Electronic power meter

Abstract

To provide an electronic watthour meter which is easy in the exchange work of an instrument, in the electronic watthour meter having a watthour meter main body which is separable from a terminal block.SOLUTION: An electronic watthour meter comprises: a watthour meter main body having a box body 12 in which an instrument for measuring a watthour is accommodated; a terminal block separably connected to the watthour meter main body; and a cover member 24 arranged at the watthour meter main body so as to cover a back face and a side face of at least a part of the terminal block. The box body 12 has a hollow part 18 which is opened at a bottom face. The cover member 24 is constituted so as to be movable between an accommodation position accommodated in the hollow part 18 and an elongation position elongated from the hollow part 18 through the opening of the bottom face of the box body 12, and has operation tabs 30a, 30b which are operated so as to be changed in positions, and movable in slots 20a, 20b formed at a front face or a side face of the box body 12, and the box body 12 has a fixing part which can fix a position of the cover member 24.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an electronic energy meter. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there is an electronic watt-hour meter that includes a watt-hour meter main body that incorporates a meter for measuring the amount of power, and a stationary terminal section (in other words, a terminal block) that is separably connected to the watt-hour meter main body. In an electronic watt-hour meter that includes a terminal block, a waterproof guard section is provided on the rear side of the housing of the watt-hour meter main body in order to prevent foreign matter such as water droplets from entering the connection section between the watt-hour meter main body and the terminal block. FIG. 16 is a perspective view showing an example of a conventional electronic watt-hour meter main body 1 with the terminal block removed, and FIG. 17 is a bottom view of the electronic watt-hour meter main body 1 shown in FIG. 16. The electronic watt-hour meter 1 is installed on the wall of a structure such as a house or a building so that the direction indicated by the arrow V in FIG. 16 faces the vertical direction. Therefore, in the installed state, the electronic watt-hour meter main body 1 is located vertically upward, and the terminal block is located vertically downward.

[0003] As shown in the figure, the electronic electricity meter main body 1 has a housing 2, a window portion 3 for displaying the measured amount of electricity is arranged on the front side of the housing 2, and terminal fittings 4 are arranged on the bottom surface, which are electrically connected to a terminal block not shown.

[0004] The housing 2 includes a waterproof guard portion 5. Specifically, the rear side of the housing 2 protrudes downward from the bottom surface so as to cover a terminal block (not shown), thereby forming the waterproof guard portion 5 having a predetermined length L. In other words, the waterproof guard portion 5 is a part of the housing 2 and is integrated with the housing 2. In order to ensure the desired waterproof performance, the waterproof guard portion 5 has a length L that allows it to fit relatively deeply into the terminal block.

[0005] Incidentally, it is legally required that watt-hour meters such as electronic watt-hour meters be replaced periodically. When replacing the watt-hour meter body connected to a separate terminal block, it is necessary to slide the watt-hour meter body up and down relative to the terminal block fixed to the installation surface such as a wall. Figure 18 is a diagram explaining the sliding operation when replacing the electronic watt-hour meter body 1.

[0006] FIG. 18(A) shows the electronic watt-hour meter main body 1 to which the terminal block 6 is connected, and the arrow V indicates the vertical direction. To replace the electronic watt-hour meter main body 1, the terminal block 6 is placed on the installation surface, and the electronic watt-hour meter main body 1 is separated from the terminal block 6 by sliding it upward relative to the terminal block 6 as shown in FIG. 18(B). Therefore, it is necessary to slide the electronic watt-hour meter main body 1 significantly until the mating state between the waterproof guard part 5 having a predetermined length L and the terminal block 6 is released. Similarly, when connecting a new electronic watt-hour meter main body 1 to the terminal block 6, it is necessary to slide the electronic watt-hour meter main body 1 downward so that the waterproof guard part 5 of the electronic watt-hour meter main body 1 receives the terminal block 6.

