Title of Invention

DEVICE FOR ELECTRICAL CONNECTION OF TWO ELECTRICAL APPARATUSES FITTED SIDE BY SIDE ON THE SAME MOUNTING SUPPORT

Abstract

The present invention relates to a device for electrical connection E of two apparatuses D,B fitted side by side on the same mounting support, one D of the apparatuses, called the first apparatus, comprising output terminals (2) and the other B, called the second apparatus, comprising electrical conductors (3) output from the case of the apparatus, the case of the second apparatus B comprising a support (4) housing the above-mentioned conductors (3) and being designed to be brought to face the output terminals (2) of the first apparatus D in order to perform the above-mentioned electrical connection. This device comprises, for each terminal (2) associated to a conductor (3), an intermediate accessory (9) mounted mobile inside the above-mentioned support (4) between a first position in which said accessory (9) is retracted inside the support (4) so as to enable mechanical association of the apparatuses and a non-retracted position in which said conductors (3) are electrically connected to the corresponding output terminals (2) by said accessory (9).

Full Text

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a device for electrical connection of two apparatuses fitted side by side on the same mounting support, the two apparatuses being housed in a case, one of the apparatuses, called the first apparatus, comprising output terminals and the other, called the second apparatus, comprising electrical conductors output from the case of the apparatus, the case of the second apparatus in addition comprising a support housing the above-mentioned conductors and being designed to be moved to face the output terminals of the first apparatus so as to enable electrical connection of the output terminals to the above-mentioned conductors after mechanical coupling of the two apparatuses has been performed. STATE OF THE PRIOR ART An electrical protection apparatus such as a modular circuit breaker is, in a manner known as such, housed in a case of appreciably parallelepipedic shape and designed to be fitted on a mounting rail. This apparatus comprises two connection faces respectively comprising input terminals and output terminals situated on each side of the rail. This apparatus is often associated to an earth leakage protection apparatus, also housed in a modular case and designed to be fitted on the mounting rail next to the first apparatus, said earth leakage apparatus comprising, extending outwards from the case of the apparatus on one side of the rail, conductors designed to be electrically connected to the above-mentioned output terminals of the circuit breaker. Before final fitting of the apparatuses on the rail is performed, the latter are first of all mechanically coupled. To do this, two faces respectively belonging to the two apparatuses are brought to face one another and adjoining one another. Then the coupling members of the two apparatuses situated on these faces are mechanically coupled. Electrical connection of the two apparatuses is then performed. The document EP 0,806,784 describes the association of two apparatuses as described above. In this document, the earth leakage protection apparatus comprises a support moulded with the case of the earth leakage apparatus, said support being designed to house the earth leakage apparatus conductors and extending facing the output terminals of the circuit breaker so that the ends of the conductors are situated facing said output terminals when the two apparatuses are mechanically coupled. In this document, the earth leakage apparatus conductors are fixed with respect to the support in which they are housed but are mounted mobile with this same support with respect to the case of the earth leakage apparatus, perpendicularly to the rail, between a retracted position in which the support is located away from the circuit breaker case and the conductors are not engaged in the circuit breaker terminals, and a non-retracted position in which the support is close to the circuit breaker case and the conductors are engaged in the output terminals of the circuit breaker. After the conductors have been engaged in the output terminals, the connection operation is terminated by tightening the terminal screws. Mechanical and electrical coupling of the apparatuses is therefore performed in two successive translation movements. OBJECT OF THE INVENTION The present invention proposes a connection device performing the above-mentioned electrical connection in another manner. For this purpose, the object of the present invention is to achieve an electrical connection device of the previously mentioned kind, this device being characterized in that it comprises, for each output terminal associated to a conductor, an intermediate accessory designed to electrically connect said terminal to said conductor, the or each accessory being mounted mobile inside the above-mentioned support between a first position in which said accessory, not electrically connected to the corresponding output terminal, is retracted inside the support so as to enable mechanical association of the apparatuses and a non-retracted position in which said accessory is electrically connected to the corresponding output terminal, the or each accessory comprising a first means able to co¬operate with the corresponding output terminal to perform the above-mentioned connection and a second means to electrically connect said accessory to the primary conductors so as to enable the above-mentioned movement of said accessory. According to a particular embodiment, this first means comprises a means for achieving an automatic and definitive electrical connection of said accessory to the corresponding terminal of the first apparatus when said accessory moves from the first to the second position. According to another embodiment, this first means comprises a conductor in the form of a rigid strip, comprising one end able to be clamped by a screw in a screw type terminal and whose other end is mechanically and electrically connected to the corresponding main conductor by the above-mentioned second means so as to enable movement of the accessory between the above-mentioned two positions. According to a particular feature, the device comprises latching means provided partly on the first support and partly on the second support. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS But other advantages and features of the invention will become more clearly apparent from the following detailed description which refers to the accompanying drawings given for example purposes only and in which: - Figure 1 illustrates in perspective a circuit breaker and a differential protection apparatus designed to be electrically connected by means of a device according to the invention, said apparatuses being in the separated position, - Figures 2 and 3 are similar views to the previous view, the two apparatuses being only mechanically coupled in figure 2 and mechanically coupled and electrically connected in figure 3, - Figure 4 is a partial perspective view, illustrating a support belonging to the differential apparatus and housing the connection device according to a particular embodiment of the invention, - Figures 5 and 6 are perspective views comprising a cutaway of the two apparatuses, illustrating the above-mentioned connection device, respectively in the non-connected position and in the connected position, - Figure 7 is a partially cross-sectional view of the circuit breaker, illustrating more particularly the above-mentioned connection device, in the connected position, - Figure 8 illustrates in perspective a second embodiment of the connection device according to the invention, - Figure 9 is a perspective view of the two apparatuses comprising a cutaway, illustrating more particularly the second above-mentioned embodiment of the connection device, - Figure 10 is a partially cross-sectional view of the circuit breaker, illustrating this second embodiment of the connection device, - Figures 11 and 12 are respectively partial perspective and cross-sectional views, illustrating more particularly a screw cover respectively in an inactive position and in an active position blanking off the output terminals. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF AN EMBODIMENT In figures 1 to 3, a miniature circuit breaker D and a differential unit B can be seen fitted on a mounting rail R. The circuit breaker D is housed in a modular case and comprises on each side of the rail R, input terminals 1 and output terminals 2. The differential unit B is housed in a case comprising in its bottom part rigid conductors 3 fixed with respect to the case of the apparatus, said conductors 3, called the primary conductors, extending parallel to the rail R and being housed in a support 4, called the first support, moulded with the case of the differential unit B. These two apparatuses D,B are designed to be mechanically coupled by moving their respective cases towards one another until their facing panels 5,6 are adjoining and the coupling means 7,8 of one D of the apparatuses are engaged with the coupling means of the other apparatus B so as to couple the mechanisms of the two apparatuses to one another (fig.2). In figure 3, the two apparatuses B,D are mechanically and electrically connected as will be explained in the following. Referring now to figures 4 to 11, it can be seen that the electrical connection device E according to the invention comprises a connection accessory 9 for each conductor 3 designed to be connected to an output terminal 2. These connection accessories 9 are fixed in a support 10, called the second support, that is mounted in translation in the above-mentioned first support 4 perpendicularly to the longitudinal direction of the rail in the mounted position of the apparatuses, and parallel to the fixing face of the apparatuses on the rails. Each of these accessories 9 comprises a first means 11 for electrical connection of the accessory 9 to the corresponding terminal 2 and a second means 12 for electrical connection of said accessory 9 to the corresponding conductor 3. According to the embodiment of the invention illustrated in figures 4 to 7, this first means 11 comprises a flat connection strip 13 electrically connected and fixed to an appreciably U-shaped clamp 14 forming the second means 12 of the accessory 9. This connection strip 13 is designed to be inserted in a screw type terminal 2 of the circuit breaker D and to be clamped therein against the corresponding connection strip 15 of the circuit breaker D, as is known in itself. The above-mentioned clamp 14 comprises two branches 14a, 14b (fig.4) between which the end of a conductor 3 of the differential unit B is designed to be flexibly clamped so as to form a sliding contact with this conductor 3. In figures 8 to 11, the two means 11,12 are both formed by a U-shaped clamp 16,17 arranged one inside the other, as more particularly illustrated in figure 8. The clamp 16, called the first clamp as it constitutes the first means, comprises a base 16a on which the base 17a of the clamp 17, called the second clamp as it constitutes the second means, is fixed. This clamp 16 also comprises two branches 16b, 16c whose ends 16d,16e both present an inwardly convex part a,b designed to co-operate with two faces c,d (fig. 10) belonging to the end of the connection strip 15 of the circuit breaker D so that an automatic and definitive electrical connection is achieved