EP2061059A1 - Device for controlling electrical switchgear and electrical switchgear including same - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a device for controlling an electrical switchgear comprising at least one movable contact (s) (4), the said mobile contact (s) (4). being intended to cooperate with at least one fixed contact (5) relative to the housing, a manual operating lever (6) of the movable contact (s), and a shaft called abrupt closure (6). This device is characterized in that said abrupt closing shaft (7) comprises a first lever (13) cooperating with a cam portion (14) of the handle (6), and at least one second lever (15) cooperating respectively with at least one stop (16), each stop being secured to a movable contact, so that the movable contact (s) is retained by the second lever (s) ) (15) at the beginning of manual closing of the handle (6) and that the cam (14), after the aforesaid stroke of the handle (6), acts on the first lever (13) so as to unlock the aforementioned hooking of the second lever (s) (15) on the movable contact (s) (4), this unlocking resulting in the sudden closure of the contacts (4,5).

Description

The present invention relates to a device for controlling an electric switchgear housed in an insulating housing comprising at least one movable contact (s) carried by a said contact-carrier shaft, said ( s) mobile contact (s) being intended (s) to cooperate with at least one contact (s) fixed (s) relative to the housing, a manual operating handle rotatably mounted about an axis of the housing and adapted to move said contact carrier shaft between an open position and a closed position of the contacts, and a so-called sudden closure device comprising a so-called closing shaft, said abrupt closing shaft being intended, at the beginning of the maneuver of manually closing the handle, and on a certain stroke thereof, to hold the contact (s) mobile (s) in the open position of the contacts by storing energy, and after this race of the joystick, to release the movable contact (s) so that the stored energy previously created causes the abrupt closure of the contacts.

The patent is known FR 2717617 describing a device of the kind mentioned above, this device comprising a sudden closing shaft, said shaft having stops bearing directly on the movable contacts. In this device, the sudden closing shaft is unlocked by the contact shaft. The latching is unlocked on a very small fraction of the travel of the contact shaft so that the contacts are released neither too early nor too late compared to the compression springs and relative to the fixed contacts. Focusing is tricky and drift in parts manufacturing can lead to malfunctions.

The present invention solves these drawbacks and proposes a device for controlling an electrical switching device, of simple design, in which the movable contacts are released at a controlled distance from the fixed contacts, and for which the stresses exerted on the parts that intervene. in the unlocking, such as the abrupt closing shaft and the lever, are reduced.

For this purpose, the subject of the present invention is a device for controlling an electrical breaking device of the kind mentioned above, this apparatus being characterized in that said abrupt closing shaft comprises a first lever cooperating with a cam part of the lever, and at least one second lever cooperating respectively with at least one stop, each stop being secured to a movable contact, so that the movable contact (s) is retained by the second (s) ( s) lever (s) at the beginning of manual closing of the lever and that the cam, after the aforesaid stroke of the lever, acts on the first lever so as to unlock the aforementioned attachment of the second lever (s) ( s) on the movable contact (s), this unlocking resulting in the sudden closing of the contacts.

According to a particular embodiment, this device comprises for each movable contacts, a contact pressure spring interposed between said movable contact and the contact-carrying shaft and in that the aforementioned springs are compressed at the beginning of the closing maneuver of the joystick during the retention of the movable contacts, the energy stored by the springs being released after this stroke of the lever, so as to achieve the sudden closure of the contacts.

According to a particular characteristic of the invention, the mobile contact (s) is (are) mounted respectively in a contact carrier (s), the said contact (s). support (s) being mounted (s) in an articulated manner, relative to the contact-bearing shaft (s), and the second (s) lever (s) cooperates (ent) respectively with (the) abutment (s) (s) formed respectively on (the) support (s) contact.

According to another embodiment, this device comprises for each of said contact supports, a contact pressure spring, said spring being interposed between said support and the contact-carrier shaft, and the aforementioned springs are compressed at the beginning of operation of the closing the handle during the retention of the movable contacts, the energy stored by the springs being released then in order to achieve the sudden closure of the contacts.

