Circuit breaker

Abstract

To provide a circuit breaker that can be prevented from being used while a plug terminal is not inserted up to a proper position.SOLUTION: A detecting switch 16 and a control board 31 are provided in a body case 5, while a release lever 13 is provided with a switch operation piece 26 capable of operating the detecting switch 16 by own rotation and a pressed part 25 pressed by an electric wire 50 inserted into a load side terminal 7. When the electric wire 50 is inserted into the load side terminal 7, the electric wire 50 presses the pressed part 25 to cause a rotation of the release lever 13 and the switch operation piece 26 turns on the detecting switch 16 by the rotation. Depending on an operation status of the detecting switch 16 by the switch operation piece 26, an interruption mechanism part 32 is actuated to turn off an electric circuit in a circuit breaker 1 and an abnormality notification part 33 is actuated to issue, around the circuit breaker, a notification that the connection state of the electric wire 50 is abnormal.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a circuit breaker such as a safety breaker, for example. [Background Art]

[0002] Conventionally, as described, for example, in Patent Document 1, there is a circuit breaker that employs a so-called quick-connect terminal as a terminal portion. [Prior Art Documents] [Patent Documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2019-121437 [Summary of the Invention] [Problems to be Solved by the Invention]

[0004] However, in a circuit breaker employing quick-connect terminals, it is difficult to determine whether a plug-in terminal for an electric wire or the like has been inserted to a proper position for connection in the quick-connect terminal. Therefore, there is a problem that the circuit breaker may be used while the plug-in terminal is not inserted to a proper position.

[0005] In view of the above problems, the present invention has been made, and an object of the present invention is to provide a circuit breaker that enables determining whether a plug-in terminal is inserted to a proper position, and consequently prevents the circuit breaker from being used in a state where the plug-in terminal is not inserted to the proper position. [Means for Solving the Problems]

[0006] To achieve the above objective, the invention described in claim 1 of the present invention is a circuit breaker in which a load-side terminal is provided on the main body case, the load-side terminal is a quick-connect terminal into which a plug-in terminal can be plugged in and connected, and a release lever for removing the plug-in terminal is provided so as to be rotatable in a predetermined direction, wherein a detection means and a control means are provided inside the main body case, and the release lever is provided with a detection part which is detected / not detected by the detection means by its own rotation, and a pressed part which is pressed by the plug-in terminal inserted into the load-side terminal, and as the plug-in terminal is inserted into the load-side terminal the plug-in terminal presses the pressed part and the release lever rotates, and the detection part is detected / not detected by the detection means by said rotation, and the control means operates the circuit breaker mechanism inside the main body case according to the detection result of the detection means Furthermore, in order to achieve the above objective, the invention described in claim 2 of the present invention is a circuit breaker in which a load-side terminal is provided on the main body case, the load-side terminal is a quick-connect terminal into which a plug-in terminal can be plugged in and connected, and a release lever for removing the plug-in terminal is provided so as to be rotatable in a predetermined direction, and an abnormality notification unit for notifying abnormalities is provided, and a detection means and a control means are provided inside the main body case, while the release lever is provided with a detection unit which is detected / not detected by the detection means by its own rotation, and a pressed unit which is pressed by the plug-in terminal inserted into the load-side terminal, and as the plug-in terminal is inserted into the load-side terminal the plug-in terminal presses the pressed unit which causes the release lever to rotate, and the detection unit is detected / not detected by the detection means by said rotation, and the control means operates the abnormality notification unit according to the detection result of the detection unit by the detection means. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, a detection means and a control means are provided within the main body case, while the release lever is provided with a detection part that is detected / not detected by the detection means by its own rotation, and a pressed part that is pressed by an insertion terminal inserted into the load-side terminal. When the insertion terminal is inserted into the load-side terminal, the insertion terminal presses the pressed part, causing the release lever to rotate, and this rotation causes the detection part to be detected / not detected by the detection means. Furthermore, according to the invention described in claim 1, the control means operates the shut-off mechanism within the main body case according to the detection result of the detection means. On the other hand, according to the invention described in claim 2, an abnormality notification unit is provided to notify of an abnormality, and the control means operates the abnormality notification unit according to the detection result of the detection means. Therefore, it is possible to detect situations such as the release lever not rotating because the plug terminal is not inserted to the proper position, or the amount of rotation of the release lever being insufficient. Furthermore, if such a situation is detected, the circuit breaker mechanism and the abnormality notification unit can be activated, thereby reliably preventing the circuit breaker from being used while the plug terminal is not inserted to the proper position. In addition, since the rotation of the release lever accompanying the insertion of the plug terminal is used to determine whether or not the plug terminal is inserted to the proper position, the structure can be made more rational. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This is a perspective view diagram illustrating a circuit breaker with an electric wire connected to the load-side terminal. [Figure 2] This is an explanatory diagram showing the circuit breaker in the state shown in Figure 1, with the left case removed and viewed from the left side. [Figure 3] This is a block diagram showing the control mechanism related to determining whether an electrical wire is inserted. [Figure 4] This is an explanatory diagram showing the state of the wire before it is inserted into the load-side terminal, the release lever, the quick-connect terminal fitting, and the detection switch, viewed from the right. [Figure 5]This is a perspective view diagram showing the electrical wires, release lever, quick-connect terminal fittings, and detection switch in the state shown in Figure 4. [Figure 6] This is an explanatory diagram showing, from the right, the state of the wire inserted to the appropriate position into the load-side terminal, the release lever, the quick-connect terminal fitting, and the detection switch. [Figure 7] This is a perspective view diagram showing the wires, release lever, quick-connect terminal fittings, and detection switch in the state shown in Figure 6. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] The following describes in detail, based on the drawings, a circuit breaker according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0010] Figure 1 is a perspective view diagram showing a circuit breaker 1 with a wire 50 inserted into the load-side terminal 7. Figure 2 is a diagram showing the circuit breaker 1 in the state of Figure 1, with the left case 4 removed and viewed from the left side. Figure 3 is a block diagram showing the control mechanism related to the insertion determination of the wire 50. Figure 4 is a diagram showing the state of the wire 50, release lever 13, quick-connect terminal fitting 12, and detection switch 16 before insertion into the load-side terminal 7, viewed from the right side. Figure 5 is a perspective view diagram showing the wire 50, release lever 13, quick-connect terminal fitting 12, and detection switch 16 in the state of Figure 4. Figure 6 is a diagram showing the state of the wire 50 inserted into the load-side terminal 7 to the appropriate position, release lever 13, quick-connect terminal fitting 12, and detection switch 16, viewed from the right side. Figure 7 is a perspective view diagram showing the wire 50, release lever 13, quick-connect terminal fitting 12, and detection switch 16 in the state of Figure 6.

