Patent Description:
Expeditious development of industrialization and urbanization boosts a continuous growth of power demands in a long run, which poses a heavy and complicated task on grid development; therefore, it is particularly urgent to build up a robust smart grid. Currently, the smart grid is developing towards extra-high voltage and ultra-high voltage, and developing high-performance and high-reliability circuit breakers matched thereto may provide a strong technical support to the security and reliability for power supply of smart grids.

A circuit breaker is a switch, which may close, carry, and break current in a normal loop condition and may close, carry and break current under abnormