A low-profile electrical contactor is provided comprising at least one electrical contact switch, an actuation means and a current determining device. The or each electrical contact switch has first and second electrical terminals, an electrically-conductive busbar in electrical communication with the first electrical terminal, the busbar having two end faces between which a current can flow in a flow direction and at least two flat sides in parallel with the flow direction, at least one fixed electrical contact which is attached to the busbar, an electrically-conductive moveable arm in electrical communication with the second electrical terminal, and at least one moveable electrical contact which is attached to the electrically-conductive moveable arm to form an electrical contact set with the fixed electrical contact. The actuation means can actuate the electrically-conductive moveable arm of the or each electrical contact switch between open and closed conditions. The current determining device has a first field-modifying element formed of a magnetic material located at or adjacent to the first end face of the busbar, a second field-modifying element formed of a magnetic material and located at or adjacent to the second end face of the busbar, at least one sensing coil at or adjacent to the busbar and the first and second field-modifying elements, and having a coil axis between planes of the first and second flat sides. An electromagnetic field induced by the current flowing in the busbar is modified by the first and second field-modifying elements to extend more or substantially more in parallel with the coil axis of the sensing coil.

A low-profile electrical contactor is provided comprising at least one electrical contact switch, an actuation means and a current determining device. The or each electrical contact switch has first and second electrical terminals, an electrically-conductive busbar in electrical communication with the first electrical terminal, the busbar having two end faces between which a current can flow in a flow direction and at least two flat sides in parallel with the flow direction, at least one fixed electrical contact which is attached to the busbar, an electrically-conductive moveable arm in electrical communication with the second electrical terminal, and at least one moveable electrical contact which is attached to the electrically-conductive moveable arm to form an electrical contact set with the fixed electrical contact. The actuation means can actuate the electrically-conductive moveable arm of the or each electrical contact switch between open and closed conditions. The current determining device has a first field-modifying element formed of a magnetic material located at or adjacent to the first end face of the busbar, a second field-modifying element formed of a magnetic material and located at or adjacent to the second end face of the busbar, at least one sensing coil at or adjacent to the busbar and the first and second field-modifying elements, and having a coil axis between planes of the first and second flat sides. An electromagnetic field induced by the current flowing in the busbar is modified by the first and second field-modifying elements to extend more or substantially more in parallel with the coil axis of the sensing coil.

The status monitoring system for a circuit breaker (100) includes a movable handle (110) with a magnet (112), a magnetic sensor (140) and a processor (150). The magnet is movable with the handle. The magnetic sensor is arranged in proximity to the handle, and is used to sense a magnetic field produced from the magnet of the handle. The processor receives information of the sensed magnetic field from the magnetic sensor and determines a status of the circuit breaker based on the sensed magnetic field which relates to a position of the handle. The status of the circuit breaker may include a handle position (e.g., ON, OFF or TRIPPED position), a handle velocity or a handle acceleration. A diagnosis of breaker functionality may then be reported.

A circuit breaker can include a light source, an optical sensor, a handle and a processor. The handle can be movable between different handle positions which correspond to different circuit breaker statuses. The handle can include a handle body and a light control plate which moves along with the handle body. The light control plate can have different light passage regions each of which is configured to be positioned between the light source and the optical sensor when the handle is moved to a corresponding one of the different handle positions. Each of the different light passage regions allows a different amount of light emitted from the light source to pass to the sensor when positioned between the light source and the sensor. The processor is configured to determine a status of the circuit breaker based on the sensed amount of light which relates to a position of the handle.

A comprehensive software tool designed to revolutionize manually switching of circuit breakers by providing a Breaker APP on a mobile device that can move through several locations, including residential addresses, to switch circuit breakers in real time from any mobile device with the APP. The tool addresses several pain points and challenges faced by agricultural industry professionals and aims to streamline operations, enhance customer experiences, and maximize efficiency throughout the remote accessing of breaker circuits.

An apparatus including one or more relays and a fault detector is disclosed. The one or more relays are coupled to a load. The fault detector is coupled with the one or more relays and receives at least one control signal. The fault detector includes a sensor to detect electricity flowing through the load and generate a detection signal. Based on a comparison of the control signal and the detection signal, the fault detector generates a fault signal indicative of whether a relay is functional or faulty.

A circuit breaker assembly can include a mechanism configured to be actuated by an operator. The mechanism can be configured to move between a first position and a second position to change a state of a contactor between a closed state and an open state. The circuit breaker assembly can include a reluctance sensor system operatively connected to the mechanism and configured to determine a position and/or a motion of the mechanism as a function of magnetic reluctance. The reluctance in the reluctance sensor system can change as a function of mechanism position.

An electrical switching element includes a housing, an armature moved by a coil arrangement, a contact arrangement switchable by the armature into at least two switching statuses, and a magnetic field sensor outputting a magnetic field-dependent switching signal representing the switching statuses. The armature, the contact arrangement, and the magnetic field sensor are arranged in the housing. The armature is arranged between the contact arrangement and the magnetic field sensor.

An apparatus for detecting faults in devices, the apparatus comprising a first input for receiving a first control signal for controlling a switch, a first output for providing the first control signal to the switch, a sensor to detect a presence and an absence of electricity flowing through a load controlled by the switch to generate a detection signal, and circuitry configured to compare the detection signal and the first control signal and generate a fault signal indicating whether a fault is detected. When a logic level of the detection signal is the same as a logic level of the first control signal, the fault signal indicates that the fault is not detected. When the logic level of the detection signal is different from the logic level of the first control signal, the fault signal indicates that the fault is not detected.

An electrical protection device includes a housing including a plurality of sidewalls. The plurality of sidewalls includes one or more thermochromic sidewalls. The electrical protection device includes a switch assembly located in the housing and an electrical connector extending from the housing. The electrical connector is configured to place the switch assembly in electrical connection with a main bus at an electrical distribution panel. In response to a condition at the electrical protection device causing a temperature of a respective thermochromic sidewall of the one or more thermochromic sidewalls to exceed a temperature threshold, the respective thermochromic sidewall is configured to provide an indication of the condition of the electrical protection device. The indication may be a visual indication including a color change and an expansion of the material. The indication may be an audible indication including emitting a noise.