between the conductor 3 of the differential unit B and that 15 of the corresponding terminal of the circuit breaker D, when the connection operation is performed. The clamp 17, called the second clamp, is fixed to the inside of the first clamp 16 so that their bases 16a, 17a are joined and the branches 17b, 17c of the second clamp extend parallel to the branches 16b, 16c of the first clamp 16. As in the previous embodiment, this second clamp 17 is designed to engage on the corresponding conductor 3 of the differential unit B so as to form a sliding contact with this conductor 3. Referring now to figures 11 and 12, it can be seen that the second support 10 comprises a screw cover 18 moulded with the second support 10 and comprising latching means 19 for locking said support 10 onto the support 4. These means comprise a catch 20 moulded with the cover 18 and able to engage in a recess 21 provided for this purpose in the support 4 of the differential apparatus. The connection operation of the two apparatuses will be described hereafter with reference to the figures for the two embodiments described above. First of all, the two apparatuses D,B are moved towards one another until their facing faces 5,6 are adjoining and are mechanically associated by engagement of the coupling means 7,8 of one of the apparatuses with the coupling means of the other of the apparatuses (fig.2). In this position, the accessories 9 are facing the output terminals 2 of the circuit breaker D (fig.5). Electrical connection is then performed by moving the second support 10 in translation inside the first support 4 (fig.3) in the direction of the output terminals of the circuit breaker, which results, for the first embodiment described (figures 4 to 7), firstly, for each accessory 9, in engagement of the connection strip 13 on the contact strip 15 of the circuit breaker D and, secondly, in engagement of the sliding contact 14 on the corresponding primary conductor 3. It should be noted that the second support 10 forms a push-button able to be actuated to move the accessory from the first to the second position. In this first embodiment, the connection operation has to be terminated by tightening the terminal screw 2a. In the second embodiment described (figures 8 to 12), moving the support 10 results firstly in engagement of the first clamp 16 on the corresponding strip 15, this engagement being definitive in so far as it is not necessary to perform any other operations to achieve the connection, and secondly in engagement of the sliding contact in the form of a clamp 17 on the corresponding primary conductor 3. In this second described embodiment, when the second support 10 is moved, the cover 18 is brought to face the holes 2b of the terminal screws 2a (fig.7,9,10,12) and is locked in this position by insertion of the catch 20 in the corresponding recess 21 of the support 4 (fig. 12). In the embodiments described above, the primary conductors are connected to the accessories by a sliding contact. Other types of connection could have been envisaged such as connection by a braided strip or quite simply using the flexibility of the conductors, for low ratings. Likewise, in the embodiments described, the second support is mounted in translation with respect to the first support whereas it could also have been envisaged for it to be mounted in rotation in this first support, or both in rotation and in translation. According to another embodiment of connection without screwing, not represented in the drawings, said accessory, instead of being formed by a double clamp, can be formed by a clamp and a contact strip, said clamp being designed to co-operate with the corresponding primary conductor and the contact strip being able to co-operate with another clamp securedly affixed to the corresponding contact strip of the circuit breaker, by plugging-in. According to yet another embodiment, said accessory can be formed by two clamps joined by a rigid conductor. According to another embodiment enabling an automatic and definitive connection to be obtained, the first means could be formed by a spring pressing the conductor onto the strip, either by pressure of the spring on the strip, or by pressing on the bottom of the connection terminal. The invention applies particularly to electrical apparatuses in particular modular apparatuses, mounted adjoining on an installation rail and designed to be electrically connected. The invention therefore enables mechanical then electrical coupling of the apparatuses to be performed in two perpendicular directions by means of two simple movements due to the presence of the retractable accessories. These accessories enable a connection, for example of the plug-in type, to be achieved without screwing, this type of connection making it possible to ensure that all the conductors are well connected electrically without requiring a complementary tightening operation, resulting in a reliable electrical connection independent from the user being obtained facilitating association of the mechanical members. In addition, the use of these accessories makes it possible to adapt to different alternative connection ends of the circuit breaker, depending on the circuit breaker type, for the same configuration of the position of the terminals by simply modifying the shape of the accessory. In the same way, by changing the shape of the accessory, it is possible to adapt to different alternative connection configurations, the position of the terminals being different, which results in this solution being particularly well suited for delayed differentiation. The presence of the cover makes it possible, in the case where the screw terminal solution is chosen, to prevent untightening by error, or, in the case where connection without