US3343109A

US3343109A - Circuit breaker assembly

Info

Publication number: US3343109A
Application number: US483718A
Authority: US
Inventors: Charles L Jencks; George W Kiesel
Original assignee: General Electric Co
Current assignee: General Electric Co
Priority date: 1965-08-30
Filing date: 1965-08-30
Publication date: 1967-09-19
Anticipated expiration: 1984-09-19
Also published as: GB1130641A; DE1640171B2; ES330439A1; DE1640171A1

Description

SePt- 19, 1967 c. l.. JENCKs ETAL 3,343,109

CIRCUIT BREAKER ASSEMBLY Filed Aug. 50, 1965 4 Sheets-Shea?l 2 I NVENTORS CHARLES L. L//vcxs, GEORGE W /ESEL Sept. 19, 1967 Q L, JENCKS ETAL 3,343,109

' CIRCUIT BREAKER ASSEMBLY Filed Aug. 3o, 1965 4 sheets-sheet s INVENTORS CHARLES L/E/vcKs,

GEORGE /ESEL Sept 19, 1.967 c. L. JENcKs r-:TAL 3,343,109

CIRCUITA BREAKER ASSEMBLY 4 sheets-sheen 4 Filed Aug. 30. 1965 NVENTORS CHARM: s k/ffvc/fs, GEORGE IA/ /gsa B Y WM @L7 T TORNE Y United States Patent O 3,343,109 CIRCUIT BREAKER ASSEMBLY Charles L. `lencks, Avon, and George W. Kiesel, Unionville, Conn., assiguors to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York Filed Aug. 30, 1965, Ser. No. 483,718

21 Claims. (Cl. 335-26) ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE A circuit breaker mechanism including a toggle linkage connected between a contact arm and a releasable support member, and an operating spring having one end iixedly mounted and biasing the contact arm toward closed position at all times when the releasable support is in latched position and biasing the contact arm open when the releasable support is in released condition; a manually operable rotatable cam member acts through a pivoted operating arm on the toggle linkage to reset the mechanism from released to relatched condition and suddenly releases the mechanism to permit rapid closing under the force of the operating spring after such relatchng has occurred.

This invention relates to electric circuit breakers and, more particularly, to a novel manually and automatically operable electric circuit breaker assembly of the releasable cradle and toggle type for use in circuits carrying relatively high currents.

In employing circuit breakers to open and close circuits carrying relatively large currents, it is necessary to operate large contacts at high speeds and to exert high contact pressures which generally requires the employment of powerful springs to operate the circuit breaker mechanism effectively. It is difficult for the average person to operate circuit breakers of this type due to the large spring force that necessarily must be overcome to reset the operating mechanism, and various mechanical means have been employed or proposed to facilitate operation of such circuit breaker mechanisms. Many of these devices are eX- pensive to manufacture and/ or cumbersome in operation.

It is an object of this invention to provide a novel circuit breaker assembly for relatively hi-gh currents and voltages -that utilizes a relatively compact and simplified operating mechanism for positioning a toggle-operated mechanism against the bias of a powerful operating spring.

It is also an object to provide such a circuit breaker operating mechanism of the type having a novel and rapidly operating toggle linkage and readily resettab-le by an operating lever.

Another object is to provide such a circuit breaker assembly wherein the toggle mechanism may be operated against the spring by a readily rotatable, manually operable mechanism Which also indicates the position of the contacts, if desired.

Yet another object is to provide such a circuit breaker assembly wherein a rotatable mechanism may be used for resetting the operating mechanism of the circuit breaker by movements over relatively short space.

An additional object of this invention is to provide a novel circuit breaker of the type having a releasable cradle operating mechanism wherein the contact arm is rotated rapidly and forcefully to the closed position after the supporting releasable cradle has been reset to the fixed or operating position.

Other objects and advantages will be readily apparent from the following detailed specification and the appended claims.

It has now been found that the foregoing objects and other advantages can be readily attained in a circuit breaker having a support, a fixed contact on the support, and a movable contact arm pivoted on the support and providing a movable contact for engagement and the fixed contact and pivotable into a closed position with its contact in engagement with the xed contact and into an open position away therefrom. A releasable member is pivoted on the support and is normally engaged with and held in fixed position by operating means on the support which is releasable therefrom to release the releasable member from the iixed position to permit it to pivot and move the contact arm away from the fixed contact. A toggle linkage between the releasable member and the contact arm positions the releasable member and the contact arm in open and closed position, and a spring with one end fixed to the support and the -other end engaged with the toggle linkage biases the toggle linkage to closed contact position in the fixed position of the releasable member and also 'biases the releasable member away from the fixed contact upon release from the operating means. A resetting means is utilized for moving the toggle linkage and releasable member against the action of the spring to engage the releasable member with the operating means in the fixed position and for releasing the toggle linkage uponengagement of the releasable member in the fixed position so that the contact arm rotates rapidly to the closed position. The resetting means includes a resetting member engageable with the toggle linkage in the open position thereof for movement of the releasable member into engagement with the operating means and permitting rapid movement of the toggle linkage to closed position upon engagement of the releasable member by the operating means.