[0007] However, electronic watt-hour meters are sometimes stored in storage boxes such as meter boxes or collection boxes. Since the installation space for the watt-hour meter in the storage box is small, replacement work inside the storage box is difficult. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] In view of the above, one embodiment of the present invention aims to provide an electronic watt-hour meter that has a watt-hour meter body that can be separated from a terminal block, and that facilitates the replacement of the meter. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an electronic watt-hour meter comprising: an electricity meter body having a housing in which a meter for measuring electricity is housed; a terminal block detachably connected to the electricity meter body; and a cover member arranged on the electricity meter body so as to cover at least a portion of the rear and side of the terminal block, wherein the housing has a cavity that opens at the bottom surface of the housing, the cover member is configured to be movable between a stored position in which it is housed in the cavity and an extended position in which it extends from the cavity, through the opening at the bottom surface of the housing, the cover member has an operating tab that is operated to change the position of the cover member and is movable within a slot formed on the front or side surface of the housing, and the housing has a fixing portion that can fix the position of the cover member. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an electronic watt-hour meter body used in a first embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the electronic watt-hour meter main body shown in FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a cover member used in the first embodiment of the present invention, where (A) shows the front side of the cover member, and (B) shows the back side of the cover member. [Figure 4] 11A and 11B are diagrams for explaining the operation of the operation tab, in which (A) is a diagram showing the stored position of the cover member, and (B) is a diagram showing the extended position of the cover member. [Diagram 5] 13A is a diagram illustrating the function of the fixing part when the cover member is in the stored position, and FIG. 13B is a diagram illustrating the function of the fixing part when the cover member is in the extended position. [Figure 6] 5A to 5C are diagrams illustrating a meter replacement operation in the electronic watt-hour meter according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7] 5A and 5B are diagrams showing another example of a cover member used in the first embodiment, in which (A) shows the front side of the cover member, and (B) shows the back side of the cover member. [Figure 8]11A and 11B are diagrams for explaining the operation of the operation tab, in which (A) is a diagram showing the stored position of the cover member, and (B) is a diagram showing the extended position of the cover member. [Figure 9] 5A and 5B are diagrams illustrating an electronic watt-hour meter according to a second embodiment of the present invention, in which (A) shows a stored position of a cover member, and (B) shows an extended position of the cover member. [Figure 9A] FIG. 13 is an enlarged view of the slot showing the locking protrusion. [Figure 10] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of an electronic energy meter according to a third embodiment of the present invention, in which a terminal block is omitted. [Figure 11] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the electronic watt-hour meter with a terminal cover removed from the electronic watt-hour meter body. [Figure 12] 13A and 13B are diagrams showing an example of a cover member used in a third embodiment of the present invention, in which (A) shows the front side of the cover member, and (B) shows the back side of the cover member. [Figure 13] 11A and 11B are diagrams for explaining the operation of the operation tab, in which (A) is a diagram showing the stored position of the cover member, and (B) is a diagram showing the extended position of the cover member. [Figure 14] 13A to 13C are diagrams illustrating a meter replacement operation in an electronic watt-hour meter according to a third embodiment. [Figure 15] 13A to 13C are diagrams illustrating a meter replacement operation in an electronic watt-hour meter according to a fourth embodiment. [Figure 16] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a conventional electronic watt-hour meter body. [Figure 17] FIG. 1 is a bottom view of a conventional electronic watt-hour meter body. [Figure 18] 1A and 1B are diagrams illustrating a meter replacement operation for a conventional electronic watt-hour meter. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] Hereinafter, each embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the following description is merely an example, and is not intended to limit the technical scope of the present invention to the following embodiment. In addition, in the drawings, the same or corresponding components are given the same reference numerals, and duplicated descriptions are omitted.

