Vacuum interrupter conductor assembly with integrated Thomson coil

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12148585-B2
Application number	US-202218086126-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 21, 2022
Priority date	Dec 21, 2022
Publication date	Nov 19, 2024
Grant date	Nov 19, 2024

Abstract

An actuator for opening the separable contacts of a circuit interrupter integrates a Thomson coil arrangement into the movable and stationary conductor assemblies. A movable separable contact is coupled to one end of the movable conductor, and a stationary separable contact is coupled to one end of the stationary conductor. The movable and stationary conductors are each formed with a collar positioned near the respective movable and stationary separable contacts. The actuator further includes a coil seated within a coil housing, and the coil housing is coupled to the stationary conductor collar. A conductive member shaped as a cup and structured to be actuated by the coil is coupled to the movable conductor collar, such that the rim of the cup faces the coil. A housing is positioned around the conductive member cup body with bellows and coupled to the coil housing, forming a vacuum chamber around the separable contacts.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An actuator assembly for use with a circuit interrupter, the actuator assembly comprising:
a stationary conductor assembly, the stationary conductor assembly comprising:
a stationary conductor comprising a proximal end and a distal end disposed opposite the proximal end;
a stationary separable contact coupled to the proximal end of the stationary conductor; and
an insulator plate comprising a central opening through which the stationary conductor is disposed, the insulator plate being coupled to the stationary conductor and positioned distally relative to the stationary separable contact;

a movable conductor assembly, the movable conductor assembly comprising:
a movable conductor comprising a proximal end and a distal end disposed opposite the proximal end;
a movable separable contact coupled to the proximal end of the movable conductor; and
a conductive member formed as a cup comprising a cup base and a cup body extending from the base, the cup base comprising a central opening through which the movable conductor is disposed, the conductive member being coupled to the movable conductor such that its cup base is positioned distally relative to the moveable separable contact;

a housing assembly, the housing assembly comprising:
a housing body formed as an open cylinder, the housing body comprising a first end and a second end disposed opposite the first the end, the housing being coupled at the first end to the insulator plate, the second end being disposed closer to the distal end of the movable conductor assembly than the first end is; and

a coil arrangement, the coil arrangement comprising:
a coil housing coupled to the first end of the housing body; and
a conductive coil seated within the housing and positioned in sufficient proximity to the cup-shaped conductive member to be able to repel the cup-shaped conductive member when a current is supplied to the conductive coil,

wherein the movable conductor assembly is positioned such that the movable separable contact is aligned with the stationary separable contact,
wherein the cup body of the conductive member extends from the cup base toward the movable separable contact and surrounds the movable separable contact and the stationary separable contact, and
wherein the movable conductor is structured to move between a closed position wherein the movable separable contact is in contact with the stationary separable contact and an open position wherein there is a gap between the movable separable contact and the stationary separable contact.

2. The actuator assembly of claim 1 ,
wherein the stationary conductor is formed as a stem with a stationary conductor collar, such that the stationary conductor collar extends laterally outward from the stem, the stationary conductor collar comprising a proximal side facing toward the stationary separable contact and a distal side disposed opposite the proximal side, and
wherein the insulator plate is coupled to the proximal side of the stationary conductor collar.

3. The actuator assembly of claim 2 ,
wherein the coil comprises a distal surface and a proximal surface disposed opposite the distal surface, the coil distal surface being structured to contact the coil housing when the coil is seated within the coil housing,
wherein the coil comprises a coil central opening,
wherein the coil housing comprises a coil housing central opening,
wherein the coil is structured such that the coil central opening aligns with the coil housing central opening when the coil is seated within the coil housing,
wherein the coil housing is structured such that, when the coil is seated within the coil housing, a collar coupling lip is formed, the collar coupling lip being a portion of the coil housing that is adjacent to the coil housing central opening and that is surrounded by the coil central opening when the coil is seated within the coil housing, and
wherein the coil housing is structured such that, when the coil housing is coupled to the housing body, the collar coupling lip contacts the distal side of the stationary conductor collar and the proximal side of the coil contacts the insulator plate.

4. The actuator assembly of claim 3 ,
wherein the coil housing is further structured such that, when the coil is seated within the coil housing, a housing body coupling lip is formed, the housing body coupling lip being a portion of the coil housing that surrounds the outer circumference of the coil and that is level with the proximal surface of the coil, and
wherein the coil housing is structured such that, when the coil housing is coupled to the housing body, the housing body mating lip contacts the first end of the housing body.

5. The actuator assembly of claim 1 ,
wherein the movable conductor is formed with a movable conductor collar, the movable conductor collar comprising a proximal side facing toward the movable separable contact and a distal side disposed opposite the proximal side,
wherein the conductive member cup base is coupled to the proximal side of the movable conductor collar, and
wherein the movable conductive collar is positioned and the conductive member is proportioned such that, when the movable conductor is in the closed position, a rim of the conductive member cup body is in contact with the insulator plate.

6. The actuator assembly of claim 5 , wherein the housing assembly further comprises:
a bellows shielding cup comprising a shielding cup base and a shielding cup body extending from the shielding cup base, the shielding cup base comprising a central opening through which the movable conductor is disposed, with a rim of the shielding cup body being coupled to the second end of the housing body such that the shielding cup base is disposed distally relative to the housing body; and
a set of bellows coupled at a first end to a distal side of the movable conductor collar and coupled at a second end to a proximal side of the shielding cup base, the bellows comprising a central opening through which the movable conductor is disposed,
wherein the housing assembly forms a vacuum chamber.

7. The actuator assembly of claim 1 ,
wherein the cup body of the conductive member is formed with a number of cutouts, such that the cup body is not of a uniform thickness.

8. The actuator assembly of claim 1 ,
wherein the conductive member is formed with a first section and a second section,
wherein the first section includes a rim of the conductive member cup body and is produced from a first material with relatively high conductivity, and
wherein the second section includes the conductive member cup base and is produced from a second material with relatively high durability, the second material having a lesser atomic mass than the first material.

9. The actuator assembly of claim 8 ,
wherein the first material is copper, and
wherein the second material is either titanium or tungsten.

10. The actuator assembly of claim 1 ,
wherein the insulator plate extends laterally beyond the exterior surface of the conductive member cup body such that a step is formed by the portion of the insulator plate that is disposed outward of the exterior surface of the cup body, and
wherein the first end of the housing body is formed with a notch structured to receive the step formed by the insulator plate.

Assignees

• Eaton Intelligent Power Ltd

Inventors

• Balasubramanian Ganesh Kumar
• Chamarajanagar Govinda Nayaka Santhosh Kumar
• Slepian Robert Michael
• Zhou Xin
• Muniyappan Jayaraman

Classifications

• H01H3/222

  using electrodynamic repulsion · CPC title

• H01H33/6662 Primary

  using bistable electromagnetic actuators, e.g. linear polarised electromagnetic actuators · CPC title

• H01H33/285 Primary

  using electro-dynamic repulsion (assisting the movement of pistons by accelerating coil H01H33/882) · CPC title

• H01H3/22

  Power arrangements internal to the switch for operating the driving mechanism · CPC title

• H01H33/666

  Operating arrangements · CPC title