch-board, of the interlocking mechanism embodied in the fuse-box illustrated in Fig. 1; and Fig.

3 is a top plan View of the fuse box, illus 'trating the arrangement of an actuating rod 'of is mounted a fuse box 3, that encloses a plurality of fuses 1 and a receptacle 5, in which an interlocking mechanism 6 is disposed. An actuating rod 7 extends from the operating handle 2, through an opening in the panel, into the fuse-box 3 and through the receptacle 5. The end of the rod 7 that is in the fuse-box is bent at a right angle to its body portion and is provided with a hole 10 to receive a pin 8 with which the door 9 of the fuse-box 3 is provided. The interlocking mechanism 6, that is en closed in the receptacle 5, comprises slidably mounted auxiliary rod 11 having a spring 12 mounted thereon, a latch 13, that is pivotally mounted on a'pin 1 1, a, link 15 that connects the auxiliary rod 11 to the latch 13 and a lateral projection 16 on the actuating rod 7. Switch members 17 are adapted to be actuated by the rod 7 to connect, electrically, a plurality of fuse terminals 18 to a bus-bar 19. A manually operated latch 20 is slidably mounted in a guideway 21 and comprises a body member 22 that has the pin 8 mounted as a lateral projection thereon, a spring 23 for returning the latch 20 to a predetermined position and a handle 24 for so actuating the latch 20 that the door 9 may be opened.

As illustrated in Fig. 1, the switch. unit is shown closed, with the operating handle 2 in a position corresponding to that of an ordinary knife-blade switch when the switch is closed. The door 9 of the fuse-box 3 is closed and cannot be opened while the switch is in its closed position by reason of the engagement of the pin 8 with the hole 10 in the end of the rod 7. If the switch unit is in its opened position, and the door 9 is opened, the auxiliary rod 11, which is ordinarily held in by the door 9, will be forced out by the spring 12. The latch 13 is then turned about the pivot 14 by the link 15 to engage the projection 16 on the rod 7. The rod 7, therefore cannot be actuated by the operating handle 2 so long as the door 9 is open. When the door 9 is closed, the auxiliary rod 11 is forced back into place against the compression of the spring 12, and the latch 13 is withdrawn from the projection 16 on the rod 7, thus permitting the rod 7 to more again.

Although my invention is shown in a preferred form, I do not wish to limit the invention to the structure shown, as various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention as set forth in the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a dead-front switch-board, the combina ion with an operating handle on the front of its panel and a fu -box at the rear of the panel hay in p; adoor, 0 fuses, an electric circuit associated therewith, movabl switch members in the circuit adap ed to introduce the fuses into the circuit, a rod member adapted to be actuated by the operating handle to actuate the movable switch members when the fuse-box door at the rear of the panel is closed, means for latching said rod in open position when the fuse-box door is open to preclude the introduction of the fuses into the circuit, and manually operable latch means associated with the switcw actuating rod for precluding the opening of the fnse box door if the switch is closed.

2. In a dead-front switchboard, the combination with an operating handle on the front of its panel and a fuse-box at the rear of the panel having a door, of fuses, an electric circuit associated therewith, switch members in the circuit adapted to introduce the fuses into the circuit, means for precluding the opening of the fuse-box door when the switch is closed, and yielding means controlled by the door for precluding the actuation of the operating handle when the fuse-box door is open.

3. In a switchboard, the combination with a handle on the front of its panel, and a fuse-box having a door thereto at the rear of the panel, of fuses, a circuit associated therewith, switch-connecting members for the fuses and the circuit, a rod member sociated with the handle for actuating the switch-connecting members, a perforated end member on the rod member, a pin member mounted on the door of the fuse-box, said pin member being adapted to so engage the end member, that the door may not be opened if the fuses are connected to the circuit, a latch member, an auxiliary rod member, and a link member connecting the latch member and the auxiliary rod member, a resilient member'so associated with the auxiliary rod member as to actuate said rod member when the door is opened to turn said latch member by means of the. link member to a position wherein the actuating rod is so latched that said rod may not be actuated by the operating handle to introduce the fuses into the circuit.

4-. In a dead-front switch board, the com bination with an operating handle on the front of its panel and a fuse box at the rear of the panel havinga door, of fuses, an electric circuit associated therewith, switch members in the circuit adapted to introduce the fuses into the circuit, a latch for the door, means associated with the handle for preventing opening movement of the latch when the handle is in closed position and means controlled by the door for locking the handle in opcn position when the door is moved to open position.

In a dead-front switch board, the COI11- bination with an operating handle on the front of its panel and a fusc box at the rear of the panel having a door, of a morable switch member, means associated with the handle for actuating the movable switch member when the fuse box door is closed and a manually operable latch for the door and controlled by the said means for retaining the door in closed position so long as the switch is in closed position.

6. In a dead-front switch board, the combination with an operating handle on the front of its panel and a fuse box at the rear of the panel having a door, of a movable switch member, means associated with the handle for actuating the movable switch member when the fuse box door is closed and means controlled by the door normally tending to lock the said means against clos ing movement and held out of locking posi tion by the door when the door is in closed position.

7. In a dead-front switch board, the combination with an operating handle at the front of its panel and a fuse box at the rear of the panel having a door, of a movable switch member, means associated with the handle for actuating the movable switch member when the fuse box door is closed and means for locking the switch in open position operable from the rear of the panel and independently of the cover for releasing the switch.

8. In a dead-front switch board, the com bination with an operating handle at the rout of its panel and a fuse box at the rear of the panel having a door, of a movable switch member, means associated with the handle for actuating the movable switch member when the fuse box door is closed, means for locking the switch in open position and means operable from the roar of the panel and independently of the cover for releasing the locking means.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this twentyseventh day of October 1919.

HAROLD G. BAXIER.

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