[0012] [First embodiment] A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figs. 1 to 8. The electronic watt-hour meter according to the first embodiment includes a watt-hour meter main body incorporating a meter for measuring the amount of watt-hour, and a stationary terminal section (in other words, a terminal block) separably connected to the watt-hour meter main body. Fig. 1 shows an electronic watt-hour meter main body (hereinafter, watt-hour meter main body) 10 used in the first embodiment. Fig. 2 is a bottom view of the watt-hour meter main body 10.

[0013] The electronic watt-hour meter is installed on the wall of a house, building, or other structure so that the direction indicated by the arrow V in Fig. 1 faces the vertical direction. Therefore, in the installed state, the watt-hour meter main body 10 is positioned vertically upward, and a terminal block (not shown) is positioned vertically downward. In the following description, terms indicating directions such as "upper" and "lower" refer to the directions in the installed state of the electronic watt-hour meter.

[0014] As shown in the figure, the watt-hour meter main body 10 has a housing 12, which has a window 14 for displaying the measured watt-hour value arranged on the front side and terminal fittings 16 arranged on the bottom side for electrical connection to a terminal block. The housing 12 is made of an insulating resin material.

[0015] As shown in the figure, the housing 12 has a cavity 18 that opens around the terminal fittings 16 arranged on the bottom surface. The cavity 18 extends along the back and side surfaces of the housing 12 and has a predetermined length (in other words, depth) relative to the bottom surface. The cavity 18 has a size and shape determined so as to be able to accommodate the entire cover member 24, which will be described later. The housing 12 has slots 20a, 20b that extend in the vertical direction at the left and right ends of the front surface. The slots 20a, 20b open into the cavity 18. In addition, as will be described later, the housing 12 has a protrusion 22 on the surface within the cavity 18.

[0016] FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an example of the cover member 24 used in the first embodiment. (A) shows the front side of the cover member 24, and (B) shows the back side (in other words, the back side). Like the housing 12, the cover member 24 is formed of an insulating resin material. The cover member 24 has a main plate 26 that extends in the width direction of the watt-hour meter body 10 and is configured to be disposed on the back side of the watt-hour meter body 10, and a pair of side plates 28a, 28b that extend substantially vertically forward from the left and right ends of the main plate 26. Operation tabs 30a, 30b are formed at the front ends of the side plates 28a, 28b. The operation tabs 30a, 30b are configured to protrude to the outside of the housing 12 through slots 20a, 20b formed on the front surface of the housing 12.

[0017] Moreover, recesses 31, 32 are formed in the main plate 26 on the rear surface of the cover member 24. In the illustrated example, a pair of recesses 31 and a pair of recesses 32 are arranged aligned in the width direction of the cover member 24 (corresponding to the width direction of the housing 12). The recesses 31 and the recesses 32 are positioned at different positions from each other in the length direction of the cover member 24 (corresponding to the length direction of the housing 12).

[0018] The recesses 31, 32 are sized and positioned so as to be able to fit into the protrusions 22 formed on the inner surface of the housing 12. As shown in Fig. 1, a pair of protrusions 22 aligned in the width direction of the housing 12 is disposed on the lower surface of the cavity 18 of the housing 12. The recesses 31, 32 and the protrusions 22 have complementary shapes and are formed at corresponding positions in the width direction of the housing 12.

[0019] The recesses 31, 32 may be formed in the side plates 28a, 28b on the rear surface side of the cover member 24. In this case, the protrusion 22 can be formed on the side surface within the cavity 18 of the housing 12.

[0020] Also, in the illustrated example, a convex portion 22 is formed on the housing 12 and concave portions 31, 32 are formed on the cover member 24, but according to other embodiments, the convex portion 22 of the housing 12 may be a concave portion, in which case the concave portions 31, 32 of the cover member 24 are changed to convex portions.

[0021] In addition, in the illustrated example, the recesses 31 and 32 are semi-spherical, but may be, for example, elongated grooves extending in any direction.

[0022] The specific shape of the cover member 24 according to the first embodiment is not limited to that shown in the drawings. The cover member 24 of the first embodiment may have operation tabs 30a, 30b that can pass through slots 20a, 20b of the housing 12 and recesses (or protrusions) 31, 32 that can engage with the housing 12 in the cavity 18.