The resetting member employed in the present invention is a lever pivotably mounted on the support and operable upon pivoting of one end thereof with its other end engaging the toggle linkage, most conveniently by provision of a recess or notch in the other end of the lever which receives the shaft pin connecting the links of the toggle for movement to engage the releasable member upon the operating means. In accordance with conventional practice the operating means is a pivotable latch member operable upon a plurality of conditions including manual actuation by a rod, electromagnetic acuation upon sudden large current -overloads or overheating of a bimetallic strip produced by small continuous overloads in current.

For highly advantageous operation the movable contact arm is pivotably mounted on the support adjacent one end thereof and provides the contact point adjacent the other end thereof and the releasable member is pivotably mounted on the support adjacent one end thereof with its other end held in latched position by the operating means. The toggle linkage has one link pivotably connected to the releasable member intermediate the length thereof and a second link pivotably connected to the contact arm intermediate the length thereof with a pivot pin connecting the toggle links at the knee of the linkage. The spring operating the toggle linkage has its xed end mounted on the support at a point spaced towards the fixed contact from a line drawn between the pivoted connection of the links to the contact arm and releasable member in the closed position of the Contact arm so that the spring is generally constantly biasing the toggle linkage to closed contact position in the lixed position of the releasable member and in the released position of the releasable member dra-ws the releasable member and Contact arm away from the fixed contact. From a standpoint of minimizing the size of the assembly and improving the operation of the lever, a generally V-shaped member is employed as the lever and mounted adjacent its apex.

For operating the lever a cam is most desirably employed which is supported upon a shaft rotatably mounted on the support and which has its periphery engaged with the one end of the lever and so configured as to pivot the lever in one direction upon rotation thereof to move the releasable member intoy latching engagement with the operating means and configured thereafter to release the lever from the pivoted position for rapid movement in the opposite direction under the action of the spring. In order to effect rotation of the cam, a handle is mounted on the shaft outwardly of the support for engagement by the user to rotate the shaft and thereby the cam for pivoting of the lever. In its preferred aspect suitable means are provided for preventing rotation of the cam in one direction such as a plurality of pawls in the cam engageable with shoulders on the shaft. In this manner a ratchet may be mounted on the shaft as the operating handle so as to permit rotation of the cam through 360 although the ratchet might be operated through a far smaller arc.

As will be readily appreciated, the contact arm and the xed contact are electrically connected to the load and line terminals on the support and various other elements of conventional circuit breaker structure may desirably be employed in conjunction with the novel toggle and resetting assembly of the present invention.

In operation of the invention it can be seen that the tension springs are constantly biasing the toggle links towards a condition which tends to position the contact arm in the closed position when the releasable cradle is latched in the lixed position by the operating means. However, the same tension springs also function to apply an upward force through the toggle linkage which biases the releasable member and contact arm toward a tripped position upon release by the latch of the releasable member so that the toggle links are lbuckled in the opposite direction to pivot the releasable member and contact arm away from the Iixed contact to the tripped position.

For a more complete understanding of the present invention, reference is now made to the following detailed specification and to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE l is a side elevational View of a circuit breaker assembly embodying the present invention with the housing broken away and certain components in section for clarity of illustration and showing the moving elements in the closed position;

FIGURE 2A is an enlarged side elevational view of the moving elements of the circuit breaker of FIGURE 1 in the tripped condition; FIGURE 2B is a top View of the cam and lever in this condition;

FIGURE 3A is similar to FIGURE 2A and shows the position of the moving elements with the cam rotated 90; FIGURE 3B is a partial top view of the cam and lever in this condition;

FIGURE 4A is similar to FIGURE 2A and shows the position of the moving elements with the cam rotated 180;

FIGURE 4B is a partial top View of the cam and lever in this condition;

FIGURE 5A is similar to FIGURE 2A and shows the moving elements with the cam rotated 330 and the latch or releasable member in position to engage the cradle;

FIGURE 5B is a partial top view of the cam and lever in this condition;

FIGURE 6A is similar to FIGURE 2A and shows the moving elements reset upon rotation of the cam 360; and

FIGURE 6B is a top View of the cam and lever in this position with the cover plate of the cam removed to show internal construction.

Referring now in detail to the attached drawings, therein illustrated is a circuit breaker assembly embodying the present invention and having a housing, generally designated by the numeral 2 with a load terminal 4 and a line terminal `6 connected to the fixed contact 8 thereon. Pivotably mounted on the housing 2 by the pivot pin 10 is the pivoted end portion 12 of the releasable member or cradle generally designated by the numeral 14. The opposite end or latch portion 16 of the releasable member CII 14 is engaged with the shoulder 18 on the latch member, generally designated by the numeral 20, which is pivotably mounted on the housing 2 by the pivot pin 21. The latch member 20 is biased into engagement with the releasable member 14 by the action of the spring 22 mounted on the support element 24 on the housing 2 and is limited in its movement by the stop 26 on the housing 2.

