Miniature Circuit Breaker Button Mechanism for Compact Switching
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing miniature circuit breakers require large operating spaces and often necessitate excessive force for switching off, leading to instability and safety hazards due to the need for pulling mechanisms, which is not conducive in compact installations.
Innovation Solution
A miniature circuit breaker design featuring a button mechanism that drives an operating mechanism to switch the circuit on and off, utilizing a switching-off rod and guide grooves to facilitate easy operation without the need for excessive force, ensuring reliable and safe operation in limited spaces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If an operating handle is used to switch on or off the circuit breaker, then the user can operate the circuit breaker, but it requires a large operating space which is inconvenient in compact installation cabinets
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the traditional operating handle mechanism into a button mechanism. Instead of using a handle that rotates or moves laterally requiring significant space, a button is pressed axially to trigger the switching action. This inversion of the operating principle reduces the space from lateral movement to minimal axial compression, solving the contradiction between ease of operation and space requirement.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical operating handle system with a button-actuated mechanism coupled with an operating mechanism inside the housing. The button press initiates a sequence involving a switching-off rod and operating mechanism that leverages internal mechanical advantage, substituting the need for large external mechanical movement with compact internal mechanical action.
2Ease of operation
If the button mechanism is pulled for switching off, then the circuit breaker can be switched off, but the user exerts excessively large force that may pull out the circuit breaker from its assembly position
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a switching-off rod as an intermediary element between the button mechanism and the operating mechanism. When the button is pressed, the switching-off rod transmits and transforms the force, converting the axial pressing force into the appropriate motion to trigger the operating mechanism. This intermediary allows force multiplication and direction change, reducing the force the user must directly apply.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a dynamic operating mechanism with movable components including the switching-off rod and internal linkages. The mechanism uses controlled movement and mechanical advantage through pivoting and sliding elements to amplify the button press force, transforming a small input force into the sufficient force needed to actuate the tripping mechanism without requiring the user to exert excessive force.
Data Source
AI summary
A miniature circuit breaker, which includes a circuit breaker housing, a button mechanism, an operating mechanism, a moving contact, and a static contact, wherein the operating mechanism includes a supporting member, a buckle member, a catch member, and a switching-off rod, the switching-off rod includes a switching-off rod connecting end and a switching-off rod driving end.