阅读说明：本技术 用于工业和铁路应用的高速断路器 (High speed circuit breaker for industrial and railway applications ) 是由 C·蒙代利尼 M·科尔纳 L·斯滕达尔迪 于 2018-04-09 设计创作，主要内容包括：本发明涉及一种改进的用于工业或铁路应用的高速断路器(1),在工业或铁路应用中必须以高效率和极快的干预时间来中断高直流电流。断路器(1)包括位于壳体(10)中的基部部分(2),该基部部分支撑：﹣用于切换装置的激活机构(3),其包括保持机构(20,21)和释放机构(40)；﹣中间切换或断开触头部分(4),其包括固定触头(5)和可动触头(6)；以及﹣覆盖所述切换或断开触头部分(4)的顶部灭弧室灭弧部分(7),其特征在于包括：中间界定部分(16,18),其设置在所述壳体(10)的两侧上以侧向地界定所述中间切换或断开触头部分(4)并为所述灭弧室灭弧部分(7)提供侧向引导件；其中,灭弧室灭弧部分(7)可滑动地安装在壳体(10)中；其中,至少一个杠杆(25)机构在相对的中间界定部分(16,18)之间横向延伸,用于在检查时移动或举升灭弧室灭弧部分(7)。(The invention relates to an improved high-speed circuit breaker (1) for industrial or railway applications, in which high direct currents must be interrupted with high efficiency and extremely fast intervention times. The circuit breaker (1) comprises a base portion (2) located in a casing (10), which supports: -an activation mechanism (3) for a switching device comprising a retaining mechanism (20, 21) and a release mechanism (40); -an intermediate switching or breaking contact portion (4) comprising a fixed contact (5) and a movable contact (6); and-a top arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing part (7) covering the switching or breaking contact part (4), characterized in that it comprises: -intermediate delimiting portions (16, 18) provided on both sides of the housing (10) to delimit laterally the intermediate switching or breaking contact portion (4) and to provide lateral guides for the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion (7); wherein the arc extinguishing part (7) of the arc extinguishing chamber is slidably mounted in the housing (10); wherein at least one lever (25) mechanism extends transversely between the opposite intermediate delimiting parts (16, 18) for moving or lifting the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing part (7) during inspection.)

1. A high speed circuit breaker (1) for industrial or railway applications for interrupting high direct currents with high efficiency and extremely fast intervention times, the high speed circuit breaker (1) comprising a base portion (2) in a casing (10) supporting:

-an activation mechanism (3) for a switching device, the activation mechanism comprising a retaining mechanism (20, 22) and a release mechanism (40);

-an intermediate switching or breaking contact portion (4) comprising at least one fixed contact (5) and at least one movable contact (6), and

-a top arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion (7) covering said intermediate switching or breaking contact portion (4),

it is characterized by comprising:

-intermediate delimiting portions (16, 18) provided on both sides of the housing (10) to laterally delimit the intermediate switching or breaking contact portion (4) and to provide lateral guides for the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion (7);

the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing part (7) is slidably mounted to the housing (10);

at least one lever (25) extending transversely between the opposite intermediate delimiting portions (16, 18) in order to move or lift the extinguishing chamber (7) during inspection.

2. High speed circuit breaker (1) as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said intermediate delimiting parts (16, 18) are each formed with a first part (17, 27) and a second part (19, 29) of synthetic plastic material, the first portion (17, 27) being thicker than the second portion and closer to the intermediate switching or breaking contact portion (4) than the second portion (19, 29), the second portion (19, 29) laterally surrounds the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion (7), the first portion (17) of the first intermediate delimiting portion (16) carrying a hinge (43) for one end (25A) of the lever (25), the first portion (27) of the second intermediate delimiting portion (18) comprising a slot (28) for guiding the opposite end (25B) of the lever (25) opposite to said one end (25A).

3. High speed circuit breaker (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the lever (25) comprises a central enlargement (33) with a projection (32) acting on the edge of the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion (7).

4. A high-speed circuit breaker (1) as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the lever (25) is arranged on both main sides of the circuit breaker's housing (10).

