US 7,744,386 B1Granted

High amperage busway system

AssigneeLighting Services, Inc.

InventorsJohn Speidel, Vincent Gennarelli, Frank Reidmiller, Peter Eagleton, Jose Cadena, Scott Wisniewski

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Abstract

An electrical busway system comprising a busway uniquely configured for cutting to length in the field. Special connector devices are also disclosed, with features for engaging and immobilizing busway insulators to assure accurate initial alignment of conductors and contact elements prior to joining of connector devices with busway sections. An accessory device, specially adapted to the new busway design, includes a rotatable contact element, slideably received in its rotatable support, which progressively displaces a spring as the contact element is rotated into contact with a busbar carried by a busway insulator. Good electrical contact at both ends of the slideable contact element is assured. The accessory device also includes a positioning element which is rotatable with, but rotationally advanced with respect to, the contact elements, to accurately position, and substantially immobilize an insulator element prior to the contact elements being rotated into restricted, busbar-receiving recesses in the insulator element.

Claims31

Dependent claims

In a high capacity busway system of the type having an elongated metal housing of extruded metal construction which is substantially closed on top and sides thereof by top and side walls and partially closed on a bottom thereof by bottom flanges defining a longitudinally extending opening for receiving accessories, spaced apart, elongated insulators of extruded plastic construction positioned in said housing on opposite sides thereof and defining recesses for the reception of elongated, electrically conductive busbars elements, the improvement which comprises,

(a) said housing being formed with upper and lower vertically extending retaining flanges extending a short distance vertically from said top wall and said bottom flanges and spaced a short distance inward from said side walls to form vertically opening retention slots,
(b) said insulators being formed of relatively rigid plastic material and each having upper and lower stand-off flanges extending upward and downward from a body portion of said insulators and having end portions received in said retention slots to secure said insulators in position in said housing spaced vertically from said top wall and said bottom flanges,
(c) a plurality of lateral stand-off flanges extending laterally outward from said body portions of said insulator and serving to space said body portions inwardly from the side walls of said housing,
(d) each of said insulators having recess-forming flanges forming a plurality of inwardly opening busbar-retaining recesses therein for the reception and retention of said conductive busbar elements, said busbar-retaining recesses having inwardly directed openings of smaller width dimension than the width dimension of the busbar elements retained in said recesses,
(e) laterally exposed outer surfaces of said recess-forming flanges being positioned generally above said housing flanges and defining in part an internal cavity within the housing for the reception of an accessory device,
(f) said vertical and lateral stand-offs being so dimensioned, in relation to the positions of the busbar elements within said busbar-retaining recesses and in relation to the internal surfaces of said metal housing, that the shortest straight line distance from any point on any surface of any busbar element to any point on any internal surface of said housing is greater than a minimum, code-permitted distance for the designed electrical characteristics of the system.

3 more elements

A electrical busway system comprising

(a) a busway section comprising an outer housing of uniform cross section comprising a top wall, opposed and spaced apart side walls, and opposed bottom flanges extending inward from lower edges of said side walls and defining a space between inner edges thereof,
(b) electrical insulation received within said housing and defining opposed insulator sections associated with said housing side walls and a central space between said opposed sections,
(c) said insulator sections each having a busbar recess therein, formed with an opening into said central space, for the reception and retention of an electrically conductive busbar, and provided with an inwardly opening positioning recess,
(d) elongated electrically conductive busbars received in said busbar recesses with surfaces thereof exposed to said central space, and
(e) a busway connector for mechanically joining with said housing and said insulation and electrically joining with said busbars, said connector comprising
(f) a central body of a size and shape to be received closely within said central space,
(g) supporting flanges extending laterally outward from said central body and engageable with upper surfaces of said housing flanges for supporting said central body within said housing,
(h) positioning surfaces on the upper portions of said central body and engageable with lower surfaces of said housing top wall,
(i) said supporting flanges and said positioning surfaces serving to snugly position said central body between said top wall and said housing flanges,
(j) an insulation positioning flange having side portions projecting laterally from opposite sides of said central body and engageable with the positioning recesses of said insulator sections whereby, when said central body is inserted longitudinally into an open end of said housing, said insulator sections are accurately positioned and substantially immobilized with respect to said central body,
(k) electrical contact elements movably supported within said central body and aligned with openings in said busbar recesses, and
(l) resilient elements urging said contact elements outward and into contact with busbars within said busbar recesses.

