US3560688A - Contact means for electric circuit breakers - Google Patents

Contact means for electric circuit breakers Download PDF

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Publication number
US3560688A
US3560688A US823770A US3560688DA US3560688A US 3560688 A US3560688 A US 3560688A US 823770 A US823770 A US 823770A US 3560688D A US3560688D A US 3560688DA US 3560688 A US3560688 A US 3560688A
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US
United States
Prior art keywords
contact
fingers
plug
spring
means according
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired - Lifetime
Application number
US823770A
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English (en)
Inventor
Sven Bachler
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
ABB Norden Holding AB
Original Assignee
ASEA AB
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by ASEA AB filed Critical ASEA AB
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of US3560688A publication Critical patent/US3560688A/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01H—ELECTRIC SWITCHES; RELAYS; SELECTORS; EMERGENCY PROTECTIVE DEVICES
    • H01H1/00—Contacts
    • H01H1/12—Contacts characterised by the manner in which co-operating contacts engage
    • H01H1/36—Contacts characterised by the manner in which co-operating contacts engage by sliding
    • H01H1/38—Plug-and-socket contacts
    • H01H1/385—Contact arrangements for high voltage gas blast circuit breakers

Definitions

  • ABSTRACT A contact arrangement for circuit breakers includes a movable contact plug and a stationary sheath contact.
  • a plurality of contact fingers are arranged in ring formation and are pressed against the contact plug by means of leaf springs punched out of sheet material.
  • Each leaf spring is loosely inserted in a longitudinal groove in the associated contact finger in such a way that the spring action occurs in the plane of the spring.
  • the present invention relates to a contact means of the type comprising a contact plug anda sheath contact surrounding the contact plug, said sheath contact consisting of a plurality of contact fingers extending in the direction of said contact plug and being arranged in ring formation between the contact plug and a surrounding contact housing and arranged to be pressed radially against the contact plug by means of leaf springs arranged between the contact housing and the contact fingers.
  • the Prior Art is to effect a contact means of the above-mentioned type in which the parts forming the sheath contact can be manufactured and assembled in such a way that the contact means becomes less expensive than similar, previously known arrangements. It is also desirable for the contact means to be rather compact, particularly if it is to be used in oil-minimum circuit breakers for indoor use. With such circuit breakers the question of space is extremely important and it is also from the safety point of view desirable that the quantity of oil required is as small as possible. With this type of circuit breaker the contact means is often arranged so that, to a considerable extent, it determines the outer dimensions of the circuit breaker.
  • helical springs With a sheath contact of the type mentioned above, it is most usual to use helical springs in order to effect the contact pressure. To be able to fix such springs in the contact the contact fingers or the surrounding contact housing must be provided with recesses, guiding pegs, guide sheaths or the like. The contact fingers or the housing must therefore be pressed or cast in a special shape or be otherwise machined, which considerable increases the cost of the contact. Helical springs are also rather space-consuming.
  • leaf springs instead of helical springs it has been possible to reduce the space required by the contact means considerable.
  • leaf springs have been used which operate perpendicularly to their surface.
  • the springs have usually been positioned by riveting or screwing them to the contact housing or contact fingers which must be provided with special holes for this purpose, possibly threaded. This considerably complicates the manufacture.
  • clamping usually causes unfavorable stressing of the springs.
  • the contact means according to the invention is of the type of sheath contact means using leaf springs so that the space required is considerably less than with sheath contacts having helical springs.
  • the invention is characterized in that the contact fingers and possibly also the contact housing are manufactured from rod material, which is produced, for example, by
  • each spring is shaped and arranged in such a way that the spring action occurs in the plane of the spring. Since the springs are punched out of, for example, steel sheeting and given such a contour that they can yield edgewise, the space requirement will only be the thickness of the spring times the resilience. The space necessary for the spring is thus considerably less than for the conventional leaf spring for which the space requirement, calculated in crosssectional area, will be the width of the spring times the resilience. The space required can be further reduced by arranging the spring for the most part so that it is set in to the contact finger.
  • One end of the contact fingers is suitably gripped by an arcing ring supported by the contact housing at the end situated nearest the contact isolating point and the other end of the contact fingers is pressed against a stationary, peg-shaped contact part in the sheath contact.
