Automatic control device for padlock

The present invention relates to an automatic control device for a padlock which enables automatic control of the padlock connected to a circuit breaker installed in a distribution board of semiconductor or LCD equipment. In the present invention, a pair of cylinders, which can supply and cut off electric power to and from a load terminal, is directly installed on top of the circuit breaker installed in the distribution board, so that a switch of the circuit breaker is turned on/off as the pair of cylinders selectively operates according to an external control signal. As a result, it is unnecessary to separately install the padlock for switching on/off the circuit breaker.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an automatic control device for a padlock, and more particularly, to an automatic control device for a padlock that is capable of automatically controlling the padlock connected to a circuit breaker disposed on a distribution board of semiconductor or LCD equipment.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Generally, a circuit breaker disposed on a distribution board of semiconductor or LCD equipment is a device having a function of cutting off, when fault current such as leakage current or overcurrent occurs on a line, the supply of the fault current to the distribution board. The circuit breaker has a padlock (external manipulating handle) operating cooperatively with a door of the distribution board to cut off electric power when the door is open and to supply electric power when the door is closed.

As shown inFIG. 1, a conventional padlock, which is disclosed in Korean Patent Registration No. 10-2004-0107303 (entitled ‘external manipulating handle device of circuit breaker for distribution’), includes: a handle case50serving as a support for internal components thereof upon the operations of the internal components and having a handle fastenedly assembled to a circuit breaker for distribution; a manipulating handle20attached to top of the handle case50to allow the handle to be manipulated to the outside by means of the rotation thereof; a pinion gear80connected to the manipulating handle20to transmit the rotary force of the manipulating handle20; a rack gear90engaged with the pinion gear80to transfer a rotary motion to a linear motion and thus to manipulate the handle; and guide rails100fixed to the handle case50to guide the operation of the rack gear90.

According to the external manipulating handle device of the circuit breaker for distribution, the manipulating handle20mounted on the door of the distribution board is operated so that the pinion gear80, the rack gear90, the guide rails100, and the handle70are cooperatively operated with each other, thereby turning on/off the circuit breaker for distribution. That is, the conventional external manipulating handle device is disposed separately from a circuit breaker for the distribution board and is manually manipulated to the outside of the distribution board.

In addition, the circuit breaker for the distribution board is disposed near to the door by means of the manipulating handle20, thereby making it difficult to ensure the space of the distribution board itself, and a separate device for the manual manipulation of the manipulating handle20is needed, thereby making the whole configuration complicated and lowering the reliability of the external manipulating handle device.

Further, as shown inFIG. 2, there is proposed a motor interlock device of a circuit breaker for distribution, which is disclosed in Korean Utility Model Registration No. 20-2005-0030166, including: a motor302for generating a rotary motion; an axle304connected to the motor302in such a manner as to move forward and backward in left and right directions according to the rotary directions of the motor302; and an operator306adapted to apply a force to one of two handles310of the circuit breaker for distribution in a direction of power supply and to apply a force to the other handle in a direction of power cut-off according to the left and right motions of the axle304.

According to the conventional motor interlock device of the circuit breaker for distribution, the inconveniences caused by the manual manipulation of the circuit breaker are removed, but the motor302operating by an external control signal, the axle304driven by the motor302, and the operator306manipulating the handles310through the driving of the axle304should be disposed separately from the circuit breaker for distribution. Further, the circuit breaker for the distribution board is disposed near to the door, thereby making it difficult to ensure the space of the distribution board itself.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems occurring in the prior art, and it is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic control device for a padlock that is capable of directly disposing the padlock on a circuit breaker for a distribution board, thereby removing inconveniences caused by separate installation of the padlock from the circuit breaker.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an automatic control device for a padlock that is capable of disposing the padlock on a circuit breaker for a distribution board, thereby making the padlock simplified in configuration and ensuring the sufficient space of a distribution board.

