Circuit Breaker Heat Sink Thermal Conduction Paths
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional circuit breakers experience nuisance trips due to heat buildup from acceptable current flows, leading to unnecessary disconnection of devices and reduced system reliability, as the heat transfer rate between the breaker and the external environment is insufficient to manage the internal temperature effectively.
Innovation Solution
A circuit breaker arrangement that includes a heat sink in thermal communication with leads and lugs, which are attached to contacts within the housing, allowing for enhanced heat transfer through thermal conduction paths, thereby reducing the operating temperature of the contacts and preventing premature tripping.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional circuit breakers are used without enhanced heat transfer mechanisms, then the device structure remains simple, but heat buildup occurs causing nuisance trips at acceptable current flows
Solution Approach 1:
The heat transfer system is segmented into multiple independent thermal conduction paths, each consisting of a lead, lug, and heat sink assembly. These segments are distributed across the circuit breaker structure to efficiently dissipate heat from different contact points, resolving the contradiction by providing reliable heat transfer without requiring a single complex thermal management system
Solution Approach 2:
Heat sinks are introduced as intermediary components between the current-carrying contacts and the external environment. These heat sinks act as thermal mediators that facilitate heat transfer from the internal contacts through leads and lugs to the outside air, preventing heat buildup that causes nuisance trips while maintaining simple circuit breaker operation
2Temperature
If heat transfer rate is increased to prevent heat buildup, then nuisance trips are prevented, but the thermal conduction paths become more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The lead and lug components are merged into a single integrated thermal conduction path that serves both electrical and thermal functions. This merging allows heat to be conducted efficiently from contacts through the existing electrical connection components to attached heat sinks, preventing nuisance trips without adding separate complex thermal pathways
Solution Approach 2:
The existing electrical leads and lugs are made to serve dual purposes: electrical conduction and thermal conduction. By attaching heat sinks to these self-existing components, the system utilizes its own structural elements for heat transfer, preventing contact temperature buildup without requiring entirely separate thermal management infrastructure
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The described solution effectively reduces contact operating temperatures and prevents unnecessary trips by efficiently transferring heat away from the circuit breaker, ensuring reliable operation even at higher current ratings.
Implementation Method 1
A heat sink is in thermal communication with the lead to transfer heat between the contact and the one lead
Implementation Method 2
The thermal conduction path can be sized to transfer heat at a rate of 13 watts or more from the contactor to the heat sink
Data Source
AI summary
A circuit breaker arrangement includes a housing, a contact seated in the housing, and a lead in electrical communication with the at least one contact and disposed outside the housing. The circuit breaker arrangement includes a heat sink in thermal communication with the lead to transfer heat between the contact and the lead.