Circuit breaker

Abstract

To obtain a circuit breaker in which, even when some of a plurality of contacts are welded and a push plate is tilted, display of an ON state does not move, so that the ON state can be clearly determined from outside.SOLUTION: A circuit breaker includes: a housing 3; a push plate 10 capable of opening / closing a plurality of movable contacts 6 and a plurality of fixed contacts 4 provided in the housing 3; a linear sliding member 30c disposed along a groove of a sliding member guide 30d in the housing 3 and having a plurality of projections 30g which each projects from the slide member guide 30d to a side of the fixed contacts 4; a display piece 30b provided at an end of the sliding member 30c and interlocking with the sliding member 30c; and a display window 20 displaying the open / closed state of the contacts when the display piece 30b moves. Thus, a gap to prevent the projection 30g from being pressed can be increased, and when at least one of the contacts is stuck, the display piece 30b can be prevented from operating unnecessarily. Accordingly, an ON state can be clearly visualized, so that misrecognition can be prevented.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This disclosure relates to a circuit breaker with a display that indicates the position of the make and break contacts. [Background technology]

[0002] As a display device that displays the open / closed state of multiple movable contacts and multiple fixed contacts of a conventional circuit breaker, a circuit breaker has been proposed that has a display device in which multiple movable contacts are linked to the movement of a push plate (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 11-67047 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, the conventional circuit breaker described in Patent Document 1 had a problem in that if some of the multiple movable contacts and multiple fixed contacts provided inside the circuit breaker were to weld together and the push plate were to tilt, the indicator piece that should indicate the ON state could move and be mistakenly recognized as the OFF state.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a circuit breaker in which the indicator piece that should indicate the ON state does not move even if some of the multiple contacts are welded and the push plate is tilted, and the ON state of the main contacts can be clearly determined from outside the circuit breaker. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The circuit breaker according to this disclosure comprises a housing formed by combining a base and a cover facing each other; a push plate provided within the housing and operable to operate a plurality of movable contact conductors to open and close movable contacts provided on the plurality of movable contact conductors and a plurality of fixed contacts provided in pairs at a plurality of power supply side terminals fixed to the base; a linear slide member arranged along a groove formed in a slide member guide provided within the housing, one end of which is fixed and the other end of which is movable along the groove, and having a plurality of protrusions protruding from the slide member guide towards the plurality of fixed contacts between the one end and the other end; an indicator piece provided at the other end of the slide member and interlocking with the other end of the slide member; and an indicator window provided on the cover, which displays the open / closed state of the plurality of movable contacts and the plurality of fixed contacts as the indicator piece moves in conjunction with the slide member. When the multiple movable contacts and the multiple fixed contacts are opened, if at least one of the multiple movable contacts and the multiple fixed contacts is stuck, there is a gap so that the multiple protrusions are not pressed, and the indicator piece displays the closed state in the indicator window, and when the multiple movable contacts and the multiple fixed contacts are not stuck, the multiple protrusions are pressed, and the indicator piece displays the open state in the indicator window. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the circuit breaker disclosed herein, even if some of the multiple contacts that open and close inside the circuit breaker are welded together and the push plate is tilted, the indicator piece that should indicate the ON state will not move, and the ON state of the main contacts can be clearly determined from outside the circuit breaker. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is an overall view of a circuit breaker according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] 1 is a cross-sectional view of a circuit breaker according to a first embodiment. [Figure 3] 1 is a perspective view showing an internal configuration of a circuit breaker according to a first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a display device according to a first embodiment. [Figure 5]FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing an ON-OFF display unit in the first embodiment. [Figure 6] 1 is a front view showing the display device in the ON state according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7] 1 is a side view showing the display device in the ON state according to the first embodiment. [Figure 8] 1 is a side view showing the display device in the OFF state in accordance with the first embodiment. [Figure 9] 1 is a front view showing the display device in the OFF state in accordance with the first embodiment. [Figure 10] 5A to 5C are explanatory views of the operation of the slide member in the first embodiment. [Figure 11] 1 is a front view showing a welded state of contacts of the display device in the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 12] 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an ON-OFF display section visible through a display window in the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is a front view showing the display device in the OFF state in the second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Embodiment 1 A circuit breaker according to a first embodiment will be described. FIG. 1 is an overall view of the circuit breaker according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the circuit breaker according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the internal configuration of the circuit breaker according to the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the display device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an ON-OFF display unit according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a front view showing the ON state of the display device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 7 is a side view showing the ON state of the display device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 8 is a side view showing the OFF state of the display device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 9 is a front view showing the OFF state of the display device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation of the sliding member according to the first embodiment. FIG. 11 is a front view showing the welded state of the contacts of the display device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing the ON-OFF display unit seen through the display window. The circuit breaker according to the first embodiment will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 12.

[0010] 1, the circuit breaker 100 includes a housing 3 formed by combining a base 1 and a cover 2 made of insulating material such as plastic, a handle 11 protruding from the cover 2 for operating a mechanism 8 and a movable contact 6, and a display device 30 for displaying the contact or separation state of the movable contact 6 and the fixed contact 4 through a display window 20 provided in the cover 2. The base 1 and the cover 2 may have a structure other than that of being separated in the depth direction, and may have a structure of being separated in the width direction, for example.

[0011] The housing 3 also has a power supply side terminal 5 to which an external electric wire on the power supply side is connected, and a load side terminal 12 on the opposite side of the handle 11 from the power supply side terminal 5 to which an external electric wire on the load side is connected.

[0012] The handle 11 is made of an insulating material such as plastic, and is attached to a rotary shaft 14 provided in the mechanism part 8 so as to rotate around the rotary shaft 14. The handle 11 also protrudes from the cover 2 so as to be operable to switch the circuit breaker 100 to an ON state in which the movable contact 6 and the fixed contact 4 are in contact with each other, and to an OFF state in which the movable contact 6 and the fixed contact 4 are separated and not in contact with each other.

[0013] 2, the power supply side terminal 5 has a fixed fixed contact 4. Also, the movable contact conductor 7 has a movable contact 6 fixed to one end. The power supply side terminal 5 and the movable contact conductor 7 are arranged so that the fixed contact 4 and the movable contact 6 are located inside an arc-extinguishing chamber (not shown) when they are in contact. The movable contact conductor 7 is linked to a push plate 10 , which is connected to a mechanism unit 8 .

[0014] 3, the display device 30 is fixed to the top of the base 1. It is also arranged so as to be operated in conjunction with the push plate 10.

[0015] As shown in Figure 4, the display device 30 is composed of an ON-OFF display unit 30a that can be seen from the outside through the display window 20, a display piece 30b that fixes the ON-OFF display unit 30a, a slide member 30c connected to the display piece 30b, a slide member guide 30d that regulates the movement of the slide member 30c, a spring holder 30e fixed to the slide member 30c, and a return spring 30f that applies a return force to the spring holder 30e.

[0016] As shown in FIG. 5, the ON-OFF display section 30a displays "|" which indicates the ON state and "o" which indicates the OFF state. To make the ON-OFF display section 30a easier to see, the ON display side may be configured with a red background and the OFF display side with a green background. The ON-OFF display section 30a may also be made of, for example, a sticker and attached to the display piece 30b. Instead of "|" and "o", characters indicating the contact state between the movable contact 6 and the fixed contact 4 may be printed or engraved. Alternatively, the ON-OFF display section 30a may be eliminated by printing or engraving "|" which indicates the ON state and "o" which indicates the OFF state on the display piece 30b.

[0017] The display piece 30b is made of resin or metal and has enough rigidity to allow the ON-OFF display portion 30a to be seen without bending. The display piece 30b is fixed to one end of the slide member 30c.