To accomplish the above-mentioned objects, according to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an automatic control device for a padlock, the device including: a circuit breaker having a power terminal disposed on one side thereof, a load terminal disposed on the other side thereof, and a switch disposed on the center thereof in such a manner as to be switchedly driven from the power terminal to the load terminal; a pair of cylinders disposed on one side and the other side of the switch of the circuit breaker in such a manner as to drive cylinder rods thereof by means of an external control signal to conduct the switching operation for the switch of the circuit breaker; and operating parts adapted to push and switch the switch of the circuit breaker by means of the operations of the cylinders, each operating part having a rectangular plate-shaped push rod disposed on the front end periphery of each cylinder rod, the push rod having a coupler open upwardly from the center thereof, and a fastener having one side insertedly fastened to the coupler of the push rod and the other side fastened to each cylinder rod.

According to the present invention, desirably, the circuit breaker has a base plate disposed on top thereof, the base plate being bent downwardly on one side end and the other side end thereof, having the end portions of the downwardly bent one side end and the other side end bent outwardly and fixed to the circuit breaker, and having a guide hole formed on the center thereof in such a mariner as to insert the switch of the circuit breaker thereinto to guide the switching operation of the switch, and the base plate has one pair of fixing brackets fixed at one side and the other side on top thereof, respectively, to fix the pair of cylinders thereto.

According to the present invention, desirably, each pair of fixing brackets has both side plates larger as the fixing brackets go toward the lower portions thereof and having lower ends bent inwardly in such a manner as to be fixed to top of the base plate and fixing holes formed on the upper portions of the both side plates to fix the lower portion of each cylinder thereto.

According to the present invention, desirably, one pair of cylinders has fixing portions formed on the edge portions thereof in such a manner as to be fixed to the fixing holes of the fixing brackets and air injection holes formed on one side periphery thereof to inject air thereinto.

According to the present invention, desirably, one pair of cylinders is operated by means of pneumatic pressure.

To accomplish the above-mentioned objects, according to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an automatic control device for a padlock, the device including: a circuit breaker having a power terminal disposed on one side thereof, a load terminal disposed on the other side thereof, and a switch disposed on the center thereof in such a manner as to be switchedly driven from the power terminal to the load terminal; a pair of cylinders disposed on one side and the other side of the switch of the circuit breaker in such a manner as to drive cylinder rods thereof by means of an external control signal to conduct the switching operation for the switch of the circuit breaker; a switch block disposed between the cylinder rods in such a manner as to insert the switch of the circuit breaker thereinto to conduct the switching operation for the switch of the circuit breaker by mean of driving of the cylinder rods, the switch block having slide holes formed on both sides of the upper portions of one side surface and the other side surface thereof; and guide bars adapted to guide the movements of the switch block, each guide bar being passed through the slide holes of the switch block in such a manner as to allow one end thereof to be fastened to any one of the pair of cylinders and to allow the other end thereof to be fastened to the other cylinder.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, an explanation on an automatic control device for a padlock according to the present invention will be in detail given with reference to the attached drawing.

FIG. 3is a perspective view showing an automatic control device for a padlock according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

As shown inFIG. 3, an automatic control device100for a padlock according to a first embodiment of the present invention includes: a circuit breaker110having a switch111adapted to supply and cut off electric power to and from a load terminal; a base plate120fixedly mounted on top of the circuit breaker110to guide the switching operation of the switch111; two pairs of fixing brackets130fixedly disposed at one side and the other side of top of the base plate120; a pair of cylinders140and150having cylinder rods141and151fixedly disposed correspondingly on the two pairs of fixed brackets130and selectively operated by an external control signal to conduct the switching operation for the switch111; and operating parts145coupled to the front end peripheries of the cylinder rods141and151to push and switch the switch111of the circuit breaker110by means of the operations of the cylinders140and150.

FIG. 4is an exploded perspective view showing the automatic control device for a padlock according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

As shown inFIG. 4, the circuit breaker110includes a power terminal disposed on one side end thereof to receive the power from the outside, the load terminal disposed on the other side end thereof to output the power received to the power terminal therefrom, and the switch111disposed between the power terminal and the load terminal to supply and cut off the power received from the power terminal to and from the load terminal by means of the switching operation from the power terminal to the load terminal.