5. A high-speed circuit breaker (1) as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the housing (10) comprises a synthetic plastic material structure having a predetermined insulation coefficient and comprises a pair of protection walls (11) covering the base portion (2) and the intermediate switching or opening contact portion (4) of the circuit breaker from both main sides.

6. A high speed circuit breaker (1) as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5 wherein the intermediate switching or breaking contact portion (4) comprises a fixed contact (5) and a movable contact (6) and wherein the fixed and movable contacts are each configured as a pair of contacts (13, 14; 23, 24) formed from different electrically conductive materials.

7. High-speed circuit breaker (1) according to claim 6, characterized in that one of said pairs of contacts (13, 14; 23, 24) comprises a first main contact (13, 23) supported closer to said activation mechanism (3) and formed by a silver alloy having a high electrical conductivity.

8. High-speed circuit breaker (1) according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the other of said pair of contacts (13, 14; 23, 24) comprises a second auxiliary arcing contact (14, 24) supported at a predetermined distance from said first main contact (13, 23) and formed by an alloy comprising tungsten.

9. High-speed circuit breaker (1) according to claim 8, characterized in that a resilient element (26) is structurally interposed between said first main contact (23) and said second auxiliary arcing contact (24) of said movable contact (6), so that the upper movable second auxiliary arcing contact (24) can first touch the corresponding fixed contact (14) during the closing phase of said circuit breaker (1).

10. High speed circuit breaker (1) according to any of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the movable contact (6) is activated by the release mechanism, which comprises a resilient means (40) always biased towards the disconnection of the movable contact (6) from the fixed contact (5).

11. High speed circuit breaker (1) according to claim 10, characterized in that said elastic means (40) are constituted by a pair of springs (36, 37) connected at one end to a movable rod (39) supporting said movable contact (6) and at the opposite end to a fixed part of the circuit breaker structure.

12. High-speed circuit breaker (1) according to any of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that in the closed position the retaining mechanism is activated by a magnetic field generated by a coil (22) powered by an auxiliary current and acting on an anchoring element (21) of a movable rod (39) supporting the movable contact (6) of the circuit breaker, while an elastic means (40) is stretched according to its elastic constant K.

13. High-speed circuit breaker (1) according to any of the claims 1 to 12, characterized in that the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion (7) is provided with external polarity expansions (60) coupled on both main sides of the sliding arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion (7) and electrically coupled to further corresponding polarity expansions (70) linked to the fixed portion of the circuit breaker (1) associated with the intermediate switching or opening contact portion (4).

14. High-speed circuit breaker (1) according to claim 13, characterized in that said external polar expansions (60) comprise at least one pair of metal plates (61, 62) independently mounted on each lateral main side of said arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion (7), while said further corresponding polar expansions (70) comprise a pair of plates (71, 72) structurally independent and electrically coupled to end portions of dissipating coils (55, 56) of said circuit breaker (1); the metal plates (61, 62) of the outer polarity extension (60) partially overlap the plates (71, 72) of the further corresponding polarity extension (70) thereby establishing a sliding abutting contact providing an electrical connection.

15. High speed circuit breaker (1) according to claim 14, characterized in that on the central part of each of said at least one pair of metal plates (61, 62) there is provided a band (63) made of synthetic plastic material to isolate and protect said metal plate from the corresponding plate of the arc chamber of the adjacent circuit breaker module.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an improved high speed circuit breaker for industrial and railway applications.

More particularly, but not exclusively, the invention relates to a high speed circuit breaker for industrial or railway applications in which high DC currents must be interrupted with high efficiency and extremely fast intervention times.

Background

As is well known in this particular technical field, a current breaker is an automatically operated electrical switch designed to protect an electrical circuit from damage caused by an overcurrent or an overload or a short circuit. Its basic function is to interrupt the current after the protection relay detects a fault.

High Speed Circuit Breakers (HSCB) are single-pole circuit breakers designed for use in high energy and high reliability dc power distribution systems. These circuit breakers are used in various applications to protect equipment from short circuit currents and overloads; for example, these circuit breakers are suitable for protecting mains and semiconductors (converters/rectifiers) in railway and industrial applications.

Commercially available feeder and rectifier breakers have operating currents up to 8,000ADC and operating voltages up to 4,400 VDC. They have a very high interrupting capacity and current limiting characteristics.

