Westinghouse Electric Corporation

Eaton Corporation

Alfred E Maier

Louis N Ricci

James R Farley

John A Wafer

Douglas Charles Marks

Richard E White

John K Livesey

David A Leone

Stephen A Mrenna

Alan B Shimp

Nicholas A Salemi

Robert H Hill

Hugh A Nelson

Donald D Armstrong

Carlos P Silva

Antonio W Cabral

Kurt A Grunert

Joseph J Matsko

William E Beatty, Jr

Henry Anthony Wehrli, Iii

Walter V Bratkowski

Ronald W Crookston

William John Jones

Glenn R Thomas

Yun-Ko N Chien

Walter Oliver Jenkins

Walter W Lang

Melvin A Carrodus

Raymond Clyde Doran

Ronald A Cheski

Nicholas A Tomasic

Andrew James Male

Paul Skalka

Charles E Haugh

John G Salvati

William I Stephenson, Jr

Steven Castelein

Paul P Koren

David L Haggerty

David J Uram

Paul T Bair

Amelia M Stay

Allen J Hendry

A clutch assembly for an electrical switching apparatus which has a close spring working in conjunction with a cam disposed on a cam shaft, wherein the close spring provides a rotational force to the cam shaft in a forward direction. The spring clutch is disposed on the cam shaft and allows the cam shaft to rotate in the forward direction but prevents rotation of the cam shaft in the opposite direction.

Clutch assembly for electrical switching apparatus with large

A contact arrangement for a circuit breaker utilizes magnetic attraction between parallel conductors in the movable contacts to open the contacts during a short circuit, high current condition. An elongated, pivotable, main contact arm includes a movable main contact at a first end that engages a fixed main contact in a closed circuit position. An elongated, arcing contact arm, pivotable in the same plane as the main contact arm, includes a movable arcing contact at a first end that engages a fixed main contact in a closed circuit position. The contact arms are spring biased in the closed circuit position such that a gap is defined between the arms. An attractive electromagnetic force tends to keep the first end of the arcing contact arm in contact with the fixed arcing contact until after the main contact arm has lifted. A hinge assembly for the main contact arm and the arcing contact arm assists in opening the contacts during the high current condition. The hinge assembly includes elongated first and second hinge members defining a gap therebetween and providing a second pair of parallel conduction paths for the circuit. The hinge members support the main and arcing contact arms at their second ends distal from the fixed main contacts. The attractive electromagnetic force generated by the parallel currents in the hinge members levers the first ends of the contact arms up from their closed circuit position, thus helping to open the contacts and trip the breaker. The first end of the main contact arm can lift from the fixed main contact with such speed that it knocks the arcing contact arm into the open circuit position.

Contact arrangement for a circuit breaker using magnetic attraction for

A molded case circuit breaker having current limiting capabilities optimized for relatively smaller frame sizes. More specifically, one aspect of the invention relates to a two-piece carrier assembly for carrying the main and arcing contact arms which allows the main and arcing contacts to be blown open during short circuit conditions. The two-piece carrier assembly includes an inner carrier and an outer carrier pivotally connected together. The contact arms are carried by the inner carrier. When sufficient magnetic repulsion forces are exerted on the contacts due to a short circuit condition, the inner carrier pivots relative to the outer carrier to allow the contact arms to blow open. In order to control the amount of force required for blow open, a compression spring loaded cam assembly is provided. Another important aspect of the invention relates to a contact spring housing which relocates the contact springs away from the separable contacts to protect the springs from damage, for example, from heat due to contact separation. In order to improve the interruption time of the circuit breaker for relatively large overcurrents, such as a short circuit, a reverse current loop is provided which generates sufficient magnetic repulsion forces to blow open the separable contacts in a relatively short period of time. Within the restraints of the physical dimension of a relatively smaller breaker frame size, additional features have also been incorporated. More specifically, an improved rating plug assembly is provided with a one-piece plunger, relatively easier to manufacture than known designs which utilize two-piece plungers. Another aspect of the invention relates to an auxiliary cam plate for controlling the motion of the crossbar at the remote end in a four pole circuit breaker. The cam plate compensates for bending of the crossbar to improve the contact force in the remote pole. Lastly, a molded interphase barrier forms a gas barrier within the circuit breaker and maintains its position during assembly relatively better than known interphase barriers.

Molded case current limiting circuit breaker

A molded case circuit breaker having current limiting capabilities is dimensionally optimized for relatively smaller frame size circuit breakers. The handle yoke is supported with rollers thereby allowing the crossbar to be disposed in the space normally utilized for the handle yoke pivot axis. A clinch joint arcer assembly with a plurality of arcing contact arms, each pivotally connected by a clinch joint to a pivotally mounted main contact arm permits additional main contact arms to be provided in the same space normally occupied by the arcing contact arms alone. Additionally, arcing contact spring housings protect the arcing contact springs from deterioration due to corrosive ionizing gases generated during interruption. A positive off link assembly prevents the operating handle from being placed on an OFF position when the main contacts are welded together and transfers the force applied to the operating handle to the upper link to allow the weld to be broken. Lastly, a reversible barrier in one of the sidewalls allows in one position circuit breaker auxiliaries, located in the outside pole compartments, to communicate with the operating mechanism and the operating handle. For circuit breakers without auxiliaries, the barrier acts as an interphase gas barrier.