[0018] The slide member 30c is a single linear wire or tape-shaped piece made of an insulating material such as resin or a non-insulating material such as metal, and is arranged along a groove provided in the slide member guide 30d. The lower portion of the slide member 30c protrudes out of the slide member guide 30d so that it can be pushed in by the pressure plate 10. Specifically, the slide member 30c has multiple protrusions 30g that protrude outward from the slide member guide 30d toward the pressure plate 10. While two protrusions are shown in FIG. 4, three, four, or any other number of protrusions may be used. While the slide member 30c is U-shaped in FIG. 4, it may also be U-shaped or V-shaped. The slide member 30c has sufficient rigidity to transmit movement to the indicator piece 30b when the protrusions 30g are pushed in by the pressure plate 10. The other end of the slide member 30c abuts against the end of a groove provided in the slide member guide 30d, and is prevented from moving along the groove.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 3, slide member guide 30d, made of an insulating material such as resin, is fixed to base 1 or cover 2. It has a shape that can hold return spring 30f and a space in which spring holder 30e can be placed. Slide member guide 30d may be integral with base 1 or cover 2. An L-shaped return may be provided in the groove of slide member guide 30d to prevent slide member 30c from coming off slide member guide 30d after assembly. Alternatively, slide member 30c may be covered with a separate part (not shown) to prevent slide member 30c from coming off slide member guide 30d.

[0020] The spring holder 30e is made of resin or metal, and has enough rigidity to transmit the return force of the return spring 30f to the slide member 30c when it receives the return force, and is fixed to the slide member 30c so that it will not come off due to the return force. Here, it is also possible to mold a spring hook portion on the slide member 30c or the indicator piece 30b and not provide the spring holder 30e.

[0021] The return spring 30f is made of resin or metal, and one end is held by the slide member guide 30d, while the other end is arranged so as to be able to contact the spring receiver 30e. The return spring 30f may be a tension spring or a torsion spring as long as it can apply a return force. It may also be arranged anywhere, for example, adjacent to the indicator piece 30b.

[0022] The push plate 10 is made of an insulating material such as resin, and is arranged so as to be interlocked with the movable contact conductor 7. As shown in Fig. 4, the push plate 10 has a flat surface 10a with which the slide member 30c can come into contact.

[0023] 6, the operating stroke between the ON state and OFF state of the push plate 10 is the push plate operating stroke 16. In addition, an initial gap 15 is provided between the protrusion 30g of the slide member 30c and the push plate 10, so that even if the push plate 10 starts to move in the direction of the slide member 30c, the slide member 30c of the display device 30 does not start to move immediately.

[0024] When the push plate 10 moves toward the slide member 30c to switch to the OFF state, the push plate 10 and the slide member 30c come into contact, and the slide member 30c is pushed up by the push plate 10. The amount by which the slide member 30c is pushed up by the push plate 10 is the slide member operating stroke 18.

[0025] Next, the operation of the circuit breaker 100 according to the first embodiment will be described.

[0026] As shown in Figure 7, when the circuit breaker 100 is in the ON state, operation of the handle 11 causes the mechanism 8 to overcome the biasing force of the break-away spring 13 and push the push plate 10 downward in the depth direction, causing the fixed contact 4 and the movable contact 6 to come into contact, thereby making the circuit breaker 100 conductive.

[0027] At this time, the movable contact conductor 7 is located on the lower side, that is, the base 1 side, together with the push plate 10. In this state where the fixed contact 4 and the movable contact 6 are in contact, the flat surface 10a of the push plate 10 is not in contact with the slide member 30c, so that the slide member 30c is pushed downward toward the base 1 by the return force of the return spring 30f, and the lower part of the slide member 30c protrudes from the slide member guide 30d. Indicator window 20 provided on the surface of the cover 2 displays "|", which indicates that the fixed contact 4 and the movable contact 6 are in contact, i.e., in the ON state.

[0028] On the other hand, as shown in Figure 8, when an overcurrent or short-circuit current flows through the circuit breaker 100, a latch (not shown) in the mechanism part 8 is disengaged to interrupt the overcurrent or short-circuit current. As a result, the biasing force of the separation spring 13 causes the movable contact conductor 7 to rotate upward toward the cover 2, centering on the other end opposite to the end where the movable contact 6 is attached. Since the movable contact conductor 7 and the push plate 10 operate integrally, the push plate 10 moves toward the slide member 30c, and the movable contact 6 separates from the fixed contact 4, thereby switching the circuit breaker 100 to the OFF state.