Although the feeder circuit breakers and rectifier circuit breakers are mainly used for railway dc rail vehicles/traction vehicles (including locomotives, trains, subways, and light rail vehicles) to protect main circuits and auxiliary circuits, or mainly for dc traction substations, they are also widely used in industrial equipment, such as steel/aluminum rolling mills, marine converters, renewable energy plants, or chemical plants.

In general, in order to obtain the above-mentioned excellent breaking capacity and excellent dielectric properties, it is necessary to employ high quality materials to ensure service continuity and protection during adverse system events.

The circuit breakers relevant to the present invention are particularly heavy, e.g. in excess of 150 kg, and are often installed in less accessible places.

One of the main problems encountered in maintenance activities that must be carried out from time to time in the case of a circuit breaker failure or in the case of maintenance of the circuit breaker is the removal of the so-called arc chute, which is the part of the circuit breaker provided for extinguishing the arc between the contacts.

This operation is particularly cumbersome and time consuming, since it is difficult to remove the arc chamber, and the removal of the arc chamber requires special tools, such as special cranes or similar devices for lifting and handling the heavy arc chamber.

Furthermore, commercially available high-speed circuit breakers of known type are generally constituted by an activation mechanism based on a coil which opens those breaking contacts as quickly as possible.

However, this solution has limitations depending on the voltage applied to such a coil, and this speeds up the interruption time more or less.

The technical problem underlying the present invention is that of providing an improved high-speed circuit breaker for high-current breaking applications, having structural and functional features to allow easier inspection of the breaking contacts in case of a fault by easier removal of the arc chute portions.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a high speed circuit breaker having a higher reliability and a longer service life, while providing a stable interruption time under any operating conditions.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a high speed circuit breaker that can be constructed of materials with reasonable industrial costs.

Disclosure of Invention

The object of the invention is achieved by a high speed circuit breaker according to claim 1. Further developments of the invention are defined in the dependent claims. The idea of the solution according to the invention is to provide an arc chamber part slidably mounted on the circuit breaker housing and to use a lever mechanism to move or lift the arc chamber without applying excessive force to perform such an operation.

According to the idea of the solution described above and according to one aspect of the invention, this technical problem is solved by a high speed circuit breaker for industrial or railway applications where high direct currents must be interrupted with high efficiency and extremely fast intervention times, said circuit breaker comprising a base portion in a casing, said base portion supporting:

-an activation mechanism for a switching device, the activation mechanism comprising a retaining mechanism and a release mechanism,

-an intermediate switching or breaking contact part comprising a fixed contact and a movable contact, and

-a top arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion covering the switching contact portion,

it is characterized by comprising:

an intermediate delimiting portion provided on both sides of the housing to laterally delimit the intermediate switching contact portion and to provide a lateral guide for the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion;

the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing part is slidably mounted in the shell;

at least one lever mechanism extending laterally between the opposing intermediate defining portions for moving or lifting the arc chute during inspection.

Advantageously, the intermediate delimiting part is formed by a synthetic plastic material having a first thicker portion or part closer to the switching contact portion and a second portion laterally surrounding the arc extinguishing chamber, said first thicker portion carrying (host) a hinge for one end of the lever at one side and a slot for guiding the opposite end of the lever at the opposite side.

The lever includes an enlarged central portion having a projection that acts on an edge of the arc chute.

Furthermore, the lever mechanism is arranged on both main sides of the circuit breaker housing.

The housing comprises a synthetic plastic material structure having a predetermined insulation coefficient and comprises a pair of protective walls covering the circuit breaker base portion and the intermediate switching contact portion from both main sides.

It must be noted that the disconnection contact portion comprises a fixed contact and a movable contact, and wherein said contacts are each constituted by a pair of contacts formed of different conductive materials.

More particularly, the first primary contact is supported closer to the activation mechanism and is formed of a silver alloy that is very conductive.

The auxiliary arcing contact is supported at a predetermined distance from the first main contact and is formed of an alloy containing tungsten.

Furthermore, the elastic element is structurally interposed between the main contacts and the auxiliary arcing contacts of the movable contacts, so that the upper movable contact can first touch the corresponding fixed contact during the closing phase of the circuit breaker 1.