The base plate120is bent downwardly on one side end and the other side end thereof, and the end portions of one side end and the other side end bent downwardly of the base plate120are bent outwardly and fixed to the circuit breaker110. The base plate120has a guide hole121formed on the center thereof in such a manner as to insert the switch111of the circuit breaker110thereinto and to guide the switching operation of the switch111.

Accordingly, the base plate120is fixedly spaced apart from top of the circuit breaker110by means of the outwardly bent end portions thereof, while fixedly inserting the switch111of the circuit breaker110into the guide hole121. As a result, the base plate120maintains the insulation state from the circuit breaker110, and further, the switch111conducts the switching operation by means of the guide of the guide hole121, so that the base plate120induces the accurate switching operation of the switch111.

Each pair of fixing brackets130includes both side plates131larger as they go toward the lower portions thereof and having lower ends bent inwardly in such a manner as to be fixed to top of the base plate120and fixing holes132formed on the upper portions of the both side plates131to fix the lower portion of each cylinder thereto.

Accordingly, the inwardly bent portions of each pair of fixing brackets130are fixed to the base plate120, and the fixing holes132formed on the upper portions thereof are adapted to fix the lower portion of each cylinder thereto.

One pair of cylinders140and150includes one pair of cylinder rods141and151, fixing portions142and152formed on the outer edges thereof, and air injection holes143and153formed on one side periphery thereof to inject air thereinto.

One pair of cylinders140and150is a single acting pneumatic cylinder and forwardly moves the cylinder rods141and151by means of the air injected into the air injection holes143and153.

Each operating part145includes a rectangular plate-shaped push rod147having a coupler146open upwardly from the center thereof and a fastener148having one side insertedly fastened to the coupler146of the push rod147and the other side fastened to each cylinder rod.

Accordingly, the operating parts145are operated together with the cylinder rods141and151of the pair of cylinders140and150and push the switch111of the circuit breaker110by means of the push rods147to conduct the switching operation for the switch111, so that the power terminal and the load terminal of the circuit breaker110are connected or disconnected to supply or cut off the power to or from the load terminal.

FIG. 5is a sectional view showing the operating state of power supply of the automatic control device for a padlock according to the first embodiment of the present invention, andFIG. 6is a sectional view showing the operating state of power cut-off of the automatic control device for a padlock according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

The base plate120and the two pairs of brackets130are fixedly mounted on top of the circuit breaker110disposed on a distribution board, and one pair of cylinders140and150having one pair of cylinder rods141and151are fixedly mounted on the two pairs of brackets130so as to conduct the switching operation for the switch111supplying or cutting off the power to the load terminal from the power terminal. In this state, air is injected into any one of the air injection holes143and153formed on the pair of cylinders140and150, and the cylinder140or150into which the air is injected operates the cylinder rod141or151to allow the operating part145coupled to the cylinder rod141or151to operate the switch111, so that the power is supplied or cut off to or from the load terminal.

Accordingly, as shown inFIG. 5, if a door of the distribution board is closed, a solenoid (not shown) is operated by an external control signal, and air is injected into the air injection hole153of the cylinder150by means of an air pump (not shown). The cylinder150into which the air is injected operates the cylinder rod151to allow the push rod147of the operating part145coupled to the front end periphery of the cylinder rod151to push the switch111of the circuit breaker110, and the switch111is guided by means of the guide hole121formed on the base plate120to allow the power terminal and the load terminal to be connected to each other, so that the power is supplied to the load terminal.

On the other hand, as shown inFIG. 6, if the door of the distribution board is open, the solenoid is operated by an external control signal, and while air supply to the cylinder150is being cut off, air is injected into the air injection hole143of the cylinder140by means of the air pump. The cylinder140into which the air is injected operates the cylinder rod141to allow the push rod147of the operating part145coupled to the front end periphery of the cylinder rod141to push the switch111of the circuit breaker110.

At this time, the switch111is pushed by means of the guide of the guide hole121formed on the base plate120to push the cylinder rod151of the cylinder150, and accordingly, the cylinder rod151being pushed upon the supply of power is restored to its original state to allow the switch111to be switched from the load terminal to the power terminal, so that the power terminal and the load terminal of the circuit breaker110are separated from each other, thereby cutting off the power supply to the load terminal.

