Circuit Breaker Temperature Monitoring Using Triaxial Magnetometers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for monitoring circuit breaker temperatures are either non-intrusive and provide only instantaneous status or require expensive installations and specialized technicians, lacking a simple and cost-effective means to continuously monitor temperature and anticipate potential failures.
Innovation Solution
A method and device using synchronous triaxial digital magnetometers on semiconductor chips to measure magnetic fields and temperatures, allowing cyclic and synchronous readings to detect internal heating temperatures and issue alarms when thresholds are reached, with ambient temperature estimation and current flow evaluation to determine circuit breaker anomalies.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If non-intrusive techniques such as thermal imaging are used to monitor circuit breaker temperatures, then temperature status can be obtained, but the monitoring is only instantaneous and requires expensive installations or specialized technicians
Solution Approach 1:
The circuit breaker itself serves as the monitoring device by incorporating a temperature sensor and magnetometer directly into its structure. The magnetometer measures the magnetic field generated by the protective coil to determine current flow, while the temperature sensor monitors internal temperature, eliminating the need for external monitoring equipment and specialized technicians.
Solution Approach 2:
The circuit breaker is designed to perform multiple functions simultaneously: its protective coil serves both as a protective element and as a magnetic field source for current measurement, while its wall structure serves both as a structural component and as a mounting surface for the temperature sensor and magnetometer.
2Reliability
If continuous monitoring at short time intervals is implemented to anticipate problems, then reliability improves, but the complexity and cost of the monitoring system increases
Solution Approach 1:
The circuit breaker autonomously performs continuous monitoring of its own temperature and current flow at predetermined intervals without requiring external monitoring systems. The integrated sensor and magnetometer continuously collect data, and the processor automatically analyzes this data to detect anomalies and generate alerts, eliminating the need for complex external monitoring infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors temperature and current flow, compares readings against threshold values, and provides feedback through alerts when anomalies are detected. This closed-loop feedback mechanism enables continuous monitoring and failure prediction using simple, integrated components rather than complex external systems.
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
Enables continuous, cost-effective monitoring of circuit breaker temperatures, anticipating potential failures and reducing the risk of equipment shutdowns with timely alerts and reduced need for specialized interventions.
Implementation Method 1
a synchronous triaxial digital magnetometer on a semiconductor chip is arranged on the wall of the circuit breaker. By means of the magnetometer, at least one component of the magnetic field emitted by the protection coil is measured, in order to deduce the value of a current flowing through the circuit breaker
Implementation Method 2
each magnetometer comprising magnetic field measuring means and an internal temperature sensor, and a data output for providing magnetic field and temperature measurements
Data Source
AI summary
A method for monitoring the operating state of a set of circuit breakers includes the steps of arranging on the wall of each circuit breaker a synchronous triaxial digital magnetometer on a semiconductor chip, cyclically and synchronously reading temperatures measured by the magnetometers and from the temperatures measured by the magnetometers and a value of the ambient temperature, determining, for each circuit breaker, whether an internal heating temperature of the circuit breaker reaches a first temperature threshold which may be representative of an anomaly of the operating state of the circuit breaker.