Electricity: circuit makers and breakers – Interlocking – Between plural switches
Patent
1997-08-01
1998-12-08
Scott, J. R.
Electricity: circuit makers and breakers
Interlocking
Between plural switches
200331, 218154, H01H 926
Patent
active
058473408
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention concerns an arrangement for mutually locking the actuation of at least two power switches. Each power switch has a side wall and a switching shaft accessible on the side wall, as well as a control shaft, which is also accessible on the side wall, of a device that releases or locks the actuation of the power switch. The invention includes a position indicator for emitting a mechanical signal corresponding to the switching position supplied via a transmission means (Bowden control), as well as an evaluation apparatus that can be controlled through the mechanical signals for actuating at least the control shaft of one of the power switches.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A locking arrangement was disclosed in German Patent 44 09 172 A1. The mechanical signals in this arrangement are transmitted by flexible, Bowden control-type transmission means. A rod assembly is also known to be used for this purpose (German Patent A 38 41 315). While rod assemblies require a fixed spatial arrangement in relation to the power switches, flexible transmission means allow power switches set up either side by side or one on top of the other to be linked.
In the safety device according to German Patent 44 09 172 A1, each power switch has an adapter block that forms a position indicator and a device for supplying a signal locking the actuation of the same power switch. This assumes a close physical proximity of the switching shaft and the control shaft, or the adapter block becomes too large and unwieldy. The evaluation apparatus is used to provide only certain combinations of switching states in a system of three power switches. The evaluation apparatus is always supplied with a mechanical signal of both the position indicator and the power switch on which the evaluation apparatus is mounted, as well as with another signal provided by the position indicator of one of the other power switches. The output signal of the evaluation apparatus is supplied to the remaining power switch as a locking signal. Thus, when designing the safety device, it must always be checked whether the desired combination of allowable switching states requires the use of an evaluation apparatus or whether the desired dependence can be achieved through the adapter blocks alone.
A device releasing or locking the actuation of a power switch, which can also be referred to as a switch-on locking mechanism, is described in German Patent 43 33 828 C1, published after the priority date of the present application. The possibility of using the switching position of another power switch as a control signal is indicated in this patent.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to make the use of a safety device independent of the distance between the switching shaft and the control shaft and to allow the user to achieve any desired allowable combination of switching states using basically the same hardware.
This object is achieved according to the present invention by assigning an evaluation apparatus to each power switch and arranging the evaluation apparatus together with the position indicator of the respective power switch on a common carrying plate arranged in parallel to the side wall, and by each evaluation apparatus having at least one input slide with an output slide that can be coupled to the control shaft of the corresponding power switch.
A uniform hardware configuration that is independent of the intended safety function is created by each power switch having a position indicator and an evaluation apparatus. In addition, this hardware is also independent of the type of arrangement of the power switches, since the carrying plate allows both fixed and movable or withdrawable power switches to be functionally connected. The design of the position indicator as a pure position indicator, which works together with the switching shaft, but not with the control shaft, is an important feature for the device of the present invention. Thus the distance between the
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patent: 4400599 (1983-08-01), Rickmann
patent: 4620077 (1986-10-01), Zdanys et al.
patent: 4626638 (1986-12-01), Samples et al.
patent: 4703137 (1987-10-01), Bohnen et al.
patent: 4788453 (1988-11-01), Bohnen et al.
patent: 4968861 (1990-11-01), Kuhn
Scott J. R.
Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
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