[0011] The circuit breaker 1 has a main body case 5 comprising a base 2, a right case 3 assembled to cover the right side of the base 2, and a left case 4 assembled to cover the left side of the base 2. At the rear of the main body case 5 are power supply side terminals 6, which consist of two terminals arranged side by side. On the other hand, at the front of the main body case 5 are load side terminals 7, which consist of two terminals arranged side by side. Both terminals of the load side terminals 7 are configured as quick-connect terminals, which connect the electric wire 50 to a quick-connect terminal fitting 12 installed inside the terminal hole 11 in the main body case 5 simply by inserting the electric wire 50 into the terminal hole 11 provided in the main body case 5. Furthermore, at a location approximately in the center in the front-to-back direction on the top surface of the main body case 5, a handle 8 for turning the circuit connecting the power supply side terminals 6 and the load side terminals 7, which are arranged inside the main body case 5, ON / OFF is provided so as to be rotatable in the front-to-back direction with the left-to-right axis. Furthermore, release levers 13, 13 for disconnecting the electric wire 50 connected to the load-side terminal 7 are provided on the upper surface of the main body case 5, near the front, so as to be rotatable in the front-rear direction with the left-right direction as the axis.

[0012] Here, we will specifically describe the main part of the present invention, namely the configuration for determining whether the electric wire 50 is properly connected at the load-side terminal 7. Note that the same configuration is used for both the left and right terminals of the load-side terminal 7; here, we will describe the left terminal. A terminal space 14 is provided inside the terminal hole 11 of the main case 5, into which an electric wire 50 can be inserted via the terminal hole 11. A load seat 15 is positioned within the terminal space 14, and a quick-connect terminal fitting 12 is placed on the load seat 15. Furthermore, a release lever 13 is attached to cover the terminal space 14 from the left side. In addition, a detection switch 16, which is operated ON / OFF by the release lever 13 as described later, is installed on the underside of the terminal space 14. A limit switch is used as the detection switch 16.