During the opening operation, the movable contact is activated by releasing the elastic means, which are always biased towards the opening of the movable contact from the fixed contact.

These elastic means are constituted by a pair of springs, one end of which is connected to a movable rod supporting the movable contact, while the opposite end is linked to a fixed part of the circuit breaker structure.

In contrast, in the closed position of the circuit breaker, the retaining mechanism is activated by the magnetic field generated by the coil powered by the auxiliary current and acts on the anchoring element of the movable bar supporting the movable contact, while the elastic means are stretched according to the elastic constant K to them (solicated).

Another important feature relates to the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion provided with external polarity expansions coupled on both main sides of the sliding arc extinguishing chamber portion and electrically coupled to further corresponding polarity expansions linked to the fixed portion of the circuit breaker associated with the intermediate switching portion.

Said external polar expansions comprise at least one pair of metal plates independently mounted on each lateral main side of the arc extinguishing chamber, while said further corresponding polar expansions comprise a pair of plates structurally independent and electrically coupled to the end sides of the magnetic core inserted inside the dissipating coil of the circuit breaker; the plates of the outer polar expansions partially overlap the plates of the other corresponding polar expansions, establishing sliding abutting contacts, providing electrical connections.

Last but not least, an additional coil like a belt is placed on each external polar expansion in order to correctly manage and keep the arc inside the arc chamber during the arc extinction phenomenon. Each coil is inserted in an insulating housing made of a synthetic plastic material to isolate and protect each coil from external equipment or adjacent circuit breaker modules.

Further characteristics and advantages of the contactor device of the invention will become apparent from the following description, given by way of non-limiting example with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Drawings

Figure 1 shows a schematic perspective view of a high speed circuit breaker implemented according to the present invention;

figure 2 shows a schematic perspective view of the high speed circuit breaker of figure 1 with the lateral cover removed;

figure 3 shows a schematic perspective view of the high speed circuit breaker of the present invention from another perspective with respect to figure 1;

figure 4 shows a schematic front view of the high speed circuit breaker of figure 3 with the lateral cover removed;

fig. 5 shows a schematic view of an intermediate switching section of the circuit breaker arrangement of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a detail of the intermediate switching section of FIG. 5 under different operating conditions;

figure 7 shows a schematic perspective view of the internal part of the high speed circuit breaker of the present invention;

figure 8 shows a schematic perspective view of the inner part of the circuit breaker of figure 7 from a different view angle.

Detailed Description

With reference to the accompanying drawings, numeral 1 schematically shows as a whole a high-speed circuit breaker implemented according to the invention.

The circuit breaker 1 has a substantially square parallelepiped shape with a bottom and a top, two main sides and two thickness sides.

The circuit breaker 1 is particularly used in industrial or railway applications, where high direct currents must be interrupted with high efficiency and extremely fast intervention times.

For example, the circuit breaker 1 of the present invention is configured for use on electrical equipment operating in the presence of severe overcurrent or overvoltage or short circuits that may occur in substations of subway lines.

However, the use of such a circuit breaker 1 is not excluded in all applications where high direct currents have to be interrupted as quickly as possible, for example in railway stations, on trains or in factories.

Merely to understand the operating conditions and current value ranges involved in such contactors, it should be noted that these devices must be able to effectively interrupt current flow at least up to 8000ADC at operating voltages of up to 4200 VDC.

These operating values may even be referred to as the single pole of the circuit breaker. However, in many applications, it is desirable to provide a bipolar configuration and/or a tripolar configuration.

In this respect, the high-speed circuit breaker 1 of the invention has a modular structure involving a single-pole configuration, which is shown in the figures, but can be doubled or arranged in a two-pole or three-pole configuration comprising two or three modules in parallel, according to the needs of the user.

Furthermore, the modularity of the circuit breaker is maintained even for different voltage or current values, since the device maintains the same external dimensions and sizes due to the particular structure of the arc chute.

In the following description we will disclose only the structure of the monopolar module.

The circuit breaker 1 is constituted by a base portion 2 supporting an activation mechanism 3, an upper or intermediate switching or breaking contact portion 4 comprising a fixed contact 5 and a movable contact 6, and an arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion 7.