[0029] In the OFF state where the fixed contact 4 and the movable contact 6 are separated, the push plate 10 moves together with the movable contact conductor 7 in the direction of movement of the push plate 10, from the base 1 toward the cover 2, as shown in Figure 9. At that time, the lower end of the slide member 30c is pushed upward in the depth direction by the push plate 10. As a result, an "o" is displayed in the display window 20 provided on the surface of the cover 2, indicating that the fixed contact 4 and the movable contact 6 are separated, i.e., in the OFF state.

[0030] The operation of the slide member 30c will be explained in detail in Figure 10. The slide member 30c is pushed up in the K direction by the push plate 10. Here, the state after being pushed up is shown by a dotted line. The pushed-up slide member 30c moves in the L direction. The L direction is the depth direction of the circuit breaker 100. As the slide member 30c moves, the display piece 30b and the ON-OFF display unit 30a move in the M direction. As a result, the ON-OFF display unit 30a visible through the display window 20 of the cover 2 changes from "|", which indicates the ON state, to "◯", which indicates the OFF state. This allows the user to visually confirm that the circuit breaker 100 is not conducting.

[0031] Figure 11 shows an example of a welded contact. The left contact is welded, and the fixed contact 4 and the movable contact 6 are fixed together. On the other hand, the right contact is not welded, so the spring 13 biases the movable contact conductor 7 toward the OFF state. This causes the unwelded right side of the pusher plate 10 to be pushed up as if in the OFF state, approaching the slide member 30c. However, because the initial gap 15 between the protrusion 30g of the slide member 30c and the pusher plate 10 is sufficient, the pusher plate 10 and the slide member 30c do not come into contact, and the slide member 30c, the indicator piece 30b, and the ON-OFF indicator 30a remain in the ON state as shown in Figure 12. As a result, the ON state can be clearly seen through the display window 20.

[0032] The following provides a detailed explanation of how the initial gap 15 can be sufficiently secured between the protrusion 30g of the slide member 30c and the push plate 10. When the slide member 30c has two protrusions 30g protruding from the slide member guide 30d as shown in Figure 6 and the slide member 30c is pushed by these protrusions, the indicator piece operating stroke 19 shown in Figure 10 is four times the slide member operating stroke 18. If there are three protrusions 30g, the indicator piece operating stroke 19 is six times the slide member operating stroke 18.

[0033] In this way, if the display piece operating stroke 19 can be made larger than the slide member operating stroke 18, it is possible to reduce the slide member operating stroke 18 in order to ensure the display piece operating stroke 19 necessary to switch between the ON and OFF displays. Here, since the push plate operating stroke 16 is fixed, the amount obtained by subtracting the slide member operating stroke 18 from the push plate operating stroke 16 is the initial gap 15 between the protruding portion 30g of the slide member 30c and the push plate 10. That is, if the slide member operating stroke 18 can be reduced, the initial gap 15 between the protruding portion 30g of the slide member 30c and the push plate 10 can be increased.

[0034] By increasing the initial gap 15 between the protrusion 30g of the slide member 30c and the push plate 10, it is possible to prevent the push plate 10 and the slide member 30c from coming into contact with each other even when the push plate 10 is tilted as shown in Figure 11.