[0023] In this way, the cover member 24 is prepared as a separate member from the housing 12 and attached to the housing 12. Specifically, the cover member 24 is inserted into the cavity 18 from the opening on the bottom surface of the housing 12, and the operation tabs 30a, 30b are inserted into the slots 20a, 20b so that the operation tabs 30a, 30b protrude to the front surface of the housing 12 through the slots 20a, 20b. The insertion of the operation tabs 30a, 30b into the slots 20a, 20b at this time is possible due to the elasticity of the resin material of the cover member 24 and the housing 12.

[0024] FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the operating tabs 30a, 30b. The operating tabs 30a, 30b are movable in the slots 20a, 20b in the length direction of the slots 20a, 20b. The operator can store the cover member 24 in the cavity 18 by retracting (in other words, pushing up) the operating tabs 30a, 30b against the bottom surface of the housing 12, and can extend (in other words, pull out) the cover member 24 by moving them forward. (A) shows the stored position of the cover member 24, and (B) shows the extended position of the cover member 24. Here, the stored position means a position where the cover member 24 is completely stored in the housing 12, and the extended position means a position where the cover member 24 is pulled out to the maximum. In the extended position, the cover member 24 has a length L for covering at least a part of the terminal block.

[0025] In the first embodiment, the recesses 31, 32 formed on the back surface of the cover member 24 and the protrusion 22 in the cavity 18 of the housing 12 constitute a fixing portion for fixing the cover member 24 in the stored position and the extended position. Figure 5 is a diagram showing the operation of the fixing portion. (A) is a cross-sectional view taken along line CC in Figure 4(A) showing the cover member 24 in the stored position. (B) is a cross-sectional view taken along line CC in Figure 4(B) showing the cover member 24 in the extended position.

[0026] In the stored position, the operation tabs 30a, 30b (only the operation tab 30a is shown in FIG. 5(A)) are in a retreated position relative to the bottom surface of the housing 12, and the cover member 24 is entirely housed in the cavity 18. At this time, the protrusion 22 is engaged with the recess 31 on the lower side (left side in FIG. 5(A)), thereby fixing the cover member 24 in the stored position. In the extended position, the operation tabs 30a, 30b (only the operation tab 30a is shown in FIG. 5(B)) are in an advanced position relative to the bottom surface of the housing 12, and the cover member 24 protrudes from the cavity 18 by a length L. At this time, the protrusion 22 is engaged with the recess 32 on the upper side (right side in FIG. 5(B)), thereby fixing the cover member 24 in the extended position. The recesses 31, 32 and the protrusion 22 can be engaged and disengaged by the elasticity of the resin material of the housing 12 and the cover member 24.

[0027] Next, an example of meter replacement work according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 6. As shown in (A), in the installed state, the terminal block 80 is connected to the terminal fittings 16 of the housing 12 of the electricity meter main body 10. The operation tabs 30a, 30b are located below the slots 20a, 20b (in other words, on the bottom side of the housing 12), and the cover member 24 is in the extended position. This allows the rear and side sides of the connection part between the terminal block 80 and the electricity meter main body 10 to be covered with the cover member 24, making it possible to prevent foreign matter such as water droplets from entering the connection part. The cover member 24 is fixed in the extended position by the fixing parts (i.e., the convex parts 22 and the concave parts 32).

[0028] As shown in (B), at the time of replacement, the operation tabs 30a, 30b are pushed up or pulled up to be positioned at the upper part within the slots 20a, 20b. In this position, the operation tabs 30a, 30b are held by the fixing parts (i.e., the convex part 22 and the concave part 31). In this manner, the cover member 24 can be stored within the cavity part 18. Therefore, as shown in (C), the watt-hour meter main body 10 can be separated from the terminal block 80 without sliding the watt-hour meter main body 10 significantly relative to the terminal block 80.

