Electrical switching apparatus and trip assembly therefor

An electrical switching apparatus comprising:

• a base;
• a pair of separable contacts coupled to said base;
• a trip bar coupled to said base and being structured to trip open said pair of separable contacts;
• and
• a trip assembly comprising:
• a housing member coupled to said base, and
• a lockout assembly comprising an actuation member and a locking member each coupled to said housing member, said actuation member being configured to engage said trip bar in order to trip open said pair of separable contacts,
• wherein said lockout assembly is structured to move between a FIRST position corresponding to said separable contacts being in a closed position, and a SECOND position corresponding to said separable contacts being in an open position,
• wherein, when said lockout assembly is in the SECOND position, said locking member engages said actuation member in order to maintain said separable contacts in the open position,
• wherein said lockout assembly further comprises a driving member and a plunger extending outwardly from said driving member,
• wherein said driving member is coupled to said housing member,
• wherein said plunger engages said actuation member, and
• wherein, when said lockout assembly moves from the FIRST position toward the SECOND position, said driving member drives said plunger, thereby pulling a portion of said actuation member toward said driving member,
• wherein said actuation member comprises a body portion having a tail portion, a latching portion, and a middle region extending therebetween, and
• wherein, when said lockout assembly moves from the FIRST position toward the SECOND position, said actuation member rotates about said middle region, thereby allowing said locking member to move linearly on a longitudinal axis.