[0013] The release lever 13 has a plate-shaped lever body 21 that extends vertically, and a release operation part 22 for operating the release lever 13 is provided at the upper end of the lever body 21. A pivot part 23 for pivotally supporting the release lever 13 is provided at the lower end of the lever body 21. Furthermore, a release action part 24 and a pressed part 25 are provided on the inner surface (right side) of the lever body 21, which protrude to the right. When the release lever 13 is attached to the main body case 5, the release action part 24 is positioned behind the quick-connect terminal fitting 12 in the terminal space 14, and the pressed part 25 is positioned in front of the quick-connect terminal fitting 12. In addition, a switch operating piece 26 is integrally provided with the lower part of the lever body 21, extending below the pivot part 23. The switch operating piece 26 has a shape that extends rearward from the lever body 21 and then curves downward. As the release lever 13 is attached to the main body case 5, the tip of the switch operating piece 26 moves closer to the rear side of the detection switch 16, and the detection switch 16 is positioned on the trajectory of the movement of the tip of the switch operating piece 26 as the release lever 13 rotates. When the electric wire 50 is not inserted, the quick-connect terminal fitting 12 is in contact with the release action part 24, and the biasing force of the quick-connect terminal fitting 12 biases the release lever 13 forward (towards the initial position).

[0014] Furthermore, a control board 31 for determining whether the electric wires 50 are properly connected is installed inside the main unit case 5. The control board 31 operates in conjunction with the power supply from the power supply terminal 6 and is connected to the detection switches 16, 16, as well as to the circuit breaker mechanism 32 and abnormality notification unit 33 provided in the main unit case 5. The circuit breaker mechanism 32 is a conventional mechanism that is linked to the handle 8. The abnormality notification unit 33 could be an LED that lights up or flashes in a predetermined manner, or a speaker that emits an abnormal sound.

[0015] Then, the circuit breaker 1 determines whether the electric wire 50 has been inserted into the terminal space 14 to a position appropriate for connection with the quick-connect terminal fitting 12, as follows. First, the connection of the electric wire 50 to the load-side terminal 7 of the circuit breaker 1 is performed before power is turned on to the circuit breaker 1. When connecting the electric wire 50, it is sufficient to simply insert the electric wire 50 into the terminal space 14 through the terminal hole 11. At this time, when the electric wire 50 is inserted to the appropriate position in the terminal space 14, the tip of the electric wire 50 rides up onto the pressed portion 25. That is, the pressed portion 25 is pushed down by the electric wire 50, and the release lever 13 rotates backward from its initial position. Consequently, the tip of the switch operating piece 26 moves toward the detection switch 16, and the detection switch 16 is turned ON by the tip of the switch operating piece 26. On the other hand, if the electric wire 50 is not inserted to the appropriate position, the tip of the electric wire 50 does not reach the pressed portion 25 and the release lever 13 does not rotate, or the amount of rotation of the release lever 13 due to the tip of the electric wire 50 riding up onto the pressed portion 25 is insufficient. Therefore, the tip of the switch operating piece 26 does not move toward the detection switch 16, or it moves only slightly and the tip of the switch operating piece 26 does not reach the detection switch 16, and the detection switch 16 is not operated to the ON position.

[0016] As described above, after connecting the wires 50 to each of the two terminals at the load-side terminal 7, power is turned on to the circuit breaker 1. The control board 31 then starts up and detects the state of the two detection switches 16, 16. If neither of the two detection switches 16, 16 is ON, or if only one of the detection switches 16 is ON, the control board 31 determines that the connection state of the wires 50 is abnormal, activates the tripping mechanism 32 to turn OFF the circuit inside the circuit breaker 1, and activates the abnormality notification unit 33 to notify the surroundings that the connection state of the wires 50 is abnormal. If both of the two detection switches 16, 16 are ON, the control board 31 determines that the connection state of the wires 50 is normal and allows the use of the circuit breaker 1 without activating the tripping mechanism 32 or the abnormality notification unit 33. When removing the wires 50, the release lever 13 is rotated further backward. Then, the release mechanism 24 acts on the quick-connect terminal fitting 12, releasing the locking between the quick-connect terminal fitting 12 and the electric wire 50, making it possible to remove the electric wire 50.

[0017] According to the circuit breaker 1 having the configuration described above, a detection switch 16 and a control board 31 are provided in the main body case 5, while the release lever 13 is provided with a switch operating piece 26 capable of operating the detection switch 16 by its own rotation, and a pressed portion 25 pressed by the electric wire 50 inserted into the load-side terminal 7. Along with the insertion of the electric wire 50 into the load-side terminal 7, the electric wire 50 presses the pressed portion 25 to rotate the release lever 13, and the switch operating piece 26 turns on the detection switch 16 by this rotation. When neither of the two detection switches 16, 16 is turned on, or only one of the detection switches 16 is turned on, the control board 31 determines that the connection state of the electric wire 50 is abnormal, operates the breaking mechanism 32 to turn off the electric path in the circuit breaker 1, and operates the abnormality notification unit 33 to notify the surroundings that the connection state of the electric wire 50 is abnormal. Therefore, for example, it is possible to detect a situation where the release lever 13 does not rotate because the electric wire 50 is not inserted to an appropriate position, or the rotation amount of the release lever 13 is insufficient, and when such a situation is detected, the breaking mechanism 32 and the abnormality notification unit 33 are operated. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the situation where the circuit breaker 1 is used while the electric wire 50 is not inserted to an appropriate position. In addition, since the rotation of the release lever 13 accompanying the insertion of the electric wire 50 is used to determine whether the electric wire 50 is inserted to an appropriate position, the structure can be rationalized.