According to another characteristic, the first lever extends at an angle of approximately 90 ° with respect to the second lever (s).

According to another characteristic, this device comprises means for signaling the welded or non-welded state of the contacts, these means being carried partly by the abrupt closing shaft and partly by the lever.

According to a particular characteristic, these signaling means comprise a hooking means belonging to the abrupt closing shaft, this hooking means being intended to cooperate with a cam portion of the joystick, and at least one said third lever to the abrupt closing shaft, said (said) lever (s) said third (s) being intended (s) to cooperate respectively with a (the) abutment (s) integral (s) respectively of (the) contact (s) ) mobile (s) so that when the contacts are welded, the abutment of the third (s) lever (s) on the (the) movable contact (s) prevents the displacement of the shaft abrupt closing and therefore the lever, thanks to the engagement of the attachment means with the cam portion of the joystick.

According to another characteristic, the movable contact (s) is (are) mounted respectively in a contact carrier (s), said support (s) being mounted (s) in an articulated manner, relative to the contact-bearing shaft (s), and the (the) third (s) lever (s) cooperates (ent) respectively with a (the) stop (s) formed (s) on respectively, the (the) support (s) of contact.

According to a particular characteristic, the (the) support (s) of contact is (are) made (s) of an insulating material.

According to a particular feature, the aforementioned hooking means comprises a hook formed at the end of the or each lever said third and cooperating with the cam portion of the joystick.

According to another characteristic, said first said lever comprises said hooking means.

According to another characteristic, the lever (s) said second (s) and the lever (s) said third (s) above (s) are one and the same piece.

Another subject of the present invention is an electrical cut-off device comprising the aforementioned features taken alone or in combination.

• La figure 1 est une vue en perspective illustrant un interrupteur différentiel comportant un dispositif de commande selon l'invention,
• la figure 2 est une vue en plan, illustrant la partie intérieure de l'appareil,
• La figure 3 est une vue en perspective, illustrant un arbre porte-contacts destiné à recevoir des supports de contact et des lames de contact,
• La figure 4 est une vue en plan d'un dispositif de commande selon l'invention, dans une position ouverte des contacts,
• La figure 5 est une vue identique à la précédente, dans une position fermée des contacts, et
• La figure 6 est une vue identique aux figures 4 et 5, illustrant le dispositif de commande selon l'invention équipé d'un dispositif de signalisation des contacts soudés de l'appareil, en position soudée des contacts.

But other advantages and features of the invention will become more apparent in the detailed description which follows and refers to the accompanying drawings given solely by way of example and in which:

• The figure 1 is a perspective view illustrating a differential switch comprising a control device according to the invention,
• the figure 2 is a plan view, illustrating the inner part of the apparatus,
• The figure 3 is a perspective view, illustrating a contact-carrier shaft for receiving contact supports and contact blades,
• The figure 4 is a plan view of a control device according to the invention, in an open position of the contacts,
• The figure 5 is a view identical to the previous one, in a closed position of the contacts, and
• The figure 6 is a view identical to figures 4 and 5 , illustrating the control device according to the invention equipped with a signaling device of the welded contacts of the apparatus, in the welded position of the contacts.