  • the contact springs are suitably shaped so that their pressure point is placed nearest the end of the fingers which is pressed against the stationary contact part of the sheath contact. In this way greater spring action is obtained against the stationary contact part than against the contact plug, which is desirable partly because the contact fingers are pivotably arranged around the stationary contact, which must consequently be shaped have a rounded surface in axial direction and the contact surfaces are thus less than with a cylindrical contact plug, and partly because the stationary contact part is not intended to be a replaceable component and arcing must therefore be completely avoided.
  • the surface of the contact fingers facing the contact plug is concave, suitably cylindrical, with the same radius of curvature as the contact plug. So that the same type of contact finger may be used together with contact plugs of different diameters the contact surface of the contact fingers may have several different radii of curvatuire increasing in tangential direction from the symmetry axis of the surface.
  • FIG. I shows a central axial section through a sheath contact according to the invention
  • FIG. 2 shows a cross section through the sheath contact along the line Il-Il in FIG. 1 and FIG. 3, finally, shows an end view of a contact finger of the sheath contact.
  • the contact means shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 comprises a movable contact plug 1 which cooperates with a stationary sheath contact 2. It is of course also possible to arrange the contact plug stationary and the sheath contact movable.
  • the end of the contact plug 1 consists of a contact shoe of coppertungsten, not shown.
  • the sheath contact 2 consists of a plurality of contact fingers 3 extending in the direction of the contact plug 1 and placed in ring formation between the contact plug 1 and a surrounding contact housing 4.
  • the contact fingers 3 are pressed radially against the contact plug I with the help of leaf springs 5, which are punched out of steel sheeting (spring steel) about 1 mm. thick and are provided with a longitudinal hole 6 and otherwise shaped to give effective spring action in the plane of the material.
  • the springs 5 are partly set in in narrow radial grooves in the contact fingers 3.
  • the contact fingers 3 are made from copper rods. At the front end each finger is provided with a shoe 8 of copper-tungsten. Otherwise the section is unbroken along the entire length of the finger.
  • a pegshaped stationary contact part 9 At the bottom of the sheath contact is a pegshaped stationary contact part 9. The current transfer between the base of the contact finger 3 and the stationary contact part 9 takes place in the same manner as the transfer to the plug 1.
  • One and the same spring 5 is utilized to maintain the contact pressure at both current-transfer points.
  • connection and disconnection of the contact means the contact finger 3 performs a rolling movement towards the stationary contact part 9, which is elliptically rounded in axial direction.
  • the front end of the contact housing 4 supports an arcing ring 11 of copper-tungsten.
  • This ring 11 is shaped so that an annular groove 12 is formed into which the front end of the contact fingers projects. In this way both the contact fingers 3 and the springs 5 are held in position in the contact without the need for screw joints or other retaining elements.
  • the inwardly facing surface of the contact finger should preferably have the same radius of curvature as the contact plug 1.
  • the contact finger thushas a radius of curvature of, for example, 8 mm. in the areas B a radius of 11.5 mm. and in the areas C a radius of 12.5 mm.
  • This contact finger can thus be used for three different plug diameters, namely 16,23 and 25 mm.
  • the contact means shown as an example is particularly simple to manufacture and assemble which is due in the first place to the contact fingers being given such a shape that they can be made, for example, from extruded rods, so that the retaining of the contact springs can also be arranged in the simplest manner. Due to the special shape and placing of the springs the contact means also needs extremely little space.
  • a contact means for electric circuit breakers comprising a contact housing, a contact plug and a sheath contact.
  • said sheath contact surrounding said contact plug and comprising a plurality of contact fingers, said contact fingers extending in the direction of said contact plug and arranged in ring formation between said contact plug and the contact housing, leaf springs pressing said contact fingers radially against said contact plug, said springs punched out of sheet material and arranged between said contact housing and said contact fingers.
  • said contact fingers having longitudinal grooves therein, said grooves having the same cross section along the entire length of the contact fingers, said springs loosely inserted in said grooves.
  • each spring exerts a force in the plane of the spring.
  • each spring is substantially housed in the associated contact finger.
  • a contact means according to claim 1, in which said contact housing is provided at one end with an arcing ring, which is arranged to engage one end of the contact fingers.
  • a contact means in which a pegshaped stationary contact part is arranged centrally at the bottom of the contact housing, the base end of said contact fingers pressed against said stationary contact part.
  • a contact means in which one and the same spring effects contact pressure both against said contact plug and against said stationary contact part, the pressure point of the spring being situated nearer said stationary contact part.