screwing is chosen, to prevent the connection from being damaged by accidental tightening of the screws. In the case where the screw terminal solution is chosen, a movable screw cover (fig. 5 to 7) fitted articulated on the support 4 provides additional isolation. The latching system provided on the cover enables the differential unit to be made almost impossible to disassemble. A system can also be provided enabling the second support to interfere with the mechanism of the circuit breaker or differential unit so as to lock the mechanism in the open position until electrical connection has been made. WE CLAIM: 1. A device for electrical connection of two apparatuses fitted side by side on the same mounting support, the two apparatuses being housed in a case, one of the apparatuses, called the first apparatus, comprising output terminals and the other, called the second apparatus, comprising electrical conductors output from the case of the apparatus, the case of the second apparatus in addition comprising a support housing the above-mentioned conductors and being designed to be moved to face the output terminals of the first apparatus so as to enable electrical connection of the output terminals to the above-mentioned conductors after mechanical coupling of the two apparatuses has been performed, characterized in that it comprises, for each output terminal (2) associated to a conductor (3), an intermediate accessory (9) designed to electrically connect said terminal to said conductor, the each accessory being mounted movable inside the above-mentioned support (4) between a first position in which said accessory (9), not electrically connected to the corresponding output terminal (2), is retracted inside the support (4) so as to enable mechanical association of the apparatuses D,B and a non-retracted position in which said accessory (9) is electrically connected to the corresponding output terminal (2), the each accessory (9) comprising a first means (11) able to co-operate with the corresponding output terminal (2) to perform the above-mentioned connection and a second means (12) to electrically connect said accessory (9) to the primary conductors (3) so as to enable the above-mentioned movement of said accessory (9). 2. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein this first means (11).comprises a means for achieving an automatic and definitive electrical connection of said accessory (9).to the corresponding terminal (2).of the first apparatus (8).when said accessory (9).moves from the first to the second position. 10 3. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein this first means (11) comprises a conductor in the form of a rigid strip (13), comprising one end able to be clamped by a screw (2a) in a screw type terminal (2) and whose other end is mechanically and electrically connected to the corresponding main conductor (3) by the above- mentioned second means (12) so as to enable movement of the accessory (9) between the above-mentioned two positions. 4. The device as claimed in claim 2, wherein this first means (11) comprises an appreciably U-shaped plug-in clamp (16), called the first clamp, said clamp (16) comprising a base (16a) designed to be electrically connected to the corresponding main conductor (3) by the second means (12) and two branches (16b, 16c) whose ends (16d,16e) are designed to co-operate with the contact strip (15) of the corresponding terminal (2) of the apparatus. 5. The device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein this second means (12) comprises a sliding contact. 6. The device as claimed in claim 5, wherein this sliding contact comprises a U-shaped clamp (17), called the second clamp, whose base (17a) is electrically and mechanically connected to the first means (11) and whose branches (17b, 17c) co-operate with the corresponding conductor (3) of the second apparatus B. 7. The device as claimed in claims 4 and 6, wherein the two clamps (16,17) are electrically and mechanically connected to one another by a rigid conductor fixed via its two opposite ends respectively to the two clamps (16,17). 11 8. The device as claimed in claims 4 and 6, wherein it comprises two U-shaped clamps (16,17) arranged one inside the other and fixed to one another by their base (16a, 17a). 9. The device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein this second means (12) comprises a braided strip. 10. The device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the each accessory (9) is mounted fixed in a second support (10), which is mounted in translation inside a first support (4). 11. The device as claimed in claim 10, wherein the second support (10) forms a push¬button able to be actuated to move the accessory (9) from the first to the second position. 12. The device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the second support (10) comprises a cover (18) preventing access to the screws. 13. The device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein it comprises latching means (19,20,21) provided on the second support (10) and on the first support (4). 14. The device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the first apparatus D is a circuit breaker and the second apparatus B is a differential protection apparatus.

Documents:

0522-mas-202 abstract-duplicate.pdf

0522-mas-202 abstract.pdf

0522-mas-202 claims-duplicate.pdf

0522-mas-202 claims.pdf

0522-mas-202 correspondences others.pdf

0522-mas-202 correspondences po.pdf

0522-mas-202 description(complete)-duplicate.pdf

0522-mas-202 description(complete).pdf

0522-mas-202 drawings-duplicate.pdf

0522-mas-202 drawings.pdf

0522-mas-202 form-1.pdf

0522-mas-202 form-18.pdf

0522-mas-202 form-26.pdf

0522-mas-202 form-3.pdf

0522-mas-202 form-5.pdf

0522-mas-202 petition.pdf