US2974540A - Switch operating means - Google Patents

Description

March 14, 1961 R. J. BERTLING 2,974,540

SWITCH OPERATING MEANS Filed Sept. 25, 1959 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 v INVENTOR.

HanaZd J 567165279 E BY 1/7 zarrzqy March 14, 1961 R. J. BERTLING 2,974,540

SWITCH OPERATING MEANS Filed Sept. 23, 1959 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 IN VEN TOR. Ronald J fiartzzn BY fittorne y 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Ronald BY hed March 14, 1961 R. J. BERTLING SWITCH OPERATING MEANS Filed Sept. 25, 1959 SWITCH UPERATING MEANS Ronald J. Bertling, South Milwaukee, Wis., assignor to McGraw-Edison Company, Milwaukee, Wis, a corporation of Delaware Filed Sept. 23, 1959, 56!. No. senses 3 Claims. oi. 74-425 This invention relates to electrical switches and more particularly to a mechanism for manually operating electric switches or other devices from a remote location.

In electric power systems electric switches are frequently mounted a considerable height above the ground on wooden poles or other structures which support electrically live conductors at safe distances above traversed areas. To avoid having a lineman ascend the switch supporting structure when he desires to perform-a switch opening or closing operation, an elongated rotatable switch operating shaft is coupled to the switch and extends to a point accessiblev at ground level. In certain larger types of switching installations a considerable amount of torque is required to rotate the shaft and move the switch contacts to their open or closed positions. in such installations, gear reduction mechanisms are required in order to enable the opera-tor to operate the switch manually.

Prior art gear reduction mechanisms'were provided with a cup shaped drivingmandrel for receiving theend .of the switch operating shaft. As a result, the shafts utilized with such'devices had to be cut to a-predetermined sizeprior to their connectionto the gear reductionrnechanism. This was aggravated by the'fact that the location of disconnect switches-in any particular substation depends upon the design of the substation and generally varies between .diiterent installations.

In addition, it is generally desirable for safety and convenience, that all the operating mechanisms in a particular substation or system be designed to open their associated switches upon rotation in .a givendirection even though the directionofswitch operating shaft rotation required to open various switches may be different. With certain prior art gear reduction apparatus the reversal of output rotation could-not be achieved without complete disassembly. t

:It is. an object oftheinventionto provide agear reduction mechanism ,-for disconnect switches which may .be mounted at arty vverticallocation .relativeto the switch Without regard .to1,the length, ofthe switch shaft.

Zl'tlis another object of theinvention toprovidefa gear reduction mechanism in which the direction of output shaft rotation may easily be reversed for any given directionof handle rotation.

It is a-furtherobject ofthe invention to provide a-gear reduction mechanism with a self-locldngcranking handlewhich cannot become disengagedrfrom the inputshaft during rapid cranking operations.

- :It is yetanother objectof .thefiinvention toprovide a gear reductionrnechanisma'for disconnect switches having adjustablestop means whichnprevents overcranking of the I switch shaft and allows wideflcxibility in the angle of rotation.

Qther objects of'the invention become apparent 7 and Fig. 7 is a view taken along line 7-.7 of Fig. 5.

Referring now to the drawings in greater detail-Fig. 1 shows the gear reduction mechanism 10 according to the instant invention disposed in a housing 11 which is secured to a portion 12 of the substation superstructure by bolts 13. For purposes of illustration the mechanism is shown coupled to a rotating insulator, vertical air break switch 14 suitably mounted in vertical spaced relation above it on a horizontal superstructure cross member 15. The details of the particular air break switch illustrated in the drawing, are discussed in Patent No. 2,830,l,44, assigned to the assignee of the instant invention and-form no part of the invention disclosed herein. It will suifice for the purposes of this disclosure to state that upon rotation of the center insulator 16 in a first directionmovable contact blade 18 will be rotated out ofengagement with fixed contacts 20. Conversely, upon rotation of insulator 16 in anopposite direction switch blade 18 will be rotated into closed position as shown in Fig. 1. A vertical shaft 22 connects rotatable insulator io to the gear reduction mechanism it? so that rotation of operating handle 24 in a'first direction will opendisconnect switch 14 and subsequent rotation in the opposite direction will reclose said switch.