9 more elements

An accessory device for a busway system, where the busway system comprises

(a) a busway section comprising an outer housing of uniform cross section comprising a top wall, opposed and spaced apart side walls, and opposed bottom flanges extending inward from lower edges of said side walls and defining a space between inner edges thereof,
(b) electrical insulation received within said housing and defining opposed insulator sections associated with said housing side walls and a central space between said opposed sections, said housing accommodating limited vertical movement of said insulator sections,
(c) at least one of said insulator sections having a vertically spaced pair of busbar recesses therein, each formed with an opening into said central space, for the reception of an electrically conductive busbar and said at least one insulator section being provided with an inwardly opening positioning recess, and
(d) elongated electrically conductive busbars received in said busbar recesses with surfaces thereof exposed to said central space through said openings,
(e) said accessory attachment comprising
(f) an elongated central body closely receivable between said insulator sections and having a positioning flange engageable with the bottom flanges of said outer housing,
(g) a rotary member rotatably mounted in said central body for rotation about a vertical axis and having a mounting flange extending from opposite sides of said axis,
(h) said mounting flange having a width dimension less than the space between the bottom flanges of said housing and a length dimension greater than said space, and operative when rotated to a transverse position in relation to said central body to overlie upper surfaces of the bottom flanges of said housing and to cause said housing bottom flanges to be engaged between said mounting flange and said positioning flange,
(i) said rotary member further mounting a pair of vertically spaced, radially extending and radially movable contact elements generally aligned with said mounting flange and arranged, when transversely disposed to said central body, to project transversely through a side wall of said central body and into said busbar recesses for contact with busbars therein,
(j) one or more spring elements mounted in said central body and positioned to engage and act on said radially movable contact elements, when said elements are disposed transversely to said central body, to urge said contact elements into tight contact with adjacent busbars.

7 more elements

An accessory device for a busway system, where the busway system comprises

(a) a busway section comprising an outer housing of uniform cross section comprising a top wall, opposed and spaced apart side walls, and opposed bottom flanges extending inward from lower edges of said side walls and defining a space between inner edges thereof,
(b) electrical insulation retained within said housing and defining opposed insulator sections associated with said housing side walls and a central space between said opposed sections, said housing accommodating limited vertical movement of said insulator sections,
(c) at least one of said insulator sections having a vertically spaced pair of busbar recesses therein, each formed with an opening into said central space, for the reception of an electrically conductive busbar and said at least one insulator section being provided with an inwardly exposed positioning surface, and
(d) elongated electrically conductive busbars received in said busbar recesses with surfaces thereof exposed to said central space through said openings,
(e) said accessory attachment comprising
(f) an elongated central body closely receivable between said insulator sections and having a positioning flange engageable with the bottom flanges of said outer housing,
(g) a rotary member rotatably mounted in said central body for rotation about a vertical axis and having a mounting flange extending from opposite sides of said axis,
(h) said mounting flange having a width dimension less than the space between the bottom flanges of said housing and a length dimension greater than said space, and operative when rotated to a transverse position in relation to said central body to overlie upper surfaces of the bottom flanges of said housing and to cause said housing bottom flanges to be engaged between said mounting flange and said positioning flange,
(i) said rotary member further mounting a pair of vertically spaced, radially extending contact elements generally aligned with said mounting flange and arranged, when transversely disposed to said central body, to project transversely of said central body and into said busbar recesses for contact with busbars therein,
(j) said rotary member being formed with an outwardly extending positioning arm engageable with a positioning surface of said at least one of said insulator sections,
(b) first portions of said positioning arm being generally aligned with said contact elements and second portions of said positioning arm being positioned circumferentially ahead of said contact elements, whereby said second portions engage said positioning surface to position said one of said insulator sections in alignment with said contact elements in advance of said contact elements entering said busbar recesses.

8 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.