[0035] According to the first embodiment, there is provided a housing 3 in which a base 1 and a cover 2 are combined opposite to each other, a push plate 10 provided in the housing 3 and which operates a plurality of movable contact conductors 7 to open and close the movable contacts 6 provided on the plurality of movable contact conductors 7 and the plurality of fixed contacts 4 provided in pairs on each of a plurality of power supply side terminals 5 fixed to the base 1, a linear slide member 30c which is arranged along a groove formed in a slide member guide 30d provided in the housing 3, has one end fixed and the other end movable along the groove, and has a plurality of protrusions 30g which protrude from the slide member guide 30d toward the plurality of fixed contacts 4 between the one end and the other end, and a slide member 30c having a plurality of protrusions 30g on the other end of the slide member 30c. The cover 2 is provided with an indicator piece 30b at one end of the slide member 30c that moves in conjunction with the other end of the slide member 30c, and an indicator window 20 that displays the open / closed state of the plurality of movable contacts 6 and the plurality of fixed contacts 4 as indicator piece 30b moves in conjunction with the slide member 30c. This allows for a large initial gap 15 between the protrusion 30g of the slide member 30c and the push plate 10, and if at least one of the plurality of movable contacts 6 and the plurality of fixed contacts 4 sticks when the plurality of movable contacts 6 and the plurality of fixed contacts 4 are released, an initial gap 15 is provided that prevents the plurality of protrusions 30g from being pressed, preventing unnecessary operation of the slide member 30c. As a result, the ON-OFF indicator 30a does not operate, allowing the ON state to be clearly seen and preventing erroneous recognition.

[0036] Embodiment 2 In the first embodiment, the push plate 10 pushes the slide member 30c, but in the second embodiment, the movable contact conductor 7 pushes the slide member 30c.

[0037] 13, when the movable contact conductor 7 in the second embodiment is in the OFF state, the movable contact conductor 7 presses the protrusion 30g of the slide member 30c. The contact portion of the movable contact conductor 7 with the slide member 30c may be provided with a surface that is parallel to the width direction when in contact, making it easier to press in. In addition, since the movable contact conductor 7 is electrically connected, it is desirable to cover the slide member 30c with an insulating material such as a tube.

[0038] According to the second embodiment, in addition to the effects shown in the first embodiment, it is not necessary to provide the flat surface portion 10a of the push plate 10, and it is possible to reduce the size of the push plate 10 and the cost by reducing the material cost.

[0039] The configurations shown in the above embodiments are examples of the contents of the present disclosure. The embodiments can be combined with other known technologies. Part of the configurations of the embodiments can be omitted or modified without departing from the gist of the present disclosure. [Explanation of symbols]

[0040] 1 base, 2 cover, 3 housing, 4 fixed contact, 5 power supply terminal, 6 moving contact, 7 movable contact conductor, 8 mechanism part, 10 push plate, 10a flat part, 11 handle, 12 load side terminal, 13 break spring, 14 rotating shaft, 15 initial gap, 16 push plate operating stroke, 18 slide member operating stroke, 19 Indicator piece operating stroke, 20 Indicator window, 30 Display device, 30a ON-OFF display unit, 30b Indicator piece, 30c Slide member, 30d Slide member guide, 30e spring support, 30f return spring, 30g protrusion, 100 circuit breaker.

Claims

1. a housing formed by combining a base and a cover facing each other; a push plate provided within the housing for operating a plurality of movable contact conductors to open and close a plurality of movable contacts provided on the plurality of movable contact conductors and a plurality of fixed contacts provided in pairs on each of a plurality of power supply side terminals fixed to the base; a slide member having one end fixed and the other end movable, the slide member having a plurality of protrusions that protrude toward the plurality of fixed contacts between the one end and the other end; an indicator piece provided at the other end of the slide member and interlocking with the other end of the slide member; a display window provided in the cover, the display piece moving in conjunction with the slide member to display the open / closed states of the plurality of movable contacts and the plurality of fixed contacts; Circuit breaker with.

2. a slide member guide provided in the housing, the slide member having a groove in which the other end of the slide member is movable, the slide member being disposed along the groove; 2. The circuit breaker of claim 1.

3. The slide member guide is integrally formed with either the base or the cover.

3. The circuit breaker of claim 2.

4. When the plurality of movable contacts and the plurality of fixed contacts are released, if at least one of the plurality of movable contacts and the plurality of fixed contacts is stuck, a gap is provided so that the plurality of protrusions are not pressed.

4. The circuit breaker according to claim 1, wherein the first and second electrodes are electrically connected to each other.

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