A molded case circuit breaker is provided. Key blocks with a key shaped projection along one side are received in key shaped grooves in the sidewalls of the base. The kay shaped projections and the key shaped grooves may be formed as a dovetail connection. These key blocks provide support for the sidewalls from forces resulting from relatively high overcurrent conditions, such as a short circuit condition. In addition to supporting the sidewalls, the key blocks also form a barrier between the main contacts and other components in the circuit breaker to reduce the amount of arc products allowed to interact with the other components in the circuit breaker. The key block also form a stop surface for capturing the arc chutes to prevent movement of the arc chutes along the longitudinal axis of the circuit breaker. Lastly, the key blocks also hold the insulation barrier on the line conductor in place, thus obviating the need to use adhesives.

Key blocks for circuit breaker

A multiphase circuit breaker has a magnetic trip assembly which includes an adjusting bar slidable longitudinally to simultaneously adjust the bias applied by individual torsion springs to the rotatable armature of the magnetic trip assembly for each pole over a range of trip currents from a high setting to a low setting. Adjusting screws carried by the adjusting bar provide for adjustment of the gap between the armature and stationary magnetic structure independently at the high and low settings separately for each pole. An additional set of adjusting screws can be inserted in the adjusting bar to provide a single adjustment of the gap over the full range of spring bias settings.

Circuit breaker with individual gap adjustment at high and low settings

A draw out interlock comprises an elongated interlock member which is coupled to the manual trip mechanism of a circuit breaker. The interlock member is springed bias to an extended position where it projects through the back wall of the circuit, but is retained in a retracted position by the surface against which the circuit breaker is mounted. As the circuit breaker is removed from the mounting surface, the interlock member extends actuating the manual trip mechanism and interrupting current before the circuit breaker becomes disconnected from the protected conductor to prevent arcing at the disconnects.

Adjustable circuit breaker with draw out interlock

A molded case circuit breaker is provided with side plates having twist tabs extending downwardly from a bottom edge for fastening the side plates to the circuit breaker base. Spin plates with slots are carried by the base for receiving the twist tabs. The twist tabs are formed with a shank portion, a tapered portion and a head portion. The tapered portion defines a sloped surface which contacts the slot in the spin plate. When the twist tab is twisted, the shank is shortened drawing a wider portion of the sloped surface into the engagement with the slot to secure the side plate to the base.

Side plate tapered twist tab fastening device for fastening side plates

Electrical switches and circuit breakers in which the contacts and operating mechanism are enclosed within an insulating housing by an insulating cover and which have an elongated operating handle extending through an elongated slot in the cover have an enlarged terminal portion of the operating handle which is wider than the slot to prevent removal of the cover except in positions of the handle at which the electrical contacts are open and the slot is wider than the terminal portion of the handle. Preferably, this is only the OFF position of the switch or breaker, however, in circuit breakers with a notch at the trip position to expose indicia indicating the breaker operating condition, a transverse pin through the operating handle permitting removal of the cover only with the operating handle in the trip position, provides an economical backfit.

Electrical switching device with cover interlock

A trip bar interlock for a circuit breaker characterized by an electrically insulating housing having an apertured bottom wall. A rotatable trip bar is in the housing for releasably holding the circuit breaker in an untripped condition. An actuator is provided for releasing the trip bar when the circuit breaker is dismounted from a mounting surface. The trip bar and the actuator have engaging surfaces and the actuator has an end portion extending through the aperture. The actuator is biased toward the mounting wall.

Circuit breaker trip bar interlock

A molded case circuit breaker includes a clear viewing window through its top cover to enable the position of its internally disposed separable electrical contacts to be externally visually discerned. A manually engagable handle extending through an opening formed in the top cover of the molded case of the circuit breaker has an electrically insulating strip or barrier secured thereto and movable therewith for covering the clear viewing window when the separable contacts are in their CLOSED position to prevent smoke and other arc products resulting from circuit breaker interruptions from obstructing the clear viewing window. The viewing window may be inserted in the top cover during the molding process or may be subsequently disposed in the top cover in the form of an insert fixedly secured thereto.

Molded case circuit breaker with viewing window and sliding barrier

A circuit breaker with hinged arcing contact characterized by an insulating housing enclosing a circuit breaker mechanism, an electromagnetic trip device therefor, separable contact means including stationary contacts and movable main and arcing contacts and the arcing contacts being pivotally mounted on the main contacts whereby the arcing contacts are forced against the stationary contacts as the main contacts open.

Circuit breaker with hinged arcing contact

A circuit breaker characterized by a ratchet mechanism for manual or electrical charging system and comprising a pair of separable contacts coupled with a rechargeable spring to close the contacts. The spring is indirectly connected to a drive shaft on which a ratchet wheel is fixedly mounted for rotation of the shaft in one direction. A drive wheel is rotatably mounted on the shaft for rotating the ratchet wheel and a brake wheel is mounted on the shaft for preventing rotation of the shaft in the other direction. Rotating means are provided for rotating the drive shaft.

Stored energy circuit breaker with ratchet mechanism for charging a

A circuit breaker with a magnetic circuit for delaying the trip function and characterized by a dual variable magnetic circuit air gap which allows a time delay at low level overcurrents, such that motor starting transient currents do not prematurely trip the circuit breaker.

Circuit breaker with trip delay magnetic circuit

A circuit breaker characterized by a movable contact on a contact-carrying arm movable between open and closed positions of a stationary contact mounted on one leg of a U-shaped conductor with another leg secured to the circuit breaker housing, a U-shaped brace between the legs and having a first support supporting and insulated from the other leg and having second supports on opposite sides of the one leg for retaining it against opposing repulsion magnetic forces due to current overloads.

Growing community of inventors

Beaver Falls, PA, United States of America

Alfred E Maier