Pivotably mounted on the support element 28 of the housing 2 by a pivot pin 30 is one end of a generally channel-shaped contact arm, generally designated by the numeral 32. A contact member 33 is also pivotably mounted on the pivot pin 30 within the contact arm 32, and carries a contact 34 at its outer end. A compression spring 35 is provided between the contact member 33 and the contact arm 32. The cradle 14 and contact arm 32 are connected intermediate their ends by the

pivot pins

36, 38 to the toggle linkage provided by the

toggle links

40, 42 which are pivotably connected to each other by the knee pin 44. The toggle linkage is biased toward straightened condition by a pair of tension springs 46 (the second spring is behind the cradle 14) which are engaged with the knee pin 44 at one end and attached to the pin 48 fixedly carried by the housing 2, at the other end.

The xed ends of the tension springs 46 are thus spaced toward the ixed contact 8 to the side of the line drawn between the

pivot pins

36, 38 for the

toggle links

40, 42 in the latched position of the cradle 14. Thus, the springs bias the toggle links 40, 42 toward the fixed contact 8 to hold the contact arm 32 in firm contact with the'ixed contact 8 in the latched position of the cradle 14 as shown in FIGURE 1. At the same time, the springs l46 tend to rotate the cradle 14 in a clockwise direction about the pivot pin 10 to hold the latch portion 16 against the shoulder 18 of the latch member 20.

The cradle 14 is releasable by the latch member 20 manually by pushing upon the push rod 50 which has one end extending outwardly of the housing 2 and which in turn will push upon the arm 52 of the latch member 20 to rotate it counterclockwise against the biasing pressure of the spring 22. Upon movement of the shoulder 18 from the latch portion 16, the cradle 14 rotates in -a clockwise direction under the pressure of the tension springs 46 which apply an upward lforce on the knee pin 44 and cause the

toggle links

40, 42 to buckle away from the iixed contact 8 until the cradle 14 abuts against the pin 48 and the contact arm abuts against the stop 53 as shown in FIGURE 2A, the condition therein illustrated being the tripped condition.

The latch member 20 is also releasable by the action of a small continuous overload current passing through the bimetallic strip 54 which has its free end connected to the upper end of the latch member 20 Iby the connecting rod 56. The bimetallic strip 54 is electrically connected to the load terminal 4 by the flexible cable 58 and willbe distorted away from the latch member 20y by an overload current passing therethrough so as to pull against the latch member 20 through the connecting rod 56 and thereby pivot the latch member 20 against the action of the spring 22 to release the cradle 14.

The latch member 20 is also releasable rapidly upon a sudden large overload current through the action of the solenoid 60 which is connected to the bimetallic strip 54 and to the contact member 33 by the ileXi'ble cables 62, 64. The solenoid 60 is mounted on'the bracket 66 upon which is pivotably mounted the armature 68, and a sudden large overload current will cause the solenoid 60 to draw the armature 68 downwardly against the pressure of the spring 70 and cause it to bear against the arm 52 of tlhe latch member 20' to pivot it and release the cradle 14.

Thus, it can be seen that the latch member 20 can be actuated to release the cradle 14 manually yby the push rod 50 or by the bi-metalllic strip 54 and solenoid 60 in the event of overload conditions in the current passing between the load terminal 4 and the line terminal 6 therethrough and through the fixed contact 8 and the contact arm 32. In accordance with desirable practice, an arc chute or shield 72 is provided about the fixed contact 8 to extinguish arcs `formed during opening and closing of the contacts. To minimize arcing, the springs 46 are selected to exert high pressures on the toggle linkage and thereby to move the contact arm 32 rapidly towards and away from the fixed contact 8.

In order to reset the circuit breaker assembly from the tripped position sho/wn in FIGURE 2A to the closed position shown in FIGURE 1 against the high pressure of the springs `46, resetting means are provided including the generally V-shaped resetting Ilever, generally designated by the numeral 74, which is pivotably mounted on the housing 2 by the pivot pin 76. The lever 74 has a bifurcated portion 78 providing a recess 79 and with the prong 80 closest t-he fixed contact 8 longer than the prong 82. As seen in FIGURE 1, the inner surface of the prong 80 bears against the knee pin 44 of the toggle linkage in the closed position and, as seen in FIGURE 2, the knee pin 44 is received Within the recess 79 in che tripped position. The `opposite end of the resetting lever 74 has a shaft 84 mounted thereon rotatably carrying the cam roller 86 which engages the periphery of a disc-type cam generally designated by the numeral 88. The cam 88 is mounted on the shaft 90l which has one end rotatably -supported in the bracket 92 on the housing 2 and the other end portion 94 extending outwardly of the housing 2. A handle 96 is mounted on the end shaft portion 94 and held in assembly to the housing 2 by the plate 98 on the interior of the housing 2 and fasteners 100I so that it will rotate the cam shaft 90.

lIn this embodiment, the cam 88 is constructed so that it will rotate in only direction, thus permitting a ratchettype rotation of the handle 94 over only small arcs to permit use in confined spaces while effecting full rotation of the cam 88. As best vseen in FIGURE 6B, the cam 88 has a body portion 102 providing a peripheral camming surface 104 of increasing radius in a counterclockwise direction from the notch 106 and with several steps 107. Within the 'body portion 102 are recesses 108 in which are seated pawls 110 which are biased by springs 112 into engagement with teeth or shoulders 114 on the cam shaft 90 so that it will rotate with the shaft 90 only in the clockwise direction. The pawls 110 and springs 112 are held within the recesses 108 by the cover plate 116 shown in FIGURE 1. Thus, the cam 88 permits steptype ratcheted operation of the resetting lever 74 against the pressure of the springs 46 and then suddenly releases it to close the

contacts

8, 34 rapidly as will be explained more fully hereinafter by reference to the partial views of the primary moving elements.

