Resettable electro-mechanical vacuum fuse

An electro-mechanical device for interrupting at least one electric circuit whenever the current carried by said circuit substantially exceeds a predetermined value, comprising:

• a vacuum interrupter having at least one pair of contacts and a control shaft, said contacts providing circuit continuity in response to a first position of said control shaft, and said contacts separating to interrupt said circuit in response to a second position of said control shaft;
• first means external to said vacuum interrupter and including at least a pair of generally parallel conductive rods arranged in said circuit to divide most of the current in said circuit between the rods of said pair;
• second means including resilient mounting means for holding said rods in place by application of longitudinal pressure thereon, said rods being displaceable, at least at one displacement point along the length thereof, by application of a laterally acting force sufficient to overcome the laterally acting static forces extant at said displacement point;
• and third means associated with said resilient mounting means and connected to said interrupter control shaft to cause said shaft to assume said second position in response to a magnitude of current in said rods sufficient to produce corresponding magnetic forces overcoming said laterally acting static forces and therefore to produce lateral displacement of said rods.