Landscapes

  • Contacts (AREA)
  • Breakers (AREA)
US823770A 1968-05-15 1969-05-12 Contact means for electric circuit breakers Expired - Lifetime US3560688A (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
SE6525/68A SE310020B (enrdf_load_stackoverflow) 1968-05-15 1968-05-15

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
US3560688A true US3560688A (en) 1971-02-02

Family

ID=20268908

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US823770A Expired - Lifetime US3560688A (en) 1968-05-15 1969-05-12 Contact means for electric circuit breakers

Country Status (7)

Country Link
US (1) US3560688A (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
JP (1) JPS518174B1 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
CH (1) CH488268A (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
DE (1) DE1924076C3 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
FR (1) FR2008547A1 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
GB (1) GB1259018A (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
SE (1) SE310020B (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)

Cited By (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4345129A (en) * 1979-04-03 1982-08-17 Bbc Brown, Boveri & Company, Ltd. Electrical switch
US4501466A (en) * 1977-05-27 1985-02-26 Westinghouse Electric Corp. High current contact
US4562324A (en) * 1982-09-07 1985-12-31 S&C Electric Company Electrical contact for use in a current-interrupting unit
US20120260775A1 (en) * 2011-04-15 2012-10-18 Apex Brands, Inc. Flex-head wrench

Families Citing this family (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CH656985A5 (de) * 1982-08-16 1986-07-31 Sprecher & Schuh Ag Elektrische steckkontaktanordnung, insbesondere fuer schaltanlagen.
DE4212740C2 (de) * 1992-04-16 1997-02-27 Asea Brown Boveri Hochspannungsschalter

Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2300893A (en) * 1941-05-14 1942-11-03 Westinghouse Electric & Mfg Co Disconnecting contact
US2891134A (en) * 1956-12-05 1959-06-16 Allis Chalmers Mfg Co Switch employing damping means for controlling movement of its bridging elements
US3127492A (en) * 1961-05-29 1964-03-31 Mc Graw Edison Co Electric contact assemblage of contact fingers in which helically wound conductive members provide contact pressure

Patent Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2300893A (en) * 1941-05-14 1942-11-03 Westinghouse Electric & Mfg Co Disconnecting contact
US2891134A (en) * 1956-12-05 1959-06-16 Allis Chalmers Mfg Co Switch employing damping means for controlling movement of its bridging elements
US3127492A (en) * 1961-05-29 1964-03-31 Mc Graw Edison Co Electric contact assemblage of contact fingers in which helically wound conductive members provide contact pressure

Cited By (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4501466A (en) * 1977-05-27 1985-02-26 Westinghouse Electric Corp. High current contact
US4345129A (en) * 1979-04-03 1982-08-17 Bbc Brown, Boveri & Company, Ltd. Electrical switch
US4562324A (en) * 1982-09-07 1985-12-31 S&C Electric Company Electrical contact for use in a current-interrupting unit
US20120260775A1 (en) * 2011-04-15 2012-10-18 Apex Brands, Inc. Flex-head wrench
US9079297B2 (en) * 2011-04-15 2015-07-14 Apex Brands, Inc. Flex-head wrench

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
DE1924076A1 (de) 1970-05-06
GB1259018A (enrdf_load_stackoverflow) 1972-01-05
JPS518174B1 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow) 1976-03-15
CH488268A (de) 1970-03-31
DE1924076C3 (de) 1978-05-11
DE1924076B2 (de) 1973-12-06
SE310020B (enrdf_load_stackoverflow) 1969-04-14
FR2008547A1 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow) 1970-01-23

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