High-voltage arc quenching systems and electrical switching devices comprising the same

An electrical switching device, comprising:

• a first contact pair and a second contact pair disposed adjacent to each other along a longitudinal direction of the electrical switching device, each of the first contact pair and the second contact pair has a static contact and a movable contact that is movable relative to the static contact between a closed state in which the movable contact touches the static contact and an open state in which the movable contact is spaced apart from the static contact by a gap in a direction of relative movement between the movable contact and the static contact;
• and
• an arc quenching system including an arc-extinguishing unit and an arc-blowing magnetic unit, the arc-extinguishing unit extinguishing an arc discharge produced upon a switching operation of the first contact pair or the second contact pair from the closed state to the open state, the arc-blowing magnetic unit creating a magnetic field having a plurality of magnetic field lines that cross a gap region of the first contact pair or a gap region of the second contact pair along a predetermined magnetic field direction, the arc-blowing magnetic unit creates the magnetic field lines with an orientation that is predetermined based on an electrical polarity of the static contact of the first contact pair or the second contact pair and a positioning of the arc-extinguishing unit to magnetically blow the arc discharge produced at the gap region toward the arc-extinguishing unit, the arc-blowing magnetic unit has a first permanent magnet and a second permanent magnet disposed with front sides facing each other such that a plurality of magnetic flux lines within the gap region of the first contact pair or the second contact pair flows from the front side of the first permanent magnet towards the front side of the second permanent magnet along the predetermined magnetic field direction, the arc quenching system is arranged in alignment with the first contact pair and the second contact pair such that the arc-blowing magnetic unit creates the magnetic field having the magnetic field lines that cross the gap region of each contact pair along the predetermined magnetic field direction, the arc-extinguishing unit is positioned facing one of the contact pairs.