Gear Unit For A Circuit Breaker

Abstract

A gear unit housing for a gear unit includes a two-sided control lever for moving two switching contacts of a circuit breaker in opposite directions. The gear unit housing includes a housing cassette having a housing base and a cover plate detachably connected to the housing cassette by screw connections and lying opposite to the housing base. A bearing shaft for mounting the control lever for rotation about the bearing shaft is connected to the housing cassette and to the cover plate and extends between the housing base and the cover plate. At least one stud element form-lockingly connects the housing cassette and the cover plate. A gear unit having the gear unit housing is also provided.

Claims

1-14. (canceled)

15. A gear unit housing for a gear unit having a two-sided control lever for moving two switch contacts of a circuit breaker in mutually opposite directions, the gear unit housing comprising: a housing cassette having a housing base; a cover plate lying opposite to said housing base; screw connections detachably interconnecting said cover plate and said housing cassette; a bearing shaft connected to said housing cassette and to said cover plate, said bearing shaft extending between said housing base and said cover plate for mounting the control lever rotatably about said bearing shaft; and at least one stud element form-lockingly interconnecting said housing cassette and said cover plate.

16. The gear unit housing according to claim 15, wherein said at least one stud element extends parallel to said bearing shaft.

17. The gear unit housing according to claim 15, wherein said at least one stud element is formed in one piece with said housing cassette, said cover plate has a cover plate cut-out corresponding to said at least one stud element, and said stud element protrudes into said cover plate cut-out.

18. The gear unit housing according to claim 15, wherein said at least one stud element is formed in one piece with said cover plate, said housing cassette has a cassette cut-out corresponding to said at least one stud element, and said stud element protrudes into said cassette cut-out.

19. The gear unit housing according to claim 15, wherein said at least one stud element is a pin element guided through a cut-out in said cover plate into a cut-out in said housing cassette.

20. The gear unit housing according to claim 19, wherein said at least one pin element is a tensioning pin.

21. The gear unit housing according to claim 15, wherein said at least one stud element is a fitting screw having an outer thread, being guided through a cut-out in said cover plate, and being screwed into a cut-out in said housing cassette having an inner thread corresponding to said outer thread of said fitting screw.

22. The gear unit housing according to claim 15, wherein said bearing shaft is formed in one piece with said housing cassette, said cover plate has a cover plate cut-out corresponding to said bearing shaft, and said bearing shaft protrudes into said cover plate cut-out.

23. The gear unit housing according to claim 15, wherein said bearing shaft is formed in one piece with said cover plate, said housing cassette has a cassette cut-out corresponding to said bearing shaft, and said bearing shaft protrudes into said cassette cut-out.

24. A gear unit for moving first and second switch contacts of a circuit breaker in mutually opposite directions, the gear unit comprising: a gear unit housing according to claim 15; a two-sided control lever disposed in said gear unit housing, said control lever having a first lever side connected to the first switch contact and a second lever side connected to the second switch contact, and said control lever having a lever cut-out formed therein; and said bearing shaft of said gear unit housing being guided through said lever cut-out for mounting said control lever rotatably about said bearing shaft.

25. The gear unit according to claim 24, which further comprises a drive rod interconnecting said first lever side and the first switch contact, said drive rod protruding into said gear unit housing.

26. The gear unit according to claim 25, wherein said first lever side has at least one coupling lug, said drive rod has a control lever-side end region with an oblong hole formed therein, and said at least one coupling lug is guided in said oblong hole.

27. The gear unit according to claim 24, which further comprises a guide rail protruding into said gear unit housing, and a stud interconnecting said second lever side and the second switch contact, said stud being guided in said guide rail, and said second lever side protruding into said guide rail.

28. A circuit breaker, comprising a gear unit according to claim 24.

Description

[0017] The above described characteristics, features and advantages of this invention and also the manner in which these are achieved become clearer and more easily understandable in conjunction with the following description of the exemplary embodiments that are explained in detail with reference to the drawings. In the drawings:

[0018] FIG. 1 illustrates a circuit breaker in the region of a gear unit with a gear unit housing, and

[0019] FIG. 2 illustrates the region of a circuit breaker that is illustrated in FIG. 1 in this case without the cover plate of the gear unit housing.

[0020] Parts that correspond with one another are provided in the figures with like reference numerals.

[0021] FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a circuit breaker 1 in the region of a gear unit 3 of the circuit breaker 1 in each case in a perspective view. The gear unit 3 comprises a gear unit housing 5 having a housing cassette 7 and a cover plate 9. FIG. 1 illustrates the gear unit housing 5 with the cover plate 9. FIG. 2 illustrates the gear unit housing 5 without the cover plate 9.

[0022] The gear unit 3 is configured for moving two switch contacts of the circuit breaker 1 in opposite directions to one another. The switch contacts are arranged in a first housing part 11 of the circuit breaker 1 and are not visible in FIGS. 1 and 2. The first housing part 11 is connected to a second housing part 13 of the circuit breaker 1 via a flange connection 15. The flange connection 15 is formed by a first flange 17 of the first housing part 11 and a second flange 19 that corresponds thereto and is part of the second housing part 13. Two diametrically opposite flange regions of the first flange 17 are connected to one another by means of a middle web 21. The second housing part 13 is illustrated in a broken-open view in order to make the gear unit 3 visible.