[0029] However, the cover member 24 does not necessarily have to be fixed in the extended position. Since the electronic watt-hour meter is installed in a vertical orientation (arrow V in FIG. 6), the cover member 24 can be extended by the operation tabs 30a, 30b dropping by their own weight in the slots 20a, 20b. Therefore, the pair of recesses 32 may be omitted.

[0030] FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing another example of the configuration of the cover member used in the first embodiment. (A) shows the front side of the cover member 34, and (B) shows the back side (in other words, the back side). The cover member 34 has a main plate 36 extending in the width direction of the watt-hour meter body 10, and a pair of side plates 38a, 38b extending substantially vertically forward from the left and right ends of the main plate 36. Unlike the cover member 24, in the cover member 34, parts of the front ends of the side plates 38a, 38b are bent outward, and operation tabs 40a, 40b extending laterally (in other words, laterally) relative to the side plates 38a, 38b are formed. As will be described later, the operation tabs 40a, 40b are configured to protrude to the outside of the housing 12 through slots 20a, 20b formed in the side surfaces of the housing 12.

[0031] As an example, recesses 41 and 42 are formed in the main plate 36 on the back surface of the cover member 34. In this example, one recess 41 and one recess 42 are formed at a substantially central position in the width direction (corresponding to the width direction of the housing 12) of the cover member 34, and at different positions in the length direction (corresponding to the length direction of the housing 12) of the cover member 34. The recesses 41 and 42 are configured to be able to fit with the protrusion 22 in the cavity 18 of the housing 12. Therefore, the protrusion 22 that can fit with the recesses 41 and 42 is formed at a substantially central position in the width direction of the housing 12. In the storage position of the cover member 34, the recess 41 fits with the protrusion 22, and in the extended position of the cover member 34, the recess 42 fits with the protrusion 22. This allows the cover member 34 to be fixed in both the storage position and the extended position. As with the cover member 24, two rows of recesses 41 and 42 may be formed on the back surface of the cover member 34. Also, the recesses 42 for fixing the cover member 34 in the extended position may be omitted.

[0032] FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the operating tabs 40a, 40b. In this case, the slots 20a, 20b of the housing 12 are formed on the side surface of the housing 12. The operating tabs 40a, 40b are movable in the length direction of the slots 20a, 20b within the slots 20a, 20b. By retracting (in other words, pushing up) the operating tabs 40a, 40b relative to the bottom surface of the housing 12, the cover member 34 can be stored in the cavity 18, and by moving them forward, the cover member 34 can be extended (in other words, pulled out). (A) shows the stored position of the cover member 34, and (B) shows the extended position of the cover member 34.

[0033] [Second embodiment] 9 and 9A are diagrams illustrating a second embodiment of the present invention. In the second embodiment, locking protrusions 50a, 50b are formed in slots 20a, 20b of a housing 12. Other configurations may be similar to those of the first embodiment, and detailed explanations will be omitted. However, the recesses 31, 32 and the protrusion 22 constituting the fixing portion described in the first embodiment do not necessarily have to be provided in the second embodiment.

[0034] FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the operation tabs 30a, 30b in the second embodiment, where (A) shows the storage position of the cover member 24 and (B) shows the extended position of the cover member 24. As shown in FIG. 9, the housing 12 has locking projections 50a, 50b protruding laterally (in other words, in the width direction of the housing 12) in each of the slots 20a, 20b. The locking projections 50a, 50b are located at approximately the center of the length of the slots 20a, 20b. FIG. 9A shows an enlarged view of the slot 20a (the operation tab 30a is not shown). The locking projection 50a has an upper edge 52 and a lower edge 54. The upper edge 52 is configured to lock with the operation tab 30a of the cover member 24 in the storage position, and the lower edge 54 is configured to lock with the operation tab 30a of the cover member 24 in the extended position. This allows the cover member 24 to be fixed in the storage position and the extended position. However, it is sufficient that the locking protrusions 50a, 50b are configured to be at least capable of being fixed in the storage position. When operating the operation tabs 30a, 30b, the elasticity of the resin material of the cover member 24 and the housing 12 allows the operator to move the operation tabs 30a, 30b over the locking protrusions 50a, 50b.