Referring now specifically to Figs. 3, 4, and 5, the' gear reduction mechanism according to the invention is shown to be coupled to the 'switch shaft 22 by means of a driving clamp 26 and includes a driving mandrel 28 for transmitting power from a gear 3d and a pinion 32 to the driving clamp 26. Pinion 32 is rotated manually byan operating handle -34. An adjustable stop assembly 35 is provided to limit the amount of shaft rotation to a me scribed angle:

and '40 respectively disposed in opposed relation on opposite sides of the switch shaft 22. A pair of clamping portions 42 and 42 extend tangentially from each of the clamping heads 37 and 37 which are secured by bolts 44 which extend through aligned openings in portions 42 and 42 and each of which carries a head 45 at one end for embracing the outer surface of one clamping head and which threadably receives a nut 46 at its other. It can be seen that by tightening nuts 46 the clamping heads 37 and 37' will be forced together thereby embracing switch shaft 22 in a compressive relation betweensurfaces 40 and 4h. Each of the clamping heads 37 and extend through radial threaded openings in each ofthe clamping heads and whose inner ends are forced through the surface of the switch shaft 22.

As shown in Figs. 3 and ithe body portions 38 and 38' of clamp members 36 and 36' are each provided with'a radially extending driving lug. 5t and 50 which are disposed in a pair of matching recesses 52 and 5 2 formed in the interior of the driving mandrehzfi and 7 Patented Mar. 14, 1961.

- receives shaft 56 of the pinion 32.

3 near its upper end. It can thus be seen upon rotation of driving mandrel 28, recesses 52 and 52 engage lugs 50 and 50' respectively to rotate the clamping head 26 and thus the switch shaft 22.

Disposed at the right side of the housing 11 as viewed in Fig. 4 is a pinion bearing assembly 54 which rotatably The bearing assembly 54 is of the roller type and allows rotation of pinion 32 with a minimum of frictional drag.

The illustrated gear 30 and pinion 32 are of the Spiroid type although it will be understood that any suitable gear may be utilized. Gear 30 is mechanically coupled to driving mandrel 28 by means of a pair of keys 58 residing in opposed keyways 60 and 62 disposed in each of the opposite sides of the driving mandrel 28 and the gear 30 respectively.

The driving mandrel 28 is rotatably supported in housing 11 by means of upper and lower ball bearing assemblies 64 and 66 respectively. An annular outer face 68 and 69 for each of the bearing assemblies 64 and 66 respectively is disposed in suitably formed inwardly extending continuous flange portions 70 and 71 integrally formed at the upper and lower ends of the housing 11 and which surround the switch shaft 22. The inner race 72 of the upper ball bearing assembly 64 is integral with the outer surface of driving mandrel 28 near its upper end and is formed by the junction of the surfaces of an outwardly extending flange portion 74 and the outer surface of the main body of the driving mandrel itself. A cylindrical sleeve member 75, telescopically engaging the driving mandrel 28 at its lower end, and having an outwardly extending annular flange 76, forms the inner race 78 for the lower ball bearing assembly 66.

The lower end of driving mandrel 28 is provided with a threaded portion 80 for receiving a locknut 82 and a lockwasher 84 which supports the gear 30 and secures the ball bearing assemblies 64 and 66.

The adjustable stop assembly is shown in Fig. 6 to include first and second stop rings 86 and 87 respectively. The upper surface of the flange 74 on driving mandrel 28 is provided with serrations 88 which cooperatively engage matching serrations 89 in the lower surface of a first stop ring 86. Similarly, the upper surface of stop ring 86 is provided with serrations 90 for cooperatively engaging matching serrations 92 on the lower surface of a second stop ring 87. Each of the stop rings 86 and 87 is provided with an outwardly extending enlarged stop portion 96 and 98 respectively for cooperatively engaging an upwardly extending stop 100 integral with the upper end of the housing 11 thereby limiting the driving mandrels angle of rotation.