FIG. 7is a perspective view showing an automatic control device for a padlock according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

As shown inFIG. 7, an automatic control device100for a padlock according to a second embodiment of the present invention includes: a circuit breaker110having a switch111adapted to supply and cut off power to and from a load terminal; abase plate120fixedly mounted on top of the circuit breaker110to guide the switching operation of the switch111; two pairs of fixing brackets130fixedly disposed at one side and the other side of top of the base plate120; a pair of cylinders140and150having cylinder rods141and151fixedly disposed correspondingly on the two pairs of fixed brackets130in such a manner as to be selectively reciprocated to conduct the switching operation for the switch111; a switch block160disposed between the pair of cylinders140and150to conduct the switching operation for the switch111of the circuit breaker110; and guide bars170insertedly passed through the switch block160in such a manner as to be fastened to the pair of cylinders140and150at their both sides thereof to slidingly guide the switch block160therealong.

The switch block160has a rectangular body and includes a switch hole161penetrated up and down in the interior thereof to insert the switch111of the circuit breaker110thereinto and slide holes162formed on both sides of the upper portions of one side surface and the other side surface of the rectangular body to slidingly insert the guide bars170thereinto.

One side end and the other side end of each guide bar170are insertedly passed through the slide holes162of the switch block160into which the switch111of the circuit breaker110is inserted and then insertedly fixed to fixing portions142and152of the pair of cylinders140and150.

Accordingly, the switch111of the circuit breaker110is inserted into the switch hole161of the switch block160, and the guide bars170are inserted slidingly into the slide holes162formed on both sides of the upper portion of the switch block160to allow the switch111to be switched so that the switching operation of the switch111is conducted accurately by means of the switch block160and the guide bars170.

FIG. 8is a sectional view showing the operating state of power supply of the automatic control device for a padlock according to the second embodiment of the present invention; andFIG. 9is a sectional view showing the operating state of power cut-off of the automatic control device for a padlock according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

As shown inFIG. 8, if a door of the distribution board is closed, a solenoid (not shown) is operated by an external control signal, and air is injected into the air injection hole153of the cylinder150by means of an air pump (not shown). The cylinder150into which the air is injected operates the cylinder rod151to allow the switch block160into which the guide bars170are slidingly inserted and having the lower portion into which the switch111of the circuit breaker110is inserted to push forwardly.

Accordingly, the switch block160is slidingly guided by means of the guide bars170and moves forwardly to allow the power terminal and the load terminal to be connected to each other, so that the power is supplied to the load terminal.

As shown inFIG. 9, if the door of the distribution board is open, air supply to the cylinder150is cut off, and air is injected into the air injection hole143of the cylinder140by means of the air pump. The cylinder140into which the air is injected operates the cylinder rod141to allow the switch block160into which the guide bars170are slidingly inserted and having the lower portion into which the switch111of the circuit breaker110is inserted to push forwardly.

At this time, the switch111of the circuit breaker110inserted into the switch block160is switched from the load terminal to the power terminal by means of the switch block160, and at this time, the switch block160pushes the cylinder rod151of the cylinder150, and accordingly, the cylinder rod151is restored to its original state to allow the switch111to separate the power terminal and the load terminal from each other, thereby cutting off the power supply to the load terminal.

As described above, the automatic control device for a padlock according to the present invention is configured wherein one pair of cylinders is fixedly mounted on top of the circuit breaker to supply and cut off power to and from the load terminal, and thus, the cylinders are operated selectively according to the external control signal to turn on and off the switch of the circuit breaker, so that there is no need to separately provide the padlock for turning on and off the circuit breaker, thereby removing inconveniences caused by separate installation of the padlock from the circuit breaker.

In addition, the automatic control device for a padlock according to the present invention is configured wherein the padlock is disposed on the circuit breaker, thereby making the circuit board and the padlock simplified in configuration and ensuring the sufficient space of the distribution board.