Bidirectional Circuit Breaker Protection via Communication Line
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing protection assistance devices in low-voltage systems only provide protection assistance in one direction from the lower to the upper side, and require excessive wiring, leading to increased wiring space occupation and costs due to the large number of signal terminals and lines needed.
Innovation Solution
A protection assistance device with upper, middle, and lower low-voltage circuit breakers connected through a communication line, enabling bidirectional communication using Ethernet or high-speed dual ring networks, and incorporating a controller with a rapid spanning tree protocol (RSTP) algorithm to transmit trip operation state packets, reducing the number of required wirings.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If protection assistance is provided in one direction only (from lower to upper side), then the device complexity is reduced, but the reliability of protection assistance is insufficient because bidirectional protection is not achieved
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines bidirectional protection assistance functions into a unified communication system where circuit breakers exchange trip operation state packets through communication lines. This merging approach achieves comprehensive protection (both upper-to-lower and lower-to-upper direction) while avoiding the need for separate dedicated systems for each direction, thus improving reliability without proportionally increasing device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The communication lines and controllers are designed to perform multiple functions: they transmit trip operation state packets, enable bidirectional communication, and support both upper-to-lower and lower-to-upper protection assistance. This multi-functionality allows a single system to provide comprehensive protection in both directions, improving reliability while minimizing additional complexity
2Reliability
If multiple signal terminals and communication lines are used for protection assistance, then the reliability of signal transmission is improved, but the wiring space occupation and device complexity increase excessively
Solution Approach 1:
The communication lines are designed to serve multiple purposes: they transmit trip operation state packets for protection assistance, enable bidirectional communication between circuit breakers, and can potentially carry other control signals. This multi-functionality reduces the need for dedicated separate lines for each function, thereby maintaining signal transmission reliability while significantly reducing wiring complexity and space occupation
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges multiple communication functions into a unified communication line system. Instead of using separate dedicated lines for upper-to-lower and lower-to-upper protection assistance, the system uses shared communication lines that carry trip operation state packets in both directions, thereby reducing the total number of lines needed while maintaining reliable signal transmission
3Reliability
If dedicated communication lines are installed between each circuit breaker, then the communication reliability is improved, but the wiring cost and installation complexity increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The communication lines are designed to serve multiple circuit breakers and multiple communication purposes simultaneously. A single communication line can carry trip operation state packets between multiple circuit breakers in both directions, reducing the total number of lines needed compared to dedicated point-to-point connections, thereby lowering installation complexity and cost while maintaining communication reliability
Solution Approach 2:
The system merges communication functions between multiple circuit breakers into a shared communication infrastructure. Instead of installing separate dedicated lines between each pair of circuit breakers, the system uses a unified communication line structure that enables all necessary communications, significantly reducing installation complexity and cost while preserving communication reliability through the standardized packet exchange protocol
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure provides a protection assistance device of multiple circuit breakers in a low-voltage system, in which protection assistance in both directions from the upper side to the lower side or from the lower side to the upper side is possible, and the number of wires for protection assistance between multiple upper/lower circuit breakers can be minimized. The protection assistance device includes at least one upper low-voltage circuit breaker; at least one middle low-voltage circuit breaker; at least one lower low-voltage circuit breaker; and a communication line which makes a communication connection between the low-voltage circuit breakers, wherein the low-voltage circuit breakers comprise a control unit for, when a trip operation of automatically breaking a circuit is performed, transmitting a communication packet for reporting a trip operation state to at least one predetermined circuit breaker among the circuit breakers through the communication line.