In assembly the first stop ring 86 is placed on flange 74 with enlarged portion 96 disposed at a first prescribed angle relative to stop 100. and with serrations 88 and S9 in meshing engagement. Similarly the second stop ring 87 is placed on the first stop ring 86 with enlarged portion 98 disposed at a second prescribed angle relative to stop 100 and with serration 90 and 92 in engagement. A retaining ring 102 is then placed over the upper side of stop ring 87 and the assembly is secured by bolts 103 (only one of which is shownin Fig. 6). Serrations 105 on the upper surface of stop ring 87 are not utilized but are shown in the drawings to illustrate that stop rings 86 and 87 are identical although the latter is reversed relative to the former so that stop portion 96 extends upwardly while stop portion 98 extends downwardly.

It can thus be seen that a rigid connection is achieved between driving mandrel 28 and stop portions 96 and 98 so that clockwise rotation of driving mandrel 28, as viewed in Fig. 4, is limited by the stop portion 98 while clockwise rotation thereof is limited by stop portion 96. If it is desired to change the driving mandrels angle of rotation in either direction, stop rings 86 and 87 are merely removed and replaced with stops 96 and 98 in the proper positions relative to stop 100 to provide the desired angle of rotation. Hence, because of the wide range of angles available with the adjustable stop assembly 35 the gear reduction mechanism according to the instant invention can be adapted to a large variety and types of switches. Also, it can be seen that :by adjusting the angle of rotation of the switch shaft 22 in both the switch opening and closing directions, overcranking of the switch by the operator is prevented.

As seen in Fig. 3 driving mandrel 28 has an axial bore 101 extending therethrough which increases the devices flexibility in two important respects. First, this allows the gear reduction mechanism according to the invention to be located at any vertical location relative to the switch 14 without regard to the length of the switch shaft 22. This is illustrated in Fig. 2 wherein full lines show the gear reduction mechanism 10 located on a first cross piece 12 adjacent the end of the switch shaft 22. If it is desired, however, to move gear box mechanism 10 to a second superstructure member 12 located intermediate the ends of the switch shaft 22, bolts 13 are removed, nuts 46 are loosened and the self-piercing set screws 48 are rotated out of engagement with the switch shaft 22. This frees the assembly for vertical movement relative to switch 14 to a second superstructure member 12', whereupon bolts 13 and nuts 46 are retightened and self-piercing set screws are again forced into the switch shaft 22 at this new location.

Another important advantage of the mechanism over prior art devices is illustrated by a comparison of Figs. 1 and 2. In Fig. 2, it can be seen that clockwise rotation of switch handle 24 produces clockwise rotation in switch shaft 22 and rotatable insulator 16. In Fig. 1, on the other hand, it can be seen that clockwise rotation of handle 24 produces a counterclockwise rotation of switch shaft rotatable insulator 16. This reversal of direction in switch shaft rotation for any given direction of handle rotation is achieved by assembling the device with the housing 11, the gear 30, and pinion 32 in a reversed position with respect to that shown in Fig. 3. In other words, the housing 11, the gear 30, and the pinion 32 are turned upside down from their position shown in Fig. 3 and then reassembled on the driving mandrel so that the gear 30 is upside down. This allows the direction of mandrel and, hence, switch shaft rotation to be reversed for any given direction of handle rotation. In this manner, uniformity of handle rotation for opening and closing of switches in any particular substation may be achieved even though the direction of shaft rotation necessary to operate various types of switches may be different. As a result, inadvertent opening or closing of switches by rotating of the handle in a wrong direction is substantially minimized. When the housing 11 is in this reversed position, a second stop member shown at the lower end of said housing in Fig. 3, is in position to be engaged by stop portions 96 and 98.