When the arcing section 7 is provided to cover and/or protect the electrical switching contacts, the electrical switching contacts form the disconnection section of the device.

In a more common vertical application, the base portion 2 is the bottom portion of the circuit breaker, while the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion 7 is the top portion; however, the circuit breaker 1 according to the invention can even be mounted in a horizontal position, so that one of the main sides will be the bottom part, while the base part 2 and the top part (made of ceramic) of the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing part 7 will be the lateral sides.

The structure of all the above parts will be disclosed hereinafter.

The single-pole module of the circuit breaker 1 has a housing 10 which covers the base part 2 from both lateral sides and partially covers the switching or breaking contact part 4.

As mentioned above, since the entire circuit breaker 1 can be installed to extend vertically, but also to be installed horizontally according to the user's needs, the base portion 2 must be regarded only as a defining wall of the case 10, not necessarily as a bottom base.

In the figures, the circuit breaker 1 is shown in a vertical position, in which the base portion 2 extends horizontally and is associated with a square support flange 21 for fixing the circuit breaker to a support base (not shown). However, this does not exclude mounting the circuit breaker 1 to extend horizontally; in this case, the base portion 2 will extend vertically.

The housing 10 comprises a synthetic plastics material construction having a predetermined dielectric constant. Such a casing 10 comprises a pair of protection walls 11, which cover the base part 2 and the intermediate switching or opening contact part 4 of the circuit breaker from both main sides, opening only the central opening 12. The protective wall 11 allows a better and more efficient insulation than the insulation provided by air.

Such an opening 12 is provided for rapid lateral inspection.

Opposite intermediate delimiting portions 16, 18 are provided in the housing 10 to laterally delimit the intermediate switching or opening contact portions 4. These delimiting parts 16, 18 also represent two lateral guides for the arc extinguishing chamber 7.

Advantageously, the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion 7 is slidably mounted in the casing 10 between the aforesaid opposite intermediate delimiting portions 16 and 18.

More particularly, one delimiting portion 16 is constituted by a first portion 17 or a portion that can be considered as closer to the switching or breaking contact portion 4 and a second portion 19 that laterally surrounds the arc extinguishing portion 7 of the arc extinguishing chamber.

The first and second portions 17, 19 are integrally formed of a synthetic plastics material.

The first portion 17 is thicker than the second portion 19 and carries a hinge 23.

Similarly, but with a slightly different structure, the other delimiting part 18 comprises a first part 27 or a part closer to the switching or breaking contact part 4 and a second part 29 laterally surrounding the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing part 7. Even in this case, the first portion 27 and the second portion 29 are integrally formed of a synthetic plastics material.

The first portion 27 is thicker than the second portion 29 and carries a slot 28 extending substantially parallel to the outer lateral surface of the housing 10 or of the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion 7.

One end 25A of the lever 25 is hingedly attached to a hinge 43 that delimits the first portion 17 of the portion 16.

The lever 25 extends transversely between the two opposite intermediate delimiting portions 16 and 18 and parallel to the protective wall 11 covering the circuit breaker 1.

The lever 25 has an opposite other end 25B slidably engaged by a pin 30 into a slot 28 provided in a first part of the other delimiting part 18.

The configuration shown in fig. 2 shows the lever 25 at one main side of the circuit breaker 1, while the configuration shown in fig. 4 shows another lever at the other main side of the circuit breaker 1. As disclosed below, the symmetrical arrangement of the levers 25 allows a smoother sliding action on the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion 7.

Each lever 25 on both sides of the circuit breaker 1 has a central enlarged portion 33 provided with a pin 32 projecting vertically from each lever 25 towards the inner part of the circuit breaker and acting on a corresponding lower edge 35 of the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion 7.

A mechanism comprising a headless screw is provided to act on the two levers 25. This headless screw is carried inside the delimiting part 18 of the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing part 7 and is provided at one end with a block which joins the hinged ends 25B of the two levers 25 inside the first portion 27 of said delimiting part 18. The screw and its end block, hidden inside the delimiting part 18, are not visible in the figures.

Once the pair of levers 25 is activated by the headless screw carried inside the delimiting portion 18 of the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion 7, each respective hinged end 25A of the lever 25 is able to move pivotally and angularly about the hinge 43, while allowing the opposite end 25B to slide inside the slot 28.