[0018] Furthermore, since the switch operating piece 26 has a shape that extends rearward from the lever main body 21 and then curves and extends downward, the switch operating piece 26 is easily deflected when the release lever 13 is rotationally operated to release the insertion of the electric wire 50, and is less likely to hinder the rotational operation of the release lever 13. Therefore, the circuit breaker 1 can be provided with good usability.

[0019] Furthermore, the circuit breaker according to the present invention is not limited in any way to the embodiments described above, and the configuration of the control mechanism and other components related to the plug-in determination of the plug-in terminals can be modified as necessary without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0020] For example, in the above embodiment, the detection unit is configured to be detected by the detection means when the release lever is rotated in conjunction with the insertion of the plug-in terminal. However, it is also possible to configure the system so that the detection unit is no longer detected by the detection means (i.e., not detected) when the release lever is rotated. Furthermore, although the above embodiment describes operating both the interruption mechanism and the abnormality notification unit, it is also possible to operate only the interruption mechanism without providing an abnormality notification unit, or to operate only the abnormality notification unit without operating the interruption mechanism. In addition, in a system in which both the interruption mechanism and the abnormality notification unit can be operated, it is also possible to provide a switching means to switch between operating only one of them or operating both.

[0021] Furthermore, the specific structure of the release lever, including how it rotates when the plug-in terminal is inserted and the position of the detection part on the release lever, can of course be redesigned. Similarly, the type and installation position of the detection means can be appropriately redesigned, such as by adopting sensors other than limit switches. Regarding the shape of the detection part, for example, it can be configured to bulge further back from the lever body than in the above embodiment, then curve, and extend diagonally downward toward the front, so that it can bend more easily when the release lever is rotated. In addition, while typical circuit breakers have a biasing means near the release lever's release operation section that biases the release lever to the normal position before inserting the wire, that is, a biasing means that returns the release lever to the normal position after removing the wire, this biasing means may be provided on the detection switch, and the biasing means may be configured to bias the detection section to the normal position. By adopting such a configuration, it is not necessary to provide the biasing means or the biased part that is biased by the biasing means near the release operation section, where components tend to be densely packed, thus simplifying the structure of the circuit breaker and improving design flexibility. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0022] 1...Circuit breaker, 5...Main case, 7...Load-side terminal, 11...Terminal hole, 12...Quick-connect terminal fitting, 13...Release lever, 14...Terminal space, 16...Detection switch (detection means), 25...Pressed part, 26...Switch operating piece (detection part), 31...Control board, 32...Breaking mechanism, 33...Anomaly notification part, 50...Electric wire (plug-in terminal).

Claims

1. A circuit breaker is provided in which a load-side terminal is provided on the main body case, the load-side terminal is a quick-connect terminal into which a plug-in terminal can be plugged in and connected, and a release lever for removing the plug-in terminal is provided so as to be rotatable in a predetermined direction, Within the main body case, a detection means and a control means are provided, The release lever is provided with a detection unit that is detected / not detected by the detection means by its own rotation, and a pressed unit that is pressed by the insertion terminal inserted into the load-side terminal. As the insertion terminal is inserted into the load-side terminal, the insertion terminal presses against the pressed portion, causing the release lever to rotate, and this rotation causes the detection portion to be detected / not detected by the detection means. The control means is characterized by operating the circuit breaker mechanism in the main body case according to the detection result of the detection unit by the detection means.

2. A circuit breaker is provided in which a load-side terminal is provided on the main body case, the load-side terminal is a quick-connect terminal into which a plug-in terminal can be plugged in and connected, and a release lever for removing the plug-in terminal is provided so as to be rotatable in a predetermined direction, An abnormality notification unit is provided to notify of abnormalities, and detection means and control means are provided within the main body case, The release lever is provided with a detection unit that is detected / not detected by the detection means by its own rotation, and a pressed unit that is pressed by the insertion terminal inserted into the load-side terminal. As the insertion terminal is inserted into the load-side terminal, the insertion terminal presses against the pressed portion, causing the release lever to rotate, and this rotation causes the detection portion to be detected / not detected by the detection means. The circuit breaker is characterized in that the control means operates the abnormality notification unit in accordance with the detection result of the detection unit by the detection means.

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