It has been found that when the disconnect switch 14 is coated with ice, rapid handle rotation is necessary in order to generate sufficient speed to break the ice and thereby close or open the switch. For this reason, handle 24 is provided with a resilient retaining clip 104 to prevent the handle from flying off" and striking the operator during such rapid operations. Referring now to Fig. 4, switch handle 34 is shown to be provided with a socket 106 near one end for engaging the end of the pinion shaft 56 and a hub 108 having an axial bore 110 in registry with socket 106. A first portion of the retaining clip 104 is disposed between the end of the switch handle 34 and hub 108 and has an opening 111 in alignment with bore 110 to allow the end of pinion shaft 56 to pass through. A plurality of screws 112 which pass through suitably threaded openings in the end of the switch handle 34 and hub 108, secure said hub and retainingclip 104 in position. As shown in Fig. 4, retaining'clip 104 is bent back upon itself at a point adjacent the end of the handle 34 and toward the pinion shaft 56 to form a rearwardly extending portionllit which includes a second opening 114 for receiving pinion shaft 56 at a point beyond the end of hub 108 and which terminates in a finger tab 116. When it is desired to place handle 34 on pinion shaft 56, finger tab 116 is depressed to the dotted position shown in Fig. 4 to place opening 114 in substantial registry with bore 110 of hub 108 and the assembly is placed on shaft 56. When the handle is in position, finger tab 116 is released and the resiliency of member 1524 returnsportion 113 to its full position shown in Fig. 4 wherein the upper and lower. edges of opening 114 are forced into tight compressive relation with pinion shaft 156. As a result, handle 34 is locked to the end of pinion shaft 56 until finger tab 116 is again depressed whereupon said handle may be removed.

As seen in Figs. 5 and 7 handle 34 is provided with an aperture 118 adjacent the hand grip 119 having a configuration similar to that of the end of the pinion shaft 56. This allows handle 34 to be placed in a storage position, shown by dotted lines in Fig. 5, with the end of pinion shaft 5d in aperture 118 and with a second elongated aperture 120 adjacent hub 108 disposed over a locking car 122 integral with the side of the housing 11. It can be seen that when the handle is in its stored position, accidental rotation of the pinion shaft 56 is impossible so that the switch can neither he accidentally opened or closed without removal of the handle from its stored position. Locking ear 122 may be provided with an aperture for receiving a conventional padlock 123 so that removal of handle 34' and operation of the switch by unauthorized persons may be prevented.

While only a single embodiment of the invention has been shown and described, it is intended to cover in the appended claims all modifications which fall within the true spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. An operating mechanism for an electric switch provided with an actuating shaft, said operating mechanism having a housing'and driving means rotatably mounted therein, stop means rigidly secured to said housing, said driving means having a first indexing means, a first stop ring having second and third indexing means and a radially extending stop portion, a second stop ring having a radially extending stop portion and a fourth indexing means, said first and second indexing means and said third and fourth indexing means being releasably engageable to position, each of said stop rings in one of a plurality of positions relative to said stop means so that said rings and said stop portions are rotatable with said driving means, said stop means lying in the path of said stop portions so that the angle that said driving means is free to rotate in either direction is limited to a prescribed value predetermined by the angular positions of said stop rings.

2. An operating mechanism for an electric switch provided with an actuating shaft, said operating mechanism having a housing and driving means rotatably mounted therein, said driving means having a serrated surface substantially normal to its axis of rotation, a first stop ring having serrations on each of its opposite faces and a radially extending stop portion, one of said serrated faces meshingly engaging said serrated surface, a second stop ring having a radially extending stop portion and at least one serrated face meshingly engaging the other serrated face of said first stop ring whereby said first and second stop rings and said step portions are rotatable with said driving means, stop means rigidly secured to said housing and lying in the path of said stop portions so that the angle that said driving means is free to rotate in either direction is limited to a predetermined value, and means for rigidly connecting said driving means to said actuating shaft. 7

3. An operating mechanism for an electric switch provided with'an actuating shaft, said mechanism including 6 a housing having a pair of apertures formed in substantially opposite sides thereof for receiving said actuating shaft and bearing means substantially coaxial with said opening, a driving mandrel, a first holding means for releasably securing said driving mandrel for rotation in said bearing means, said driving mandrel having an axial bore therethrough for slidably receiving said actuating shaft, means for releasably connecting said driving mandrel to said actuating shaft so that rotation of said driving mandrel in a first direction will operate said switch toward open position and rotation thereof in an opposite direction will operate said switch toward closed position, reversible gear reduction means including a first gear means disposed within said housing and surrounding said driving mandrel and a second gear means meshingly engaging said first gear means and including a driving shaft rotatably mounted in said housing, and a second holding means for releasably securing said first gear means to said driving mandrel so that rotation of said driving shaft in one direction will turn said driving mandrel in its first direction, said housing and said first gear means being reversible relative to said driving mandrel upon the release of said first and second holding means so that said actuating shaft extends through the other. of said apertures and said driving mandrel rotates in its opposit'e direction upon rotation of said driving shaft in said one direction.