This movement provides a further movement of the central enlarged portion 33 of the lever 25, which pushes the pin 32 in the direction of the arrow F, allowing the arc-extinguishing chamber arc-extinguishing portion 7 to move in a sliding manner away from the intermediate switching or breaking contact portion 4.

Alternatively, the circuit breaker 1 of the present invention may be constructed as an insulating support tray in a horizontal fashion. In this case, the headless screws are provided on a screw support fixed to such a pallet. One end of the screw is directly coupled to the central enlarged portion 33 of the lever 25 in such a way that the sliding movement of said end of the headless screw acts directly on the central enlarged portion 33 of the lever 25.

In both vertical and horizontal versions, the action of the headless screw allows to move the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing section 7 in both vertical and horizontal positions of the circuit breaker 1, depending on the installation of the circuit breaker 1, without using special cranes or similar devices for lifting and handling heavy arc extinguishing chambers foreseen by the prior art.

In both versions, the moving mechanism acts symmetrically on the two levers 25 supported on both sides of the circuit breaker 1 and allows the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion 7 to move smoothly along the guides represented by the opposite intermediate delimiting portions 16, 18.

Turning now to the intermediate switching or breaking contact portion 4, a schematic internal structure of the breaking portion comprising the electrical switching apparatus of the present invention is shown in fig. 5 and 6.

The disconnection portion can be considered separate in the lower low voltage portion and the upper high voltage portion comprising the activation mechanism 3.

The low voltage section is specifically arranged for activating the opening action of the upper high voltage section.

The circuit breaker 1 of the invention can be considered as a switching element provided with normally closed contacts which must open as quickly as possible in case of short circuit or overcurrent according to the needs of the user.

In this respect, according to the present invention, the disconnection portion includes the fixed contact 5 and the movable contact 6.

It should be noted that the fixed power contact 5 is constituted by a double contact 13, 14 formed by different conductive materials.

The first fixed main contact 13 is internally supported in a position on the fixed block 9, which may be defined closer to the activation mechanism 3.

The first fixed main contact 13 is formed of a silver alloy having excellent conductivity.

The second fixed main contact 14 is supported on the same block 9 at a predetermined distance from the first fixed contact 13. We can also define this second contact 14 as an auxiliary arcing contact.

The second arcing contact 14 is formed from an alloy comprising tungsten.

The block 9 is connected to a first-terminal power contact 8 projecting laterally outside the housing 10.

The movable rod 39 supports a movable contact 6 similarly configured with dual contacts 23, 24 formed of different conductive materials, a main contact 23 and an auxiliary arc contact 24. However, according to the invention, the elastic element 26 is structurally interposed between the contacts 23 and 24 of the movable rod 39.

The presence of this elastic element 26 allows the upper auxiliary arcing contact 24 to be slightly unbalanced towards the corresponding fixed auxiliary arcing contact 14, so that the upper movable contact 24 can first touch the corresponding fixed contact 14 during the closing phase of the circuit breaker 1.

The movable rod 39 can be angularly moved from a rest or open position to an operative or closed position in which the movable contact 6 abuts against the fixed contact 5. The movement of the lever 39 supporting the movable contact 6 towards the fixed contact 5 loads the elastic force of the elastic means 40 always biased towards the opening of the contacts.

Moreover, the stem 39 is connected to a second terminal power contact 38, which projects laterally outside the casing 10 from the opposite side with respect to the other terminal 8.

It is worth noting that according to the invention, the angular movement of the second rod 39 towards and away from the fixed contacts 13, 14 of the fixed block 9 together with the pair of contacts 23, 24 is obtained in two steps.

First, the angular movement allows a first contact between the upper contacts 14 and 24 to be closer to the arc extinguishing portion 7 of the arc extinguishing chamber and a second contact, which intervenes immediately afterwards between the lower contacts 13 and 23, to be closer to the activation mechanism 3.

Once the movable contacts 23, 24 abut against the fixed contacts 13, 14, the circuit breaker is held in this closed position by magnetic attraction exerted by the coil 22 supported below the fixed contact 5 and powered by the auxiliary current. The magnetic force of the coil 22 is directed towards the anchoring element 20 of the movable rod 39.