On the figures 1 and 2 , we see a differential switch D comprising mainly, housed in an insulating housing, upstream connection terminals 1 and downstream connection terminals 2, a shaft 3 supporting movable contacts 4, rotatably mounted in the housing between a position in which the mobile contacts 4 are in contact with fixed contacts 5 relative to the housing, and a position in which these movable contacts 4 are remote from said fixed contacts 5.
This apparatus also comprises a control device C comprising a lever 6 for manual operation able to drive the contact-carrying shaft 3 between the two aforementioned positions, said shaft 3 being returned to the open position of the contacts 4,5 by means of a spring (not shown).
It also comprises, in known manner, differential tripping means adapted to cause the opening of the contacts in the case of the occurrence of a ground fault. This device also comprises an abrupt closing shaft 7, said abrupt closing shaft 7 being intended, at the beginning of the manual closing operation of the lever 6 and over a certain stroke thereof, to retain the movable contacts in the open position of the contacts 4,5 by storing energy, and releasing said contacts after this race of the joystick, said stored energy causing the closure of the contacts with a high speed.
For a more detailed description of the operation of such a device, reference may be made to the French patent FR 2,717,617 .
This abrupt closing shaft 7 is rotatably mounted in the housing of the apparatus, a spring 8 being placed between said shaft 7 and the housing to bias said shaft into a position in which it interferes with the contacts.
As this is illustrated on the figure 3 , the contact-carrying shaft 3 supports contact supports 9 rotatably mounted within housings 10 provided in said shaft 7, said supports 9 being intended to receive contact blades 11. In order to ensure the contact pressure between each movable contact 4 and the corresponding fixed contact 5, a contact pressure spring 12 (shown in FIG. figure 2 ) is interposed between each contact support 9 and the contact-carrier shaft 3.
According to the invention, this abrupt closing shaft 7 comprises a first lever 13 intended to cooperate with a cam 14 formed in the base of the lever 6, and for each of the movable contacts 4 and thus of the movable contact supports 9, a so-called second lever 15 intended to cooperate by its free end, with a stop 16 provided on said contact support 9.
The control device also comprises a device for signaling the welding of the contacts associated with the abrupt closing shaft 7. This device comprises a part made of hook form 17 secured to said first lever 13 of the sudden closure shaft 7, said portion 17 being intended to cooperate with the aforesaid cam 14 of the joystick. This device also comprises so-called third levers, as well as contact supports, these levers being constituted in this particular embodiment by the said second said levers 15, an end portion 18 of these second levers 15 being intended to cooperate respectively with the contact supports 9.
The operation of the control device according to the invention will be described in the following with reference to the figures.
On the figure 4 , the control device is being closed. The open position of the contacts corresponds to a position in which the handle is directed to the right, while the closed position of the contacts corresponds to a position in which the handle is oriented to the left. At the beginning of the closing maneuver, which corresponds to a slight displacement of the lever to the left, the so-called first lever 13 is inside the opening 19 formed by the cam 14 of the lever 6. During this movement of the lever 6, means, not shown in the figures, but known per se, rotate the contact-carrier shaft on its axis, causing rotation in rotation about this axis the contact supports. During this movement of the handle 6, the spring 8 maintains in abutment the sudden closing shaft 7 on the contact supports by means of the levers 15. When the stops 16 of the contact supports come to bear on the levers 15 of the the abrupt closing shaft, the rotation of the contact supports around the axis of the contact-carrier shaft is blocked while the contact-carrier shaft continues to pivot on its axis.
At this stage of the kinematics of the control device, the movable contacts are separated from their mutual fixed contact. During the next phase of the movement of the lever 6 to the left, the contact-carrier shaft continues to pivot while the movable contacts are limited in their movements to their mutual fixed contact by the levers 15 resting on the abutments 16 of the supports of contacts. The offset of the axes of the contact supports relative to the axis of the contact-carrier shaft produces in this phase a slight complex combined movement of translations and rotations of the contact supports. In this phase, maintaining the pivoting of the door shaft causes the compression of the aforementioned contact pressure springs 12. When the closing movement of the joystick continues, as illustrated in FIG. figure 5 , the first lever 13 is tilted by the end of the cam 14 and it drives the sudden closing shaft 7 clockwise thus releasing the contact supports 9 from their engagement with the second levers 15, which frees the displacement of the movable contacts 4 towards the fixed contacts 5 in a fast movement and practically independent of the operating speed of the lever, obtained by releasing the energy stored by the contact pressure springs.
Note that according to the embodiment described and illustrated, the movable contacts are mounted in contact supports.
It will be noted that the offset of the axes of the contact supports with respect to the axis of the contact-carrying shaft allows sliding to the contact of the movable contacts on the fixed contacts.
Another embodiment could consist in providing mobile contacts mounted directly in the movable contact bearing shaft this time, and contact pressure springs respectively mounted between each movable contact and the movable contact bearing shaft. In this case, these contact pressure springs are compressed at the beginning of the rotational stroke of the handle towards the closed position, said springs then ensuring the rapid movement of the movable contacts towards the fixed contacts, after a certain stroke of the handle .
It should be noted that the lever arm of the quick-closing shaft and the cam of the lever increase the displacement of the abrupt closing shaft.