FIGURES l, 6A and 6B illustrate the moving elements in the closed position with the cam roller 86 on the resetting lever disposed within the notch 106 of the cam 88 and the

contacts

8, 34 closed with the springs 46 applying pressure through the knee pin 44 to the toggle linkage tending to draw it towards the fixed contact `8.

Upon pivoting of the latch member by the push rod 50, bi-metallic strip 54 or solenoid 60, the springs 46 rotate the now released cradle 14 in a clockwise direction, buckle the toggle linkage away from the fixed contact 8 and lift the contact arm 32 rapidly from the fixed contact 8 until the cradle 14 abuts against the pin 48 and the contact arm abuts against the stop 53. The knee pin 44 of the toggle linkage is firmly seated within the recess 79v of the resetting lever. This is the tripped position shown in FIGURE 2A and, as more clearly shown in FIGURE 2B, the cam rolle-r 86 of the resetting lever 74 is moved outwardly of the notch 106 in the cam 88.

In resetting the assembly from this tripped position, the operator rotates the handle 96 in a clockwise direction, thus imparting rotation to the shaft 90 and the cam 88 which is engaged therewith by the pawls 110. Since ratchet-type operation of the handle 96 is often preferable, rotation of about is first effected to the position of the elements shown in FIGURES 3A and 3B where the cam roller 86 is shown in a first step 107 in the periphery of the cam 88. The upper end of the resetting lever 74 is pivoted towards the fixed contact 8 by the increasing radius of the camming surface 104 and its bifurcated end portion 78 lacts on the toggle linkage through the knee pin 44. The contact arm 32 is prevented from pivoting by the stop 53 but the movement of the toggle links 40, 42 draws the latch portion 16 of the cradle 14 downwardly and tensions the springs 46.

In FIGURES 4A and 4B, further rotation of the handle 9 6 has rotated the cam 88 180 and the cam roller 86 is in a second step 107. The resetting lever 74 has been pivoted still further towards the fixed contact 8, and the bifurcated end portion 78 has continued to act upon the toggle linkage through the knee pin 44 to draw the latch portion 16 of the cradle 14 further towards the latch member 20 and to tension further the springs 46.

In FIGURES 5A and 5B, the rotation of the handle 96 has progressed to advance the cam 88 about 330 to the point where the cam roller 86 is about to drop into the notch 106. The upper end of the resetting lever has -been pivoted well towards the fixed contact 8 and the latch portion 16 of the cradle 14 has been moved downwardly to cam the latch member 20 against the spring 22 and past the shoulder 18. This pivoting of the resetting lever 74 has elongated the springs 46 to store great energy therein.

As the rotation of the cam 88 continues, the cam roller 86 drops into the notch 106 and allows the upper end of the resetting lever 74 to pivot rapidly away from the fixed contact 8 while the cradle latch portion 16 is engaged by the shoulder 18 of the latch member 20. The toggle linkage is straightened rapidly in the direction toward the fixed contact 8 by the stored pressure of the springs 46 to drive the contact arm 32 rapidly against the fixed contact 8. The cam roller 86 is engaged within the notch 106 to prevent further rotation of the cam 88 and pivoting `of the lever 74 until such time as the circuit breaker assembly is tripped.

Thus, it can be seen that the present invention provides a novel circuit breaker assembly that utilizes a relatively compact and simplified operating mechanism for positioning the toggle elements against the bias of powerful operating springs by use of a resetting lever which may be moved gradually to tension the springs and then released to move the contacts together rapidly and forcefully. The apparatus may employ a rotatable handle of the ratchettype for actuating the resetting lever for optimum operation in a confined space and may be adapted to a wide variety of circuit breaker assemblies.

It is well understood that various changes in the details, materials, and arrrangement of parts, which have been herein described and illustrated in order to explain the nature of the invention, may -be made by those skilled in the art within the principle and scope of the invention as expressed in the claims.