The contact between the coil 22 and said anchoring element 20 occurs during the closing phase and before the main contacts 13, 23 touch each other, and therefore before the power circuit is effectively closed.

Two different situations may occur during the disconnection phase:

1) the current circulating inside the coil 22 is reduced to zero, thereby cutting off the auxiliary power supply. In this case, the only force acting on the circuit breaker is exerted by the elastic means, thus forcing the circuit breaker to open.

2) During a possible short circuit or during an overvoltage, an additional current is generated inside the coil 22 which reaches a predetermined threshold. This additional current reduces the magnetic field to zero, thereby holding the anchoring element 20 against the coil and causing the elastic means 40 to release its elastic energy, thus opening the circuit breaker.

During the disconnection phase, the main lower contacts 13 and 23 are first separated and immediately afterwards the separation of the auxiliary upper contacts 14 and 24 is intervened.

This double-step movement allows to reduce firstly the possible arcs normally generated between the fixed and movable contacts during the opening phase of the circuit breaker for such high currents or voltages.

As previously disclosed with reference to situations 1 or 2, it is also important to note that the movable contact 6 is activated by releasing the resilient means 40 always biased towards the opening of the contact.

These elastic means 40 are constituted by a pair of springs 36, 37, which are extended when the circuit breaker 1 is in the closed configuration.

One end of each spring 36, 37 is connected to a movable rod 39, while the opposite end is linked to a fixed part of the circuit breaker structure.

In other words, when the movable contact 6 is in contact with the fixed contact 5, the elastic means 40 are stretched so that the springs 36, 37 are loaded. In this way, the release of the spring depends on the spring constant K and not on the value of the operating voltage of the circuit breaker.

Unlike the known solutions, the opening action of the circuit breaker 1 does not depend on the coil charged to maintain the closed position and therefore on the value of the voltage applied to the coil.

This opening configuration allows a faster separation of the movable contacts from the fixed contacts and a faster intervention of the circuit breaker.

Furthermore, since the opening action of the circuit breaker 1 is not affected by the supply of electric power, energy is saved under normal operating conditions.

The closing of the movable contacts is performed by an engine device 50, which is powered by a chopper 52, that is to say by a switching device which converts a fixed direct input voltage directly into a variable direct output voltage. In other words, the circuit breaker 1 is provided with an auxiliary power supply with reference to the power supply of the coil 20 for keeping the contacts 5, 6 closed, and with a voltage conversion by the converter circuit. For example, a multiple voltage converter circuit is provided to provide a 24V voltage supply to the circuit breaker, while the user provides a basic 110V voltage supply.

The closing phase is performed in about two seconds, depending on the voltage value of the circuit in which the circuit breaker is installed.

The performance of the circuit breaker according to the invention is also due to the specific structure of the arc chute components.

The arc chute arc extinguishing section 7 can be structurally different according to the different voltage ranges that have to be handled and the energy capacity that the corresponding arc chute type should extinguish completely safely.

However, the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing part 7 of the present invention is provided with external polarity extension pieces 60 coupled on both main sides of the circuit breaker 1.

More specifically, a pair of metal plates 61, 62 are respectively mounted on each lateral main side of the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion 7.

Each plate 61, 62 is substantially square and is fixed to the synthetic plastic structure of the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion 7 by fixing pins 64 provided at the corners of the plate.

Moreover, on each external polar expansion an additional coil like a tape 63 is placed in order to correctly manage the movement of the arc inside the arc chamber and keep it inside the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion 7 during the arc extinguishing phenomenon. Each coil is inserted in an insulating housing made of a synthetic plastic material to isolate and protect each coil from external equipment or adjacent circuit breaker modules.

The person skilled in the art will understand that a different number of plates or a single plate or plates of different shapes and sizes can be used as external polarity expansions on both sides of the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing section 7.

It has to be noted that the plates 61, 62 are fixed to the arc chute arc extinguishing part 7, so that they can move together with the arc chute arc extinguishing part when the arc chute arc extinguishing part 7 is slidably moved by the lever 25, in order to allow inspection of the covered broken part.

