Electrical switch

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9659729-B2
Application number	US-201415033218-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 24, 2014
Priority date	Oct 29, 2013
Publication date	May 23, 2017
Grant date	May 23, 2017

Abstract

An electrical switch includes a gas-insulated tube, a contact system in the tube having fixed and movable contacts, a contact operating element passed out of the tube and movable along an actuation direction for opening and closing the system, and a contact pressure spring movable along the direction, connected to the operating element and an external drive element and disposed in a stationary guide part. The guide part guides the operating element. If the drive element shifts along the direction toward the fixed contact, the spring, operating element and movable contact move toward the fixed contact, closing the system and compressing the spring providing contact pressure force. The spring is in a housing connected to the operating element and movable relative to the guide part. A guide element is attached outside the housing, bears against the guide part, guides the housing and guides the operating element along the direction.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A switch, comprising:
a gas-insulated tube;
a contact system disposed in said tube and having a fixed contact and a moving contact;
a moving contact operating element mechanically and electrically connected to said moving contact, routed out of said tube through an opening in said tube, and being moved along an operating direction for opening and closing said contact system;
a stationary guide part guiding said moving contact operating element;
an external drive element;
a contact-pressure spring being movable along said operating direction, being connected to said moving contact operating element and to said external drive element and being disposed in said stationary guide part;
upon said external drive element moving along said operating direction in a direction toward said fixed contact, said contact-pressure spring, said moving contact operating element and said moving contact moving in said direction toward said fixed contact, said contact system being closed and said contact-pressure spring being compressed to provide a contact-pressure force;
a spring housing being rigidly connected to said moving contact operating element and being movable relative to said stationary guide part, said contact-pressure spring being disposed in said spring housing; and
at least one guide element being fixedly attached to an outside of said spring housing, said at least one guide element bearing against said stationary guide part and guiding said spring housing and said moving contact operating element along said operating direction.

2. The switch according to claim 1 , wherein said at least one guide element includes two guide elements being spaced apart along said operating direction, attached to said spring housing and bearing against said guide part.

3. The switch according to claim 2 , wherein said spring housing has a pot-shaped housing part and a cover part, and at least one of said two guide elements is attached to or integrally formed on said pot-shaped housing part or at least one of said two guide elements is attached to or integrally formed on said cover part.

4. The switch according to claim 1 , which further comprises a further guide element guiding said moving contact operating element, said further guide element being disposed between said spring housing and said tube along said operating direction.

5. The switch according to claim 4 , which further comprises a contact disk attached to or integrally formed on said moving contact operating element between said spring housing and said tube, said further guide element being attached radially to an outside of said contact disk.

6. The switch according to claim 5 , wherein said contact disk and said further guide element are electrically conductive and enable a current flow in a current flow direction from said moving contact operating element, through said contact disk and said further guide element to said guide part and in a direction opposite to said current flow direction.

7. The switch according to claim 1 , wherein said guide part is hollow-cylindrical or has at least one hollow-cylindrical section.

8. The switch according to claim 1 , wherein said at least one guide element attached to said outside of said spring housing bears radially against an inner wall surface of said guide part.

9. The switch according to claim 1 , wherein said guide part has a hollow-cylindrical section, and said at least one guide element attached to said outside of said spring housing bears radially against an inner wall surface of said hollow-cylindrical section.

10. The switch according to claim 1 , wherein said at least one guide element attached to said outside of said spring housing is formed by at least one guide ring.

11. The switch according to claim 10 , wherein said at least one guide ring attached to said outside of said spring housing lies in at least one guide groove formed in said spring housing.

12. The switch according to claim 1 , which further comprises a bearing being part of or attached to said tube, said bearing guiding said moving contact operating element in a region of an exit point of said moving contact operating element out of said tube along said operating direction.

13. The switch according to claim 1 , wherein said gas-insulated tube is a vacuum tube, and the switch is a vacuum circuit breaker.

Assignees

• Siemens Ag

Inventors

• Bartz Michael
• Ehrlich Frank
• Golub Alexander
• Matthaei Andre
• Orth Caroline
• Rademacher Rico
• Reiher Ingolf

Classifications

• H01H2205/002

  fixed to operating part · CPC title

• H01H33/66207 Primary

  Specific housing details, e.g. sealing, soldering or brazing · CPC title

• H01H33/666

  Operating arrangements · CPC title

• H01H2235/01

  Spiral spring · CPC title

• H01H1/50 Primary

  Means for increasing contact pressure, preventing vibration of contacts, holding contacts together after engagement, or biasing contacts to the open position · CPC title