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US 10,312,045 B2Granted
Interruption apparatus employing actuator having movable engagement element
AssigneeEaton Intelligent Power Limited
InventorsJay Nicholson Haugen, James Gerard Maloney
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An improved interruption apparatus includes a plurality of poles, with each of the poles including an actuator. In one embodiment, the actuator can be a fuse having a movable engagement element, and in another embodiment the actuator can be an electric coil that is operable to move a movable engagement element. The interruption apparatus has a single trip unit, and the engagement element of any actuator can actuate the trip unit to move all of the poles from a CLOSED state to an OPEN state.
Claims14
An interruption apparatus comprising:
- a plurality of conductors;
- a contact arm apparatus comprising a plurality of contact arms;
- a contact apparatus comprising a plurality of sets of separable contacts electrically interposed between the plurality of conductors and the plurality of contact arms;
- a trip unit that is operably connected with the plurality of contact arms, the trip unit being movable between an ON condition wherein the plurality of sets of separable contacts are each in a CLOSED state and an OFF condition wherein the plurality of sets of separable contacts are each in an OPEN state;
- a plurality of actuators;
- each actuator of the plurality of actuators comprising an engagement element and further comprising a biasing element which, responsive to a predetermined event on the actuator, is structured to cause the engagement element to undergo a change in state between a first state and a second state, the first state being one of engagement with and disengagement from the operating mechanism in the ON condition, the second state being the other of engagement with and disengagement from the operating mechanism in the ON condition;
- and
- responsive to fewer than all of the engagement elements undergoing a change in state from the first state toward the second state, the trip unit becoming thereby triggered to release the operating mechanism to move from the ON condition to the OFF condition.
5 more elements
An interruption apparatus comprising:
- a plurality of conductors;
- a plurality of contact arms;
- a plurality of sets of separable contacts electrically interposed between the plurality of conductors and the plurality of contact arms;
- a trip unit that is operably connected with the plurality of contact arms, the trip unit being movable between an ON condition wherein the plurality of sets of separable contacts are in a CLOSED state and an OFF condition wherein the plurality of sets of separable contacts are in an OPEN state;
- a plurality of actuators;
- each actuator of the plurality of actuators comprising an engagement element and further comprising a biasing element which, responsive to a predetermined event on the actuator, is structured to cause the engagement element to undergo a change in state from a first state that is one of engagement with and disengagement from the operating mechanism in the ON condition toward a second state that is the other of engagement with and disengagement from the operating mechanism in the ON condition;
- and
- responsive to fewer than all of the engagement elements undergoing a change in state from the first state toward the second state, the trip unit becoming thereby triggered to release the operating mechanism to move from the ON condition to the OFF condition.
5 more elements
An interruption apparatus comprising:
- a plurality of conductors;
- a plurality of contact arms;
- a plurality of sets of separable contacts electrically interposed between the plurality of conductors and the plurality of contact arms;
- a trip unit that is operably connected with the plurality of contact arms, the trip unit being movable between an ON condition wherein the plurality of sets of separable contacts are in a CLOSED state and an OFF condition wherein the plurality of sets of separable contacts are in an OPEN state;
- a plurality of actuators;
- each actuator of the plurality of actuators comprising a detector and further comprising an engagement element, each actuator of the plurality of actuators additionally comprising a biasing element which, responsive to a detection of a predetermined event by the detector, is structured to cause the engagement element to undergo a change in state from a first state that is one of engagement with and disengagement from the operating mechanism in the ON condition toward a second state that is the other of engagement with and disengagement from the operating mechanism in the ON condition;
- and
- responsive to fewer than all of the engagement elements undergoing a change in state from the first state toward the second state, the trip unit becoming thereby triggered to release the operating mechanism to move from the ON condition to the OFF condition.
5 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.