Having thus described the invention, we claim:

1. A circuit breaker assembly comprising:

(a) a support;

(b) a fixed contact on said support;

(c) a movable contact arm pivotably mounted on said support adjacent one end thereof and providing la contact adjacent the other end thereof for engagement -with said fixed contact, said contact arm being pivotable into a closed position with its contact in engagement with said fixed contact and into an open position away therefrom;

(d) a releasable member pivotably mounted on said support adjacent one end thereof;

(e) latch means on said support normally engaged with and holding the other end of said releasable member in a latched position and operable to release said other end `of said releasable member from said latched position for movement of said contact arm away from said fixed contac-t;

(f) a toggle linkage having one link pivotably connected to said releasable member intermediate the length thereof, a second link pivotably connected to said contact arm intermediate the length thereof, and a pvot pin connecting said toggle links, said toggle linkage positioning said releasable member and said contact arm in open and closed position;

(g) a spring having one end fixedly mounted on said support vat a point spaced towards said fixed contact from a line drawn between the point of connection of said links to said contact arm and the point of connection of said links to said releasable member in the closed position of said contact arm, said spring having its other end engaged with said toggle linkage and biasing said toggle linkage to closed contact position in the fixed position of said releasable member and biasing said releasable member for rotation in opening direction upon release from said operating means; and

(h) resetting means for moving said toggle linkage and releasable member against the action of said spring to engage said releasable member with said latch means in said latched position and for releasing said toggle linkage upon engagement of said releasable member in said latched position to rotate said contact arm rapidly to the closed position under the action of said spring, said resetting means including a resetting member engaged with said toggle linkage in the open position thereof for movement rof said releasable member into engagement with said latch means and permitting rapid movement of said toggle linkage to the closed position upon engagement of said releasable member with said latch means.

2. The circuit breaker assembly of claim 1 wherein said resetting member is a lever piv-otably mounted on said support and operable upon pivoting of one end thereof.

3. The circuit breaker assembly of claim 2 wherein said pivot pin of said toggle linkage is elongated and said lever has a recess in the other end thereof receiving said toggle linkage pivot pin for movement of said toggle linkage.

4. The circuit breaker assembly of claim 2 wherein said lever is generally V-shaped and is pivoted on said support adjacent the apex thereof at a point spaced to the opposite side of the said line between the pivots of said toggle links to said releasable member and contact arm from said fixed Contact.

5. A circuit breaker assembly comprising:

(a) a support;

(b) a fixed Contact on said support;

(c) a movable contact arm pivoted on said support and providing a contact for said engagement with said iixed contact, said contact arm being pivotable into a closed position with its contact in engagement with said fixed contact and into an open position away therefrom;

(d) a releasable member pivoted on said support;

(e) latch means on said support normally engaged with and holding said releasable member in latched position and operable to release said releasable member from said latched position for movement of said contact arm away from said fixed contact;

(f) a toggle linkage between said releasable member and said contact arm for positioning said releasable member and said contact arm in open and closed position;

(g) a spring having one end fixedly and immovably mounted on said support and the other end engaged with said toggle linkage and biasing said toggle linkage to closed contact position in said latched position of said releasable member and said releasable member away from said fixed contact upon release from said operating means, and

8. (h) resetting means for moving said toggle linkage and releasable member against the action of said spring to engage said releasable member with said operating means in said latched position and for releasing said toggle linkage upon engagement of said releasable member in said latched position to rotate said contact arm rapidly to the closed position under the action of said spring, said resetting means including a lever pivotably mounted on said support and operable upon pivoting of one end thereof, said lever having its other end engaged with said toggle linkage in the open position thereof for movement of said releasable member into engagement with said operating means and permitting rapid movement of said toggle linkage l to the closed position upon engagement of said releasable member with said operating means, a cam mounted on a shaft rotatably mounted on said support and engaged with said one end of said lever, said cam being configured to pivot said lever in one direction upon rotation thereof to move said releasable member into engagement with said operating means and configured thereafter to release said lever from said pivoted position for rapid movement in the opposite direction under the action of spring, and a handle on said cam shaft outwardly of said support for engagement by a user to rotate said shaft and thereby said cam for pivoting of said lever.

6. The circuit breaker assembly of claim 5 wherein said toggle linkage has an elongated pivot pin at the knee thereof and said lever has a recess in the other end thereof receiving said pivot pin for movement of said toggle linkage.

7. The circuit breaker assembly of claim 5 wherein said resetting means includes means for preventing rotation of said cam in one direction.

8. A circuit breaker assembly comprising:

(a) a support;

(b) a fixed contact on said support;

(c) a movable contact arm pivotably mounted on said support adjacent one end thereof and providing a contact adjacent the other end thereof for engagement with said fixed contact, said contact arm being Vpivotable into a closed position with its contact in engagement with saidl fixed contact and into an open position away therefrom;

(e) latch means on said support normally engaged with and holding the other end of said releasable member in latched position and operable to release said other end of said releasable member from said latched position for movement of said contact arm away from said fixed contact;

(f) a toggle linkage having one link pivotably connected to said releasable member intermediate the length thereof, a second link pivotably connected to said contact arm intermediate the length thereof, and a pivot pin connecting said toggle links, said toggle linkage positioning said releasable member and Lsaid contact arm in open and closed position;

(g) a spring having one end iixedly mounted on said support at a point spaced towards said fixed contact from a line drawn between the pivoted connection of said links to said contact arm and releasable member in the closed position of said contact arm, said spring having its other end engaged with said toggle linkage and biasing said toggle linkage to closed contact position in the fixed position of said releasable member and said releasable member away from said fixed contact upon release from said latch means; and