[0023] One end face 23 of the housing cassette 7 is fastened to the middle web 21 by means of fastening screw connections that are not visible in FIGS. 1 and 2. The housing cassette 7 protrudes from the middle web 21 into the second housing part 13 and comprises a housing base 25 that protrudes in a perpendicular manner from the middle web 21. The cover plate 9 of the gear unit housing 5 is connected in a detachable manner to the housing cassette 7 by means of screw connections 27 and lies opposite the housing base 25.

[0024] In order to move the switch contacts in opposite directions to one another, the gear unit 3 comprises a two-sided control lever 29 that is arranged in the gear unit housing 5. A first lever side 31 of the control lever 29 is connected to a first switch contact. A second lever side 33 that is lying opposite the first lever side 31 is connected to the second switch contact. The control lever 29 comprises a cut-out 35 and a bearing shaft 37 of the gear unit housing 5 is guided through said lever cut-out, with the result that the control lever 29 is mounted so as to be able to rotate about the bearing shaft 37.

[0025] The bearing shaft 37 is part of the housing cassette 7, in other words is configured as one piece with the housing cassette 7. The cover plate 9 comprises a first cut-out 39 that corresponds to the bearing shaft 37 and the bearing shaft 37 protrudes through said first cover cut-out. The first cover cut-out 39 is configured as a through-going hole in the cover plate 9.

[0026] The gear unit housing 5 comprises moreover two stud elements 41 that are parts of the housing cassette 7, in other words are configured as one piece with the housing cassette 7 and extend parallel to the bearing shaft 37 toward the cover plate 9. The cover plate 9 comprises for each stud element 41 a second cut-out that corresponds to the stud element 41 and the stud element 43 protrudes through said second 43 cut-out. Each second cover cut-out 43 is configured as a through-going hole in the cover plate 9. The housing cassette 7 and the cover plate 9 are connected to one another in a form-locking manner by means of the stud elements 41 that are protruding into the second cover cut-outs 43. The form-locking connection absorbs transverse forces that are exerted on the cover plate 9 in the plane of the cover plate 9 via the bearing shaft 37 as the control lever 29 rotates. As a result, the form-locking connection between the cover plate 9 and the housing cassette 7 that is produced by means of the stud elements 41 reduces the loading on the screw connections 27 with the result that a reduction of the tensioning of the screws in the screw connections 27 caused by high transverse forces is prevented, as is a resultant movement of the cover plate 9 relative to the housing cassette 7.

[0027] In order to connect the first lever side 31 to the first switch contact, the first lever side 31 is connected to the first switch contact via a drive rod 45 that protrudes through a first cut-out 44 in the middle web 21 into the gear unit housing 5. For this purpose, the first lever side 31 comprises two coupling lugs 47, and a control lever-side end region 49 of the drive rod 45 comprises for each coupling lug 47 an oblong hole 51 and the coupling lug 47 is guided in said oblong hole. The end region 49 of the drive rod 45 comprises two end plates 53 that are arranged spaced apart and parallel to one another and that each comprise one of the oblong holes 51. The first lever side 31 protrudes into the region between the two end plates 53. The coupling lugs 47 are located on opposite sides of the first lever side 31 and protrude from the first lever side 31 in each case toward the end plate 53 that is arranged at that site, with the result that said coupling lugs protrude into the oblong hole 51 of this end plate 53.

[0028] The second lever side 33 is connected to the second switch contact via a stud that is not visible in FIGS. 1 and 2. The stud is guided in a guide rail 55, which protrudes into the gear unit housing 5, through a second cut-out in the middle web 21, said second cut-out not being visible in FIGS. 1 and 2. The second lever side 33 protrudes into the guide rail 55 and is configured in the shape of a fork with two tines 57, 59 and the stud is inserted between said tines. A movement of the stud in a direction that faces away from the first housing part 11 toward the second housing part 13 causes the control lever 29 to rotate and said control lever moves the drive rod 45 in the opposite direction via the coupling lugs 47. The stud is driven together with the second switch contact by way of example by means of a drive, not illustrated, of the circuit breaker 1. The gear unit 3 moves the first switch contact in the opposite direction to the second switch contact.

[0029] An alternative exemplary embodiment to the exemplary embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 provides that the stud elements 41 are not configured as one piece with the housing cassette 7 but rather are configured as one piece with the cover plate 9 and protrude in a form-locking manner into the cut-outs in the housing cassette 7, said cassette cut-outs corresponding to said stud elements. In further exemplary embodiments, the stud elements 41 are neither configured as one piece with the housing cassette 7 nor with the cover plate 9 but rather are configured as pin elements, by way of example as tensioning pins, or as fitting screws, which are guided through second cut-outs 43 in the cover plate 9 into cut-outs in the housing cassette 7 and are fixed therein. In further exemplary embodiments, the bearing shaft 37 is not configured as one piece with the housing cassette 7 but rather is configured as one piece with the cover plate 9 and protrudes into a cut-out in the housing cassette 7, said cassette cut-out corresponding to the bearing shaft 37, or the bearing shaft 37 is neither configured as one piece with the housing cassette 7 nor as one piece with the cover plate 9 but rather is configured as a shaft element that connects to the housing cassette 7 and the cover plate 9 and is by way of example a stud. The cassette cut-outs may be configured in the said exemplary embodiments in each case a through-going holes or as blind holes. Moreover, if there is sufficient thickness in the cover plate 9, the first cover cut-out 39 and/or the second cover cut-outs 43 of the exemplary embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 may be configured as blind holes in lieu of through-going holes.

[0030] Although the invention is further illustrated and described in detail with reference to preferred exemplary embodiments, the invention is however not limited by the disclosed examples and other variations may be derived therefrom by the person skilled in the art without departing from the protection scope of the invention.