Welded composite fuse element and method of manufacture

Abstract

The disclosed concept relates generally to overlay composite fuse elements, materials for their construction that include copper and silver metals, and methods of production and fabrication using metal stamping and ultrasonic welding processes. In certain embodiments, a composite overlay fuse element includes a composite metal material 37 constructed of silver and copper metals, which includes a plurality of strain absorbing bend features 39 constructed of copper metal, and a plurality of arc interrupting weak spot features 43 constructed of a silver metal portion and a copper metal portion. The silver and copper metal portions on each of the plurality of arc interrupting weak spot features 43 are connected by a weld joint surface 45 that is structured to form an overlay of the silver and copper metal portions.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.