Patent ID: 9343252
Filing Date: 2016-05-17
CPC Classification: H01H

Claim Text:
1. An arc extinguishing contact assembly for a circuit breaker assembly, the circuit breaker assembly including a housing assembly and an operating mechanism, said housing assembly defining an enclosed space, said operating mechanism structured to be operatively coupled to a movable contact assembly and structured to move the movable contact assembly between an open, first position, wherein the movable contact assembly is effectively spaced from a fixed contact assembly, and a closed, second position, wherein the movable contact assembly is coupled to, and in electrical communication with, the fixed contact assembly, said arc extinguishing contact assembly comprising: a fixed contact assembly including an arc contact assembly, a main contact assembly, and a number of movable, intermediate arc contact assemblies; a movable contact assembly including an arc contact assembly and a main contact assembly, said movable contact assembly structured to move between an open, first position, wherein the movable contact assembly is effectively spaced from said fixed contact assembly, and a closed, second position, wherein the movable contact assembly is coupled to, and in electrical communication with, said fixed contact assembly, with an arcing position there between; an arc extinguishing assembly structured to extinguish a number of arcs generated as said movable contact assembly moves between said first position and said second position; wherein said arc extinguishing assembly is structured to divide a theoretical arc into multiple local arcs wherein the local arcs have a reduced voltage relative to said theoretical arc; wherein each intermediate arc contact assembly generates at least one local arc; each intermediate arc contact assembly includes a first arc contact assembly and a second arc contact assembly; each said fixed arc contact assembly includes an arcing surface; each said intermediate first arc contact assembly includes an arcing surface; each said intermediate second arc contact assembly includes an arcing surface; each said movable arc contact assembly includes an arcing surface; and each said local arc is generated from at least one of an intermediate first arc contact assembly arcing surface or an intermediate second arc contact assembly arcing surface.