[0035] [Third embodiment] Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Fig. 10 to Fig. 14. As shown in Fig. 10, the electronic watt-hour meter of the third embodiment includes a terminal cover 60 that covers the front of a terminal block 80 attached to the watt-hour meter main body 10. The terminal block 80 is not shown in Fig. 10. Fig. 11 is an exploded perspective view of the electronic watt-hour meter of the third embodiment, including the terminal block 80.

[0036] The terminal cover 60 is configured to be fixed to the watt-hour meter body 10 via left and right mounting screws 62 (only one mounting screw 62 is shown in FIGS. 10 and 11). The watt-hour meter body 10 of the third embodiment has substantially the same configuration as the watt-hour meter body 10 of the first embodiment, except that mounting holes 13 for passing the mounting screws 62 therethrough are formed, and that locking projections 50a, 50b similar to those of the second embodiment are provided in the slots 20a, 20b. In the third embodiment, a cover member 64 including lid portions 70a, 70b, which will be described later, is used.

[0037] 12 is a perspective view showing an example of the cover member 64 used in the third embodiment. (A) shows the front side of the cover member 64, and (B) shows the back side (in other words, the back side). The cover member 64 has a main plate 66 extending in the width direction of the watt-hour meter body 10, and a pair of side plates 68a, 68b extending substantially vertically forward from the left and right ends of the main plate 66. Operation tabs 67a, 67b are formed at the front ends of the side plates 68a, 68b. The operation tabs 67a, 67b include bases 69a, 69b and lids 70a, 70b extending from the bases 69a, 69b to the inside of the cover member 64 (in other words, to the side of the main plate 66). The base portions 69a, 69b are configured to be positioned within the slots 20a, 20b formed in the front surface of the housing 12, and the lid portions 70a, 70b are configured to be positioned outside the slots 20a, 20b. The lid portions 70a, 70b extend toward the inside of the cover member 64 so as to cover a portion of the front surface of the housing 12.

[0038] As in the first embodiment, recesses 71, 72 are formed in the main plate 66 on the back surface of the cover member 64. Therefore, in the third embodiment, the combination of the recesses 71, 72 of the cover member 64 and the protrusion 22 of the housing 12 can be used as a fixing part for fixing the position of the cover member 64, and the locking protrusions 50a, 50b of the slots 20a, 20b can be used as a fixing part for fixing the position of the cover member 64. However, the combination of the recesses 71, 72 and the protrusion 22, and one of the locking protrusions 50a, 50b of the slots 20a, 20b may be omitted.

[0039] 13 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the operation tabs 67a, 67b, where (A) shows the stored position of the cover member 64 and (B) shows the extended position of the cover member 64. The lid portions 70a, 70b are configured to be able to cover the mounting hole 13 of the housing 12 when in the stored position.

[0040] FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining the meter replacement work of the electronic watt-hour meter of the third embodiment having the terminal cover 60. For convenience of explanation, only the terminal cover 60 is shown in a cross-sectional view. In FIG. 14(A), the cover member 64 is in the storage position, and the lid portions 70a, 70b of the operation tabs 67a, 67b cover the mounting holes 13 of the housing 12. This prevents the mounting screws 62 from being inserted into the mounting holes 13. In the extended position of FIG. 14(B), the cover member 64 is pulled out, and the lid portions 70a, 70b of the operation tabs 67a, 67b are in a position to open the mounting holes 13. Therefore, the mounting screws 62 can be inserted into the mounting holes 13, and the terminal cover 60 can be fixed to the watt-hour meter body 10.