(h) resetting means for moving said toggle linkage and releasable member against the action of said spring to engage said releasable member with said latch means in said latched position and for releasing said 9 toggle linkage upon engagement of said releasable member in said latched position to rotate said contact arm rapidly to the closed position under the action of said spring, said resetting means including a lever pivotably mounted on said support and operable upon pivoting of one end thereof, said lever having its other end engaged with said toggle linkage in the open position thereof for movement of said releasable member into engagement with said operating means and permitting rapid movement of said toggle linkage to the closed position upon engagement of said releasable member with said latch means, a cam mounted on a shaft rotatably mounted on said support and engaged with said one end of said lever, said cam being configured to pivot said lever in one direction upon rotation thereof to move said releasable member into engagement with said operating means and configured thereafter to release said lever from said pivoted position for rapid movement in the opposite direction under the action of said spring, and a handle on said cam shaft outwardly of said support for engagement by a user to rotate said shaft and thereby said cam for pivoting of said lever.

9. The Circuit breaker assembly of claim 8 wherein said resetting means includes means for preventing rotation of said cam in one direction.

10. The circuit breaker assembly of claim 8 wherein said lever is generally V-shaped and is pivoted on said support adjacent the apex thereof at a point spaced to the opposite side of the said line between the pivots of said toggle links to said releasable member and contact arm from said fixed contact.

11. A circuit breaker assembly comprising:

(a) a support member providing an enclosure;

(b) a fixed contact on said support within said enclosure;

(c) a movable contact arm pivotably mounted on said support within said enclosure adjacent one end thereof and providing a contact adjacent the other end thereof for engagement with said fixed contact, said contact arm being pivotable into a closed position with its contact in engagement with said fixed contact and into an -open position away therefrom;

(d) a releasable member pivotably mounted on said support within said enclosure adjacent one end there- (e) latch means on said support normally engaged with and holding the other end of said releasable member in latched position and .operable to release said other end of said releasable member from said latched position for movement of said contact arm away from said xed contact;

(f) a toggle linkage having one link pivotablyconnected to said releasable member intermediate the length thereof, a second link pivotably connected to said contact arm intermdiate the length thereof, and a pivot pin connecting said toggle links, said toggle linkage positioning said releasable member and said contact arm in open and closed position;

(g) a spring having one end lixedly mounted on said support within said enclosure at a point spaced towards said fixed contact from a line drawn between the pivoted connection of said links to said contact arm and releasable member in the closed position of said contact arm, said spring having its other end y engaged with said toggle linkage and biasing said toggle linkage to closed contact position in said latched position of said releasable member and said releasable member away from said fixed contact upon release from said operating means; and

(h) resetting means for moving said toggle linkage p and releasable member against the action of said spring to engage said releasable member with said latch means in said latched position and for releasing said toggle linkage upon engagement of said releasable member in said latched position to rotate said contact arm rapidly to the closed position under the action of said spring, said resetting means including a lever pivotably mounted on said support wit-hin said enclosure and operable upon pivoting of one end thereof, said lever having a recess in the other end thereof receiving said pivot pin of said toggle linkage for movement of said toggle linkage and of said releasable member into engagement with said latch means and permitting rapid movement of said toggle linkage to the closed position upon engagement of said releasable member with said operating means, a shaft rotatably mounted on said support and extending therethrough said enclosure, a cam on said shaft within said enclosure and having its periphery engaged with said one end of said lever, said cam being configured to pivot said lever yin one direction upon rotation thereof to move said releasable member into engagement with said operating means and configured thereafter to release said lever from said pivoted position for rapid movement in the opposite direction under the action of said spring, means engaged with said shaft preventing rotation of said cam relative thereto in one direction of rotation of said shaft, and a handle onV said shaft outwardly of said enclosure for engagement by a user to rotate said shaft and thereby said cam for pivoting of said lever.

12. An electric circuit breaker comprising:

(a) a support,

(b) at least one pair of relatively movable contacts supported on said support,

(c) a contact operating member mounted on said support and movable between open and closed circuit positions respectively,

(d) means connecting said contact operating member to said relatively movable contacts to move said contacts between open and closed circuit positions upon movement of said contact operating member to said open and closed circuit positions respectively,

(e) biasing means having one end thereof connected to said contact operating member for biasing said contacts toward said closed circuit position and having the other end thereof xedly mounted on said support,

(f) a manually operable member movably mounted on said support,

(g) means operable by said manually operable member for moving said biasing means to a stressed condition, and

(h) means for disconnecting said manually operable member from said biasing means whereby at least a portion of the energy stored in said biasing means is released to cause closing movement of said cooperable contacts,

(i) latch means releasably restraining said biasing means in said stressed condition,

. (j)` current responsive means mounted on said support,

andv

(k) means connecting said current responsive means to said latch means to cause release of saidlatch means upon the occurrence of predetermined current conditions through said cooperable contacts.

