Electrical disconnect switch
OwnerJoseph D. Kinnearinventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An electrical disconnect switch which includes a pair of fixed tubular conductors having tulip connectors mounted on the free ends thereof. The switch includes a pair of movable tubular conductors telescopically engageable with the tulip connectors for completing a circuit through the switch. The movable conductors are spring biased to an opened position and a latch is provided for retaining the movable conductors in a closed position. The switch also includes a solenoid connected across the fixed conductors and designed to operate a lever for blocking movement of the movable conductors to the closed position when a relatively high current is flowing through the solenoid.
Claims21
An electrical disconnect switch comprising a housing having a first pair of rigid electrical conductors of cylindrical shape fixedly mounted therein in spaced parallel relation, a circumferentially resiliently flexible connector sleeve mounted on the end of each of said conductors, a cross head mounted in said housing for reciprocation along an axis parallel to said first pair of conductors, a second pair of conductors of cylindrical shape fixedly mounted on said cross head in spaced parallel relation for interengagement with said connector sleeves when the cross head is moved toward said first pair of conductors, said second pair of conductors being connected in series so that when the second pair of conductors engage with said connector sleeves a series circuit is established between the first pair of conductors through the second pair of conductors, manually operable means for moving said cross head toward said first pair of conductors to interengage the second pair of conductors with said connector sleeves, means biasing said cross head in a direction away from said connector sleeves to disengage the second pair of conductors therefrom, and manually releasable latch means for retaining the cross head in a position wherein the second pair of conductors engage with said connector sleeves and adapted when released to shift the cross head with a snap action to a position wherein the second pair of conductor disengage from the connector sleeves.
An electrical disconnect switch as called for in claiam 6 wherein the ends of said petals facing the cross head are flared radially outwardly and are accurately located in the same axial plane so that all of said petals break with the movable conductors substantially simultaneously when the latch means is released.
In a battery operated vehicle which includes a power circuit for transmitting current from a battery to an electrically operated motor on the vehicle, said power circuit having contactor means therein for closing the power circuit, the improvement which comprises, a manually operable switch mounted on the vehicle and having a pair of conductors at least one of which is movable to make and break with the other conductor to connect and disconnect the battery with the power circuit, means on said switch for blocking movement of the movable conductor in a direction to make with the other conductor and thereby prevent connection of the power circuit with said battery, said blocking means including a current sensing means and a blocking member operatively connected with the current sensing means, said blocking member when operated by the current sensing means preventing movement of the movable conductor to make with the other conductor, said current sensing means connecting said battery and power circuit in series and being responsive to the flow of at least a predetermined current therethrough to operate said blocking member, whereby, when said switch is opened and said contactor means remain closed, current flows from the battery to the power circuit through said current sensing means to operate said blocking member and thereby prevent closing of said switch.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.