4. An operating mechanism for an electric switch operable upon rotation of an actuating shaft connected thereto, said mechanism including a housing having a pair of apertures formed in substantially opposite sides thereof for receiving said actuating shaft, a driving mandrel rotatably mounted in said housing in a substantially coaxial relation relative to said apertures, a first releasable holding means for securing said driving mandrel in said housing, said driving mandrel having an axial bore therethrough for slidably receiving said actuating shaft through one of said apertures and being releasably connected to said actuating shaft so that rotation of said driving mandrel in a first direction will operate said switch toward open position and rotation thereof in an opposite direction will operate said switch toward closed position, reversible gear reduction means disposed Within said housing and including rotatable driving shaft means, and releasable holding means for operatively connecting said gear reduction means to said driving mandrel so that rotation of said driving shaft means in one direction will turn said driving mandrel in its first direction, said housing and said gear reduction means being reversible relative to said driving mandrel and said switch shaft upon the release of said first and second holding means so that said actuating shaft extends. through the other of said apertures and said driving mandrel rotates in its opposite direction upon rotation of said driving shaft means in said one direction.

5. An operating mechanism for an electric switch having an actuating shaft, said mechanism including a housing, a driving mandrel operatively connected to said actuating shaft, a first holding means for releasably securing said driving mandrel for rotation in said housing, a reversible gear reduction means including a first and second gear means in meshing engagement, a second holding means for releasably connecting said first gear means to said driving mandrel so that rotation of said second gear means in a first direction will operate said driving mandrel and said actuating shaft in a switch closing direction and rotation thereof in a second direction will operate said driving mandrel and said actuating shaft in a switch opening direction, said housing and said gear reduction means being reversible relative to said driving mandrel upon the release of said first and second holde ing means so that rotation of said second gear means in its first direction will rotate said driving mandrel in a switch opening direction.

6. A gear reduction mechanism for an electric switch having an actuating shaft, said mechanism including driving mandrel means securable to said shaft means, means including a shaft for rotating said driving means to op erate said switch, a handle for said shaft having a socket slidably engageable with said shaft to form a driving connection therewith, a substantially V-shaped spring clip 'rneans having a pair of normally non-parallel legs, one

of said legs being secured to said handle and having an opening formed therein and disposed in substantial registry with said socket, said other leg having an opening formed therein whose axis is normally inclined relative to the opening in said one leg, said other leg being movable toward parallelism with said first leg in opposition to the resiliency of spring clip means to move the opening therein toward coaxiality with the opening in said first leg so that said openings are slidable over said shaft, release of said other leg for movement toward its normal position under the influence of said resiliency causing the edges of its opening to engage the sides of said shaft thereby preventing axial movement of said socket relative to said shaft.

7. An operating mechanism having a housing and driving means rotatably mounted therein, stop means rigidly secured to said housing, said driving means having a first indexing means, first and second stop members each having indexing means and a stop portion extending therefrom, the indexing means on said first and second a stop members being releasably engageable with said first of Said stop portions so that the angle that said driving means is free to rotate in either direction is limited to a prescribed value determined by the position of said stop members.

8. An operating mechanism including driving means and means'including a shaft for rotating said driving means, a removable handle for said shaft, socket means formed in said handle and having an opening for receiving said shaft to form a driving connection therewith, spring clip means having a pair of normally nonparallel legs, one of said legs being secured to the handle adjacent said socket, said other leg having an aperture formed therein whose axis is normally inclined relative to the opening in said socket, said other leg being movable toward parallelism with said first leg in opposition to the resiliency of said spring clip means References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,605,978 Oxer Nov. 9, 1926 2,023,752 Thieme Dec. 10, 1935 2,498,957 Jordan Feb. 28, 1950 2,529,597 Doth Nov. 14, 1950 2,581,123 Merkle Jan. 1, 1952 2,724,283 Kuboske Nov. 22, 1955

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