13. An electric circuit breaker comprising:

(a) asupport,

(b) at least two relatively movable contacts supported on said support,

(c) a contact operating member movably mounted on said support and movable between open and closed circuit positions,

(d) means connecting said contact operating member to said relatively movable contacts to move said relatively movable contacts between open and closed circuit positions upon movement of said contact 1 1 operating member between said open and closed circuit positions,

(e) resilient biasing means,

(f) means connecting one end of said biasing means to said contact operating member, and the other end of said biasing means to said support,

(g) a releasable cradle movably mounted on said support,

(h) means connecting said contact operating member to said releasable cradle,

(i) latch means releasably latching said cradle member in a rst position,

(j) manually operable meansV carried by said support,

(k) means connecting said manually operable means to said contact operating member,

(l) said cradle member when released from said first position being movable to a second position,

(m) said manually operable member being movable between a first position and a second position to move said contact operating member and said releasable cradle member from said released position to said relatched position, and means for disconnecting said manually operable member from said contach operating member following movement of said cradle member and said relatched position to permit said biasing means to move said contact operating member from said open circuit position to said closed circuitposition, and

(n) current responsive means for causing release of said cradle from said latch means upon the occurrence of predetermined current conditions.

14. An electric circuit breaker comprising:

(a) asupport,

(b) at least one pair of relatively movable contacts supported on said support,

(c) a releasable cradle member pivotally mounted on said support,

(d) a contact operating member pivotally mounted on said cradle member,

(e) means connecting said contact operating member to said relatively movable contacts to move said movable contacts between open and closed circuit positions in response to movement of said contact operating member between corresponding open and closed circuit positions respectively,

(f) elongated biasing means having one end thereof connected to said contact operating member and having the other end thereof Xedly mounted on said support,

(g) manually operable means carried by said support,

(-h) means connecting said manually operable means to said contact operating member t-o move said contact operating member in a direction from said closed circuit to said open circuit position against the bias of said biasing means,

(i) means releasing said manually operable member from said contact operating member to permit said biasing means to move said contact operating member from said open circuit position to said closed circuit position.

(j) current-responsive means mounted on said support and connected electrically in series with said relatively movable contacts, and

(k) means operated by said current-responsive means for causing release of said releasable cradle member upon the occurrence of predetermined current conditions, said releasable cradle member when released causing movement of said contact operating member to move said movable contacts to said open circuit position.

15. An electric circuit breaker comprising:

(a) asupport,

(b) a xed contact supported on said support,

(c) a movable contact arm pivotally supported on said support,

(d) a movable contact carried by said movable contact arm4 and movable thereby between a closed circuit position in which it is in contact with said ixed contact and au open position in which it is out of contact with said Xed contact,

(e) a releasable member pivotally supported on said support and movable between a latched position and a released position,

(f) latch means mounted on said support, said latch means normally engaging and retaining said releasable member in said latched position,

(g) a toggle linkage interconnecting said movable contact arm and saidreleasable member,

(h) a tension spring having one end xedly and immovably mounted on said support and having its other end connected to said toggle linkage, said tension spring means biasing said toggle linkage in a direction to move said contact arm toward said closed position at all times when said releasable member is in said latched position and biasing said toggle linkage in a direction to move said contact arm toward said open position when said releasable member is in said released position, and

(i) resetting and reclosing means carried by said support comprising means for moving said releasable member from said released to said latched position.

16. An electric circuit breaker as set forth in claim 15 wherein said lcircuit breaker also comprises means retaining said movable contact arm in said open position while said releasable member is moved from said released to said latched position, and means thereafter releasing said contact arm to permit said contact arm to move to said closed position.

17. An electric circuit breaker as set forth in claim 16 wherein said means retaining said movable contact arm in said open position and said means for suddenly releasing said movable contact arm for movement toward said closed circuit position comprise portions of a single member movably mounted on said support.

18. An electric circuit breaker as set forth in claim 15 wherein said resetting and reclosing means comprises means engaging said toggle linkage and acting through said toggle linkage to move said releasable member tosaid latched position and to simultaneously retain said movable contact arm in said open circuit position at least until said releasable member is in said latched position, whereby release of said resetting and reclosing means thereafter causes rapid closing of said movable contact by said spring.

19. An electric circuit breaker as set forth in claim 18 wherein said resetting and reclosing means comprises an elongated lever pivotally mounted on said support at one point and engaging said toggle linkage at another point.

20. An electric circuit breaker comprising:

(a) asupport,

(b) a fixed contact supported on said support,

(c) a movable contact arm pivotally supported on said support,

(d) a movable contact carried by said movable contact arm and movable thereby between a closed circuit position in which it is in contact with said fixed contact and an open position in which it is out of conta ct with said fixed contact,

(f) latched means mounted on said support, said latch means normally engaging and retaining said releasable member in said latched position,

(g) a toggle linkage interconnecting said movable contact arm and said releasable member,

(h) tension spring means having one end xedly and immovably mounted on said support and having its other end connected to said toggle linkage, said tension spring means biasing said toggle linkage in a direction to move said contact arm toward said closed position at all times when said releasable it permits movement of said lever from said closed position to a position spaced therefrom under the action of said toggle linkage upon the release of said releasable member. 21. An electric circuit breaker as set forth in claim 20 wherein said circuit breaker also comprises:

(a) a cam follower member carried by said elongated lever, (b) a rotatable cam member mounted on said support member is in said latched position and biasing said toggle linkage in a direction to move said contact 5 arm toward open position when said releasable member is in said released position,

(i) resetting and reclosing means carried by said support comprising an elongated lever pivotally mounted being movable to a first position in which it moves said lever to a reset position causing resetting movement of said releasable member and said operating member being movable to a second position in which on said support at one point and engaging said tog- 10 and engaging said cam follower member, said rotatgle linkage at another point to move said releasable able Icam acting on said cam follower member to member to said latched position and to simultaneousmove said elongated lever toward said closed posily retain said movable contact arm in said open tion and to suddenly release said cam follower memcircuit position at least until said releasable member to permit movement of said elongated lever from ber is in said latched position, whereby release of 15 said closed circuit position toward said open circuit said resetting and reclosing means thereafter causes position. rapid `closin-g of said movable contact by said spring, References Cited (Darbcinerating means carried by said support and en UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,388,620 11/1945 Runke 200-116 gaging said elongated lever, said operating means 20 2,866,872 12/1958 Turner 335 26 BERNARD A. GlLHEANY, Primary Examiner.

H. BROOME, Assistant Examiner.

Claims

1. A CIRCUIT BREAKER ASSEMBLY COMPRISING: (A) A SUPPORT; (B) A FIXED CONTACT ON SAID SUPPORT; (C) A MOVABLE CONTACT ARM PIVOTABLY MOUNTED ON SAID SUPPORT ADJACENT ONE END THEREOF AND PROVIDING A CONTACT ADJACENT THE OTHER END THEREOF FOR ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID FIXED CONTACT, SAID CONTACT ARM BEING PIVOTABLE INTO A CLOSED POSITION WITH ITS CONTACT IN ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID FIXED CONTACT AND INTO AN OPEN POSITION AWAY THEREFROM; (D) A RELEASABLE MEMBER PIVOTABLY MOUNTED ON SAID SUPPORT ADJACENT ONE END THEREOF; (E) LATCH MEANS ON SAID SUPPORT NORMALLY ENGAGED WITH AND HOLDING THE OTHER END OF SAID RELEASABLE MEMBER IN A LATCHED POSITION AND OPERABLE TO RELEASE SAID OTHER END OF SAID RELEASABLE MEMBER FROM SAID LATCHED POSITION FOR MOVEMENT OF SAID CONTACT ARM AWAY FROM SAID FIXED CONTACT; (F) A TOGGLE LINKAGE HAVING ONE LINK PIVOTABLY CONNECTED TO SAID RELEASABLY MEMBER INTERMEDIATE THE LENGTH THEREOF, A SECOND LINK PIVOTABLY CONNECTED TO SAID CONTACT ARM INTERMEDIATE THE LENGTH THEREOF, AND A PIVOT PIN CONNECTING SAID TOGGLE LINKS, SAID TOGGLE LINKAGE POSITIONING SAID RELEASABLE MEMBER AND SAID CONTACT ARM IN OPEN AND CLOSED POSITION; (G) A SPRING HAVING ONE END FIXEDLY MOUNTED ON SAID SUPPORT AT A POINT SPACED TOWARDS SAID FIXED CONTACT FROM A LINE DRAWN BETWEEN THE POINT OF CONNECTION OF SAID LINKS TO SAID CONTACT ARM AND THE POINT OF CONNECTION OF SAID LINKS TO SAID RELEASABLE MEMBER IN THE CLOSED POSITION OF SAID CONTACT ARM, SAID SPRING HAVING ITS OTHER END ENGAGED WITH SAID TOGGLE LINKAGED AND BIASING SAID TOGGLE LINKAGE TO CLOSED CONTACT POSITION IN THE FIXED POSITION OF SAID RELEASABLE MEMBER AND BIASING SAID RELEASABLE MEMBER FOR ROTATION IN OPENING DIRECTION UPON RELEASE FROM SAID OPERATING MEANS; AND (H) RESETTING MEANS FOR MOVING SAID TOGGLE LINKAGE AND RELEASABLE MEMBER AGAINST THE ACTION OF SAID SPRING TO ENGAGE SAID RELEASABLE MEMBER WITH SAID LATCH MEANS IN SAID LATCHED POSTION AND FOR RELEASING SAID TOGGLE LINKAGE UPON ENGAGEMENT OF SAID RELEASABLE MEMBER IN SAID LATCHED POSITION TO ROTATE SAID CONTACT ARM RAPIDLY TO THE CLOSED POSITION UNDER THE ACTION OF SAID SPRING, SAID RESETTING MEANS INCLUDING A RESETTING MEMBER ENGAGED WITH SAID TOGGLE LINKAGE IN THE OPEN POSITION THEREOF FOR MOVEMENT OF SAID RELEASABLE MEMBER INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID LATCH MEANS AND PERMITTING RAPID MOVEMENT OF SAID TOGGLE LINKAGE TO THE CLOSED POSITION UPON ENGAGEMENT OF SAID RELEASABLE MEMBER WITH SAID LATCH MEANS.