Patent application number | Description | Published |
20090027146 | ELECTRICAL SWITCHING APPARATUS, CIRCUIT INTERRUPTER AND METHOD OF INTERRUPTING OVERCURRENTS OF A POWER CIRCUIT - A circuit interrupter includes a housing, separable contacts, and an operating mechanism including a latch. The operating mechanism opens the contacts responsive to actuation of the latch. A trip mechanism cooperates with the latch to trip open the contacts. The trip mechanism includes a thermal overload mechanism actuating the latch responsive to a thermal fault caused by current flowing through the contacts, a solenoid cooperating with the thermal overload mechanism to actuate the latch responsive to the electromagnetic device being energized, and a processor repetitively determining a value of the current flowing through the contacts, determining if the value exceeds a predetermined value for a number of occurrences, and responsively energizing the solenoid, in order to actuate the latch contemporaneous with actuation of the latch by the thermal overload mechanism, in order to decrease the time to trip open the contacts. | 01-29-2009 |
20090027154 | CIRCUIT BREAKER INCLUDING AMBIENT COMPENSATION BIMETAL HOLDING AND RELEASING ARC FAULT INDICATOR - An aircraft circuit breaker includes a housing having an opening, separable contacts, an operating mechanism structured to open and close the contacts, and a trip mechanism structured to cooperate with the operating mechanism to trip open the operating mechanism. The trip mechanism includes a first bimetal to trip open the operating mechanism responsive to a thermal fault, a second ambient compensation bimetal to compensate the first bimetal, and an arc fault trip circuit to trip open the operating mechanism responsive to an arc fault. An indicator includes an indicator portion and a leg disposed from the indicator portion. A spring biases the indicator portion. The second bimetal holds the leg of the indicator, thereby holding the indicator against the spring bias. The second bimetal releases the leg of the indicator responsive to the arc fault trip circuit and the arc fault, thereby releasing the indicator to the spring bias. | 01-29-2009 |
20090189612 | METHOD OF ACTUATING A TEST FUNCTION OF AN ELECTRICAL SWITCHING APPARATUS AT A PANEL AND ELECTRICAL SWITCHING APPARATUS EMPLOYING THE SAME - An arc fault circuit breaker includes a panel having a first side and an opposite second side, a housing coupled to the opposite second side of the panel, separable contacts, an operating mechanism structured to open and close the separable contacts, and a trip mechanism cooperating with the operating mechanism to trip open the separable contacts. The trip mechanism includes a test circuit structured to simulate a trip condition to trip open the separable contacts, and a proximity sensor disposed on or within the housing proximate the opposite second side of the panel. The proximity sensor is structured to sense a target to actuate the test circuit when the target is disposed proximate the first side of the panel and opposite the proximity sensor. | 07-30-2009 |
20090310324 | METHOD OF ELECTRICALLY GROUNDING AN ELECTRICAL SWITCHING APPARATUS AND ELECTRICAL SWITCHING APPARATUS INCLUDING THE SAME - An aircraft circuit breaker includes a housing and a conductive member coupled thereto. The conductive member has a first conductive portion structured to be electrically and mechanically coupled to a conductive panel and a plurality of second conductive portions with a plurality of openings therethrough. An electronic circuit cooperates with an operating mechanism to trip open separable contacts. The circuit includes printed circuit boards having a plurality of conductive pads defining a ground. Each conductive pad has an opening therethrough. Each of a plurality of threaded conductive fasteners includes a conductive end portion, a conductive shaft disposed from the conductive end portion, and a plurality of conductive threads disposed on the conductive shaft. A number of the conductive threads electrically and mechanically engage a corresponding second conductive portion at a corresponding one of the openings. The conductive end portion electrically engages a corresponding one of the conductive pads. | 12-17-2009 |
20100301976 | CIRCUIT INTERRUPTER INCLUDING A MOLDED CASE MADE OF LIQUID CRYSTAL POLYMER - A circuit interrupter includes a housing having a molded case made of liquid crystal polymer. Separable contacts are disposed within the housing. An operating mechanism is disposed within the housing and is structured to open and close the separable contacts. A trip mechanism is disposed within the housing and is structured to cooperate with the operating mechanism to trip open the separable contacts. The trip mechanism includes an electronic trip circuit and a rigid, conductive base providing a ground to the electronic trip circuit. The rigid, conductive base is insert molded to a portion of the molded case. | 12-02-2010 |
