Electromagnetic contactor

• US 7,157,997 B2
• Filed: 09/19/2003
• Issued: 01/02/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/27/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fuji Electric FA Components & Systems Company Limited (Fuji Electric Systems Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Fuji Electric FA Components & Systems Company Limited (Fuji Electric Systems Company Limited)
• Inventors: Ogawa, Hidehiko, Ohkubo, Koji, Kasahara, Mitsuhara
• Primary Examiner(s): Barrera; Ramon M.
• Application Number:
  US10/536,753
• Publication Number:
  US 20060152311A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,201 Days
• Field of Search: 335 8- 10, 335/132, 335/202, 335/201, 218155-157
• US Class Current: 335/201
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 50/045 Details particular to contactors H01H50/042 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 9/342 Venting arrangements for arc chutes

Abstract

An electromagnetic contactor in which neighboring main contact points have an interphase barrier between them. A concave section is provided at the inner wall face of the interphase barrier at the middle of the emission path of the arc gas that is generated from the opening and closing of a main contact point. The concave section allows the arc gas passing from an arc generation point to an emission window to be accumulated in the concave section, which acts as a container, thus reducing the rate at which the arc gas is emitted. As a result, the amount of heat dispersed from the arc gas to the interphase barrier due to heat transfer is increased, thus reducing the temperature of the arc gas flowing from the emission window, which suppresses damage to the wiring cable that would otherwise occur due to excessive heating of the main terminal onto which the arc gas flows, and fusion of the interphase barrier.

Claims

1. An electromagnetic contactor, comprising:

a plurality of main contact points, each for one of a plurality of phases, and each including a pair of fixed contacts opposed to each other and a movable contact for bridging the space therebetween, wherein at least two of said plurality of main contact points are disposed adjacent to one another and have therebetween an interphase barrier, and

an emission path along an inner wall face of said interphase barrier for arc gas created when a main contact point of said plurality of main contact points is opened or closed, the emission path having, upstream of an emission window, a concave section at the inner wall face of the interphase barrier.

2. An electromagnetic contactor comprising:

a plurality of main contact points, each for one of a plurality of phases, and each including a pair of fixed contacts opposed to each other and a movable contact for bridging the space therebetween, wherein at least two of said plurality of main contact points are disposed adjacent to one another and have therebetween an interphase barrier, and

an emission path along an inner wall face of said interphase barrier for arc gas created when a main contact point of said plurality of main contact points is opened or closed, the emission path having, upstream of an emission window, a concave section at the inner wall face of the interphase barrier,

wherein the concave section consists of a narrow groove perpendicular to the emission path of the arc gas.

3. An electromagnetic contactor according to claim 2 wherein the inner wall face of the interphase barrier at an upstream side of the concave portion is recessed from the inner wall face at a downstream side thereof.