However, according to the invention, the external polar expansions 60 are electrically coupled to further corresponding polar expansions 70 linked to the fixed portion of the circuit breaker 1, i.e. the intermediate switching or opening contact portion 4.

These further polar expansions 70 remain external with respect to the internal structure of the circuit breaker and overlap with the polar expansions 60 disclosed previously.

More particularly, even this further polar expansion 70 comprises a pair of plates 71, 72 of similar shape and dimensions to the corresponding plates 61, 62 of the polar expansion 60 joined to the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion 7.

Even the plates 71, 72 are provided on both main sides of the circuit breaker 1.

The plates 71, 72 are structurally independent of the corresponding plates 61 and 62.

Above the auxiliary arc contacts 14 and 24, but still in the intermediate switching section, respective arc runners (not shown) are provided.

These arc runners help to dissipate the arc formed during the opening phase of the movable contacts 23, 24. More specifically, each of the arc runners is electrically connected to a respective dissipating coil 55, 56 provided at a shoulder of each of the fixed contacts 5 or movable contacts 6.

The metal plates 71, 72 of the polarity spreader 70 are disposed on both sides of the circuit breaker 1 corresponding to end portions of the core inserted inside the dissipating coils 55, 56, respectively.

All figures clearly show these metal plates 71, 72 on one side of the circuit breaker, but the presence of corresponding plates in parallel position on the other side of the circuit breaker should also be considered.

The plates 71, 72 of the polarity spreader 70 are mounted in a more inner position towards the intermediate switching or opening contact portion 4, while the plates 61, 62 of the other outer polarity spreader 60 are joined to the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion 7, partially overlapping the corresponding plates 71, 72, so that electrical contact is also established.

In other words, the partial overlapping of these plates allows to establish a sliding abutting contact, providing an electrical connection to ensure the electrical continuity between the plates 61, 71 and the plates 62, 72.

In this way, a larger polarity extension structure is provided in order to provide a larger arc extinguishing capability for the circuit breaker according to the invention.

Moreover, since the polar expansions are constituted by two sets of metal plates, one associated with the circuit breaker and the other with the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion 7, it allows to reduce the weight of the arc extinguishing chamber arc extinguishing portion 7. This is a further advantage, since the arc chute arc extinguishing part 7 of the invention can be lifted or slidably moved by the lever mechanism 25, and the weight reduction facilitates this displacement during the inspection activity.

Returning briefly to the activation mechanism 3, it should be noted that this mechanism comprises a low voltage driving part with means for keeping the open contacts closed. The activation mechanism is conventionally configured to automatically activate the opening of the movable contact 6 of the circuit breaker when an overcurrent condition is sensed.

These devices can be identified as trip units, which are part of the circuit breaker 1, that determine when the contacts 6 must be automatically opened. As disclosed previously, during possible short circuits or overvoltages inside the coil 22, an additional current is generated and this additional current, exceeding a predetermined threshold, reduces the magnetic field to zero, keeping the anchoring element 20 against the coil and causing the elastic means 40 to release its elastic energy, thus opening the circuit breaker 1.

In a thermomagnetic circuit breaker, the trip unit includes components designed to sense heat caused by an overload condition and high currents caused by a short circuit.

The function of the circuit breaker arrangement 1 of the present invention should be apparent in view of the foregoing description.

In the foregoing description, directional terms are as follows: "forward", "rearward", "front", "rear", "upper", "lower", "above", "below", "upward", "downward", "top", "bottom", "side", "vertical", "horizontal", "vertical" and "lateral" and any other similar directional terms refer only to the devices shown in the drawings and are not relevant to the possible use of the present devices.

Accordingly, these directional terms are used to describe a circuit breaker in its upright vertical or horizontal position merely to identify a portion of the device relative to another portion of the device shown in the figures.

The term "comprises/comprising" and its derivatives, as used herein, are intended to be open ended terms that specify the presence of the stated features, elements, components, groups, integers, and/or steps, but do not exclude the presence of other unstated features, elements, components, groups, integers, and/or steps. The concept also applies to words having similar meanings such as the terms, "having", "including" and their derivatives.

Furthermore, the terms "member," "section," "portion," "section," and "element" when used in the singular can have the dual meaning of a single part or a plurality of parts.