Integrator and circuit-breaker having an integrator

• US 8,164,873 B2
• Filed: 07/20/2010
• Issued: 04/24/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens AG
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Schiller, Manfred, Haible, Jürgen
• Primary Examiner(s): Leja, Ronald W
• Application Number:
  US12/839,806
• Publication Number:
  US 20110026180A1
• Time in Patent Office: 644 Days
• Field of Search: 361/93.1
• US Class Current: 361/93.1
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 71/123 using a solid-state trip unit circuits H02H
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 2200/264 An operational amplifier based integrator or transistor based integrator being used in an amplifying circuit
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 2203/45138 Two or more differential amplifiers in IC-block form are combined, e.g. measuring amplifiers
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 2203/45528 the FBC comprising one or more passive resistors and being coupled between the LC and the IC
• CPC Class Codes: H03F 3/45475 using IC blocks as the active amplifying circuit
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 11/46 One-port networks

Abstract

An integrator and a circuit-breaker are disclosed, the integrator being in the form of a passive symmetrical low-pass filter having an integration capacitor. In order to make it possible to temporally integrate an electrical signal in an improved manner, it is proposed in at least one embodiment that provision be made of a differential amplifier having two amplifying elements each having an input, that the two amplifying elements be coupled to one another in order to generate a differential signal, that the inputs of the two amplifying elements be connected to one another via the integration capacitor, and that each amplifying element be positively fed back to its input via a feedback loop in such a manner that the two amplifying elements together form a negative input resistance in parallel with the integration capacitor.

Claims

1. An integrator, in the form of a passive symmetrical low-pass filter including an integration capacitor, the integrator comprising:

a differential amplifier including two amplifying elements, each including an input, the two amplifying elements being coupled to one another in order to generate a differential signal, wherein the inputs of the two amplifying elements are connected to one another via the integration capacitor and wherein each of the two amplifying elements is positively fed back to its input via a feedback loop in such a manner that the two amplifying elements together form a negative input resistance in parallel with the integration capacitor.

3. A circuit-breaker comprising the integrator of claim 1.

4. The circuit-breaker of claim 3, wherein the circuit-breaker is for low voltages.

2. A circuit-breaker, comprising:

at least one switching contact;

a drive apparatus which opens and closes the at least one switching contact;

a current sensor to detect a sensor signal which corresponds to a temporal derivative of current respectively flowing via the at least one switching contact;

an active analog integrator for determining the current by integrating the sensor signal, the active analog integrator being in the form of a passive symmetrical low-pass filter including an integration capacitor;

an electronic overcurrent release to open the at least one switching contact on the basis of the current determined, wherein the active analog integrator includes a differential amplifier including two amplifying elements, each of the two amplifying elements including an input, wherein the two amplifying elements are coupled to one another in order to generate a differential signal, wherein the inputs of the two amplifying elements are connected to one another via the integration capacitor, and wherein each of the two amplifying elements is positively fed back to its input via a feedback loop in such a manner that the two amplifying elements together generate a negative input resistance in parallel with the integration capacitor.

5. The circuit-breaker of claim 2, wherein the circuit-breaker is for low voltages.