[0041] Thus, in the third embodiment, when the cover member 64 is in the stored position, the mounting hole 13 is covered by the lid portions 70a, 70b of the operation tabs 67a, 67b, preventing the attachment of the terminal cover 60. When the cover member 64 is in the extended position, the mounting hole 13 is opened, allowing the attachment of the terminal cover 60. Thus, in the third embodiment, the terminal cover 60 cannot be attached unless the cover member 64 is pulled out. Therefore, it is possible to prevent forgetting to install the cover member 64 when installing a new watt-hour meter body 10 during meter replacement work.

[0042] [Fourth embodiment] FIG. 15 shows the meter replacement work of an electronic watt-hour meter according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. The electronic watt-hour meter according to the fourth embodiment includes a watt-hour meter body 10 and a cover member 24 having the same configuration as those of the first embodiment, and a terminal cover 60. For convenience of explanation, only the terminal cover 60 is shown in a cross-sectional view in FIG. 15. The terminal cover 60 is configured to be fixed to a terminal block (not shown), and therefore does not have a mounting screw 62 as in the third embodiment. However, the terminal cover 60 of the fourth embodiment may be fixed to the housing 12 by any suitable means. The terminal cover 60 has an interference protrusion 61 on the back surface. The interference protrusion 61 is shaped and sized to interfere with the operation tabs 30a, 30b of the cover member 24 in the storage position.

[0043] In Fig. 15, (A) shows the storage position of the cover member 24, and (B) and (C) show the extended position. In the storage position, the operation tabs 30a, 30b are in a retracted position relative to the bottom surface of the housing 12. An interference protrusion 61 is formed on the back surface of the terminal cover 60 at a position overlapping the operation tabs 30a, 30b in the retracted position in the front-rear direction (the up-down direction in Fig. 15). Note that, although only the interference protrusion 61 that interferes with the operation tab 30a is shown in Fig. 15, the interference protrusion 61 may also be provided at a position that interferes with the operation tab 30b, or the interference protrusion 61 that interferes with only one of the operation tabs 30a, 30b may be provided.

[0044] In the fourth embodiment, as shown in FIG. 15(A), when the cover member 24 is in the storage position and the terminal cover 60 is to be attached, the interference protrusion 61 interferes with the operation tabs 30a and 30b. Therefore, the worker cannot attach the terminal cover 60, and can notice that the cover member 24 is not pulled out. When the cover member 24 is pulled out and the operation tabs 30a and 30b move as shown in FIG. 15(B), a space for arranging the interference protrusion 61 is generated. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 15(C), the terminal cover 60 can be attached at a predetermined position. In this way, in the fourth embodiment, the terminal cover 60 cannot be attached when the cover member 24 is not pulled out. Therefore, in the meter replacement work, it is possible to prevent forgetting to install the cover member 24 when installing a new watt-hour meter main body 10.

[0045] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the above-mentioned embodiments of the invention are intended to facilitate understanding of the present invention and do not limit the present invention. The present invention may be modified or improved without departing from the spirit thereof, and the present invention naturally includes equivalents thereof. Furthermore, any combination or omission of the components shown in each embodiment described in the claims and the specification is possible within the scope of solving at least a part of the above-mentioned problems or achieving at least a part of the effects.

[0046] The present invention includes the following aspects. 1. A watt-hour meter body having a housing in which a meter for measuring the amount of watt-hour is housed; A terminal block detachably connected to the watt-hour meter body; A cover member is disposed on the watt-hour meter body so as to cover at least a part of a rear surface and a side surface of the terminal block, the housing has a hollow portion that opens at a bottom surface of the housing, and the cover member is configured to be movable between a stored position in which the cover member is stored in the hollow portion and an extended position in which the cover member extends from the hollow portion through the opening at the bottom surface of the housing; the cover member has an operating tab that is operated to change the position of the cover member and is movable within a slot formed in a front or side of the housing; The housing has a fixing portion capable of fixing the position of the cover member. Electronic energy meter. 2. The electronic watt-hour meter has a terminal cover attached to the housing so as to cover the front surface of the terminal block, 2. The electronic electricity meter according to claim 1, wherein the operating tab is sized and shaped so as to prevent the terminal cover from being attached to the housing when in the stored position. 3. The housing has mounting holes through which mounting screws for the terminal cover are passed, The electronic energy meter described in 2. above, wherein the operation tab includes a cover portion that covers the mounting hole in the storage position. 4. The electronic watt-hour meter has a terminal cover attached to the housing or the terminal block so as to cover the front surface of the terminal block, An electronic electricity meter as described in 1 above, in which an interference protrusion is formed on the back surface of the terminal cover, the size and shape of which are determined so as to interfere with the operating tab when in the stored position. [Industrial Applicability]