20110235244 | PLUG-IN CIRCUIT BREAKER ASSEMBLY - A circuit breaker assembly includes a housing, an electrical bus structure coupled to the housing, and a number of first plug-in members coupled to the electrical bus structure. A number of circuit breakers include a first surface and a second plug-in member disposed opposite the first surface. The second plug-in member of each of the number of circuit breakers is mated with a corresponding one of the number of first plug-in members. A plate member is removably coupled to the housing. The plate member includes a first surface and an opposite second surface. The first surface of the number of circuit breakers engages the opposite second surface of the plate member in order to maintain mating of each of the number of circuit breakers with the corresponding one of the number of first plug-in members. | 09-29-2011 |
20120262848 | CIRCUIT BREAKER PANEL - A circuit breaker panel includes a number of circuit breaker modules each having a number of connectors, a plurality of circuit breakers and a circuit structure supporting the circuit breakers and electrically interconnecting the circuit breakers with the number of connectors. The panel also includes a monitoring module having a connector and a monitoring circuit to monitor at least one line voltage and, for each of the circuit breakers, at least one load voltage. The panel further includes a frame having a first connector for the monitoring module connector, a number of second connectors for the circuit breaker module connectors, and a number of third connectors for outputs from the circuit breaker modules. Conductors are connected to the connectors. Any of the monitoring module and the number of circuit breaker modules can be installed into or removed from the frame without change to the conductors. | 10-18-2012 |
20120319806 | THERMALLY MANAGED ELECTROMAGNETIC SWITCHING DEVICE - A thermally managed electromagnetic switching device ( | 12-20-2012 |
20130201608 | PLUG-IN CIRCUIT BREAKER ASSEMBLY INCLUDING INSULATIVE RETAINERS - A circuit breaker assembly includes a housing, an electrical bus structure within the housing, a number of first plug-in members coupled to the bus structure, and a number of insulative retainers coupled to the bus structure. A corresponding one of the number of insulative retainers is operatively associated with a corresponding number of the number of first plug-in members. Each of a number of circuit breakers includes a manual operator and a number of second plug-in members disposed opposite the manual operator. The number of second plug-in members electrically engage a number of the number of first plug-in members. The corresponding one of the number of insulative retainers is disposed about the corresponding number of the number of first plug-in members, in order to insulate the corresponding number of the number of first plug-in members, and to retain the number of second plug-in members. | 08-08-2013 |
20140118889 | PLUG-IN CIRCUIT BREAKER ASSEMBLY INCLUDING INSULATIVE RETAINERS - A circuit breaker assembly includes a housing, an electrical bus structure within the housing, a number of first plug-in members coupled to the bus structure, and a number of insulative retainers coupled to the bus structure. A corresponding one of the number of insulative retainers is operatively associated with a corresponding number of the number of first plug-in members. Each of a number of circuit breakers includes a manual operator and a number of second plug-in members disposed opposite the manual operator. The number of second plug-in members electrically engage a number of the number of first plug-in members. The corresponding one of the number of insulative retainers is disposed about the corresponding number of the number of first plug-in members, in order to insulate the corresponding number of the number of first plug-in members, and to retain the number of second plug-in members. | 05-01-2014 |
20150028877 | RELAY INCLUDING PROCESSOR PROVIDING CONTROL AND/OR MONITORING - A relay includes a first terminal, a second terminal, a third terminal, a fourth terminal, separable contacts electrically connected between the first and second terminals, an actuator coil comprising a first winding and a second winding, the first winding electrically connected between the third and fourth terminals, the second winding electrically connected between the third and fourth terminals, a processor, an output, a first voltage sensing circuit cooperating with the processor to determine a first voltage between the first and second terminals, and a second voltage sensing circuit cooperating with the processor to determine a second voltage between the third and fourth terminals. The processor determines that the separable contacts are closed when the first voltage does not exceed a first predetermined value and the second voltage exceeds a second predetermined value and responsively outputs a corresponding status to the output. | 01-29-2015 |