The operation of the contact welding signaling device will be described below:
During an opening sequence, in the case of normal operation of the apparatus, the abrupt closing shaft 7 disappears from the trajectory of the lever 6 following the tilting of the moving contact 4 and the fact that the abrupt closing shaft is biased by the spring 8 against the contact supports.
During an opening sequence, in the case where the apparatus has at least two welded contacts, the second said lever being in abutment on the abutments 16 of the contact supports 9, the rotation of the abrupt closing shaft 7 is prevented. The hook 17 of the quick-closing shaft 7 retains the handle 6 and prevents it from being moved into the open position. This is an indication of the welded state of the contacts.
A credible signaling device has thus been made without adding additional parts, this signaling functioning regardless of the contact that is soldered.
A control device in which the kinematics of the unlocking to ensure the sudden closure is made reliable by the fact that the movable contacts are released at a controlled distance from the fixed contacts and the fact that the dispersions manufacturing parts involved in the unlocking are reduced.
The present invention may be advantageously used in a switch, a differential circuit breaker or not, a controlled switch, a disconnector etc ....

Of course, the invention is not limited to the embodiments described and illustrated which have been given by way of example.

Claims (6)

Device for controlling an electric switchgear housed in an insulating housing comprising at least one movable contact (s) carried by a said contact-holder shaft, the said contact (s) ) mobile (s) being intended (s) to cooperate with at least one contact (s) fixed (s) relative to the housing, a manual operating handle rotatably mounted about an axis of the housing and adapted to move said shaft contact carrier between an open position and a closed position of the contacts, and a so-called abrupt closing device comprising a so-called closing shaft, said abrupt closing shaft being intended, at the beginning of the manual closing operation of the joystick , and on a certain stroke thereof, to hold the contact (s) mobile (s) in the open position of the contacts by storing energy, and after this race of the joystick, to release the (the) ) mobile contact (s) so that the energy stored previously causes the abrupt termination of the contacts, said abrupt closing shaft (7) having a first lever (13) cooperating with a cam portion (14) of the handle (6), and at least one second lever (15) cooperating respectively with at least one a stop (16), each stop being secured to a movable contact so that the movable contact (s) is (are) retained by the second lever (s) (15). ) at the beginning of manual closing of the handle (6) and that the cam (14), after the aforesaid stroke of the handle (6), acts on the first lever (13) so as to unlock the aforementioned hooking of (the) second lever (s) (15) on the movable contact (s), this unlocking resulting in the sudden closure of the contacts (4,5),
characterized in that it comprises, for each of the movable contacts (4), a contact pressure spring (12) interposed between said movable contact (4) and the contact-carrier shaft (3), and in that the said springs (12) are compressed at the beginning of the closing operation of the handle (6) during the retention of the moving contacts, the energy stored by the springs (12) being released after this stroke of the handle, so as to achieve abrupt closing of the contacts (4,5). Control device according to claim 1, characterized in that the movable contact (s) (4) is (are) mounted respectively in a support (s) of contact (9), the said support (s) (9) being hingedly mounted with respect to the contact-carrier shaft (3), and in that the (9) the second lever (s) (15) cooperate (ent) respectively with one (or) stop (s) (16) formed respectively on the (the) support (s) contact. Control device according to claim 2, characterized in that it comprises, for each of said contact supports (9), a contact pressure spring (12), said spring (12) being interposed between said support (9). ) and the contact-carrier shaft (3), and in that the aforesaid springs (12) are compressed at the beginning of the closing operation of the handle (6) during the retention of the movable contacts (4), the stored energy by the springs (12) being then released so as to effect the sudden closure of the contacts (4,5). Control device according to one of Claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the first lever (13) extends at an angle of approximately 90 ° with respect to the second lever (s) (15). Control device according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that the (the) support (s) contact (9) is (are) made (s) of an insulating material. Electrical switching device comprising a control device according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

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