[0047] The present invention is applicable to an electronic watt-hour meter having a watt-hour meter body that is detachably connected to a terminal block. [Explanation of symbols]

[0048] V vertical direction L Length 1 Electronic power meter body 2. Chassis 3 Window section 4 Terminal fittings 5 Waterproof guard 6 Terminal Block 10 Electronic power meter body 12. Chassis 13 Mounting holes 14 Window section 16 Terminal fitting 18 Cavity 20a, 20b slots 22 Convex 24 Cover member 26 Main plate 28a, 28b side plate 30a, 30b Operation tabs 31, 32 Recess 34 Cover member 36 Main plate 38a, 38b side plate 40a, 40b Operation tabs 41, 42 Recess 50a, 50b Locking protrusion 52 Top edge 54 Bottom edge 60 Terminal cover 61 Interference protrusion 62 Mounting screw 64 Cover member 66 Main plate 67a, 67b Operation tabs 68a, 68b side plate 69a, 69b base 70a, 70b Lid 71, 72 Recess 80 Terminal Block

Claims

1. A housing for accommodating an instrument for measuring the amount of electric power; A terminal block; An electronic watt-hour meter comprising: In an installed state of the electronic watt-hour meter, the housing is disposed vertically upward, and the terminal block is disposed vertically downward and separably electrically connected to terminal fittings arranged on a bottom surface of the housing; the housing has a cavity that opens around the terminal fitting, the cavity extending along a rear surface and a side surface of the housing when the electronic watt-hour meter is installed, and has a depth relative to a bottom surface of the housing; The electronic watt-hour meter includes a cover member disposed in the cavity, The cover member is configured to be movable between a storage position in which the cover member is completely stored in the cavity and an extended position in which the cover member is fully pulled out from the cavity, and the cover member covers at least a part of a rear surface and a side surface of the terminal block in the extended position; the cover member has an operating tab that is operated to change the position of the cover member between the stored position and the extended position, the operating tab being movable within a slot formed in a front or side surface of the housing when the electronic watt-hour meter is in an installed state; The housing has a fixing portion capable of fixing a position of the cover member, and the cover member can be fixed at least in the storage position by the fixing portion. Electronic energy meter.

2. the electronic watt-hour meter has a terminal cover attached to the housing so as to cover a front surface of the terminal block in an installed state of the electronic watt-hour meter; The housing has mounting holes through which mounting screws for the terminal cover are inserted, The electronic energy meter according to claim 1 , wherein the operating tab includes a cover portion that covers the mounting hole in the storage position.

3. the electronic watt-hour meter has a terminal cover attached to the housing or the terminal block so as to cover a front surface of the terminal block in an installed state of the electronic watt-hour meter, A protrusion is provided on the rear surface of the terminal cover, 2. The electronic electricity meter of claim 1, wherein the protrusion is positioned at a position overlapping in the front-to-rear direction with the operating tab in the stored position, thereby preventing attachment of the terminal cover to the terminal block when the operating tab is in the stored position, and when the operating tab is in the extended position, an installation space for the protrusion is formed between the front surface of the housing and the back surface of the terminal cover, thereby allowing attachment of the terminal cover to the terminal block.

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