Circuit Breaker Lock Pivot Mechanism With Nested Journal
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional hinge mechanisms in circuit breaker lock devices experience friction and potential separation issues due to the design, leading to operational inefficiencies and wear, especially under sudden mechanical stresses from overloads or overvoltages.
Innovation Solution
The hinge mechanism features facing orifices in the side walls with a lateral offset, forming a slot for parallel arms, and a cam system to guide and lock the arms, preventing separation and ensuring smooth rotation and strength.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the journals protrude from the trigger ports to reduce friction, then the smoothness of operation is improved, but the side walls of the trigger tend to move away from each other at the time of release, causing potential separation of the toggle and trigger
Solution Approach 1:
The journal is nested within the trigger port rather than protruding from it. The rounded end of the journal fits inside the port, creating a nested configuration where the journal end is received by the port interior. This eliminates the protrusion that causes separation while maintaining proper mechanical connection through the nested fit.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of having the journal protrude outward from the trigger port (conventional configuration), the design inverts this arrangement by having the journal end received within the port interior. This inversion reverses the spatial relationship, preventing the side walls from moving away and causing separation, while still allowing smooth rotational operation.
2Reliability
If the journals are kept short to prevent separation, then the connection stability is improved, but friction increases making operation less smooth and causing wear of components
Solution Approach 1:
The journal end is nested within the trigger port interior, creating a stable connection without requiring the journal to be short. The nested configuration provides proper support and alignment, eliminating separation issues while maintaining sufficient journal length for smooth operation and reduced wear.
Solution Approach 2:
The design inverts the conventional arrangement by receiving the journal end inside the port rather than having the port receive the journal from the outside. This inversion allows the journal to extend adequately for smooth operation while the port interior provides the stopping surface, preventing separation without requiring the journal to be short.
3Device complexity
If a conventional free shaft rotating in bearings is used for the hinge mechanism, then the pivoting connection is simple, but the return means spring cannot extend between the branches of the toggle due to the transverse shaft blocking the passage
Solution Approach 1:
The transverse shaft that blocks spring passage is extracted or removed from the hinge mechanism design. Instead of using a conventional free shaft rotating in bearings, the invention uses a pivoting connection where the journal end fits directly into the trigger port, eliminating the blocking element and allowing the return spring to extend freely between the toggle branches.
Solution Approach 2:
The design creates an open, unobstructed path for the return spring by using a pivoting connection without a transverse shaft. The journal end-to-port configuration provides equivalent functional capability for pivoting while maintaining clear access for spring installation and extension, achieving equipotential functionality for both pivoting and spring accommodation.
4Manufacturing precision
If the orifices are made with lateral offset to guide the rounded end of the arms, then the manufacturing precision is improved, but the device complexity increases due to the offset configuration and cam system
Solution Approach 1:
The lateral offset configuration and the guiding function are merged into a single integrated or pore design. The offset portion of the orifice simultaneously provides lateral positioning and guides the rounded end of the arm, eliminating the need for separate guiding elements and reducing overall device complexity despite the increased precision of the orifice geometry.
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
Figure 5
AI summary
The invention relates to a pivot mechanism for a mechanical lock to trip a circuit breaker-type electrical apparatus for cutting off electrical lines, comprising at least one contact that is movable between two positions in contact with and remote from a stationary contact, respectively, which correspond to the closing and opening of the line, respectively, said lock being actuated by a control lever (19) of the contact that is movable between both positions thereof and also including: a toggle connecting said lever (19) to the movable contact(s), a means for returning the toggle to the open position, and a tripper (6) pivoting relative to the toggle by means of said pivot mechanism and capable of tripping the toggle into the open position. The invention is characterized in that the breaker (6) comprises two openings (9, 10) facing each other and provided in side walls (7,8) of the breaker (6) that are perpendicular to the pivoting axis and which form bearings that enable a pivoting connection for two parallel arms (1, 2) of a first element of the toggle, said openings (9, 10) being located at an interval (11, 12) that is lateral, respectively, to the outside and the inside of each wall (7,8) that forms a split having a curve perpendicular to the walls for the passage therethrough of said arms (1, 2), extending into a first section (15) of an opening provided in the centered portion of the walls (7, 8) and enabling the insertion of the ends of said arms (1, 2), as well as extending into a second section (16) of an opening in the offset portion, so that the breaker comprises a base for forming a housing that opens both to the inside and the outside of the walls (7, 8), the periphery of said housing being round and capable of guiding the rotation of the roundly curved end (13, 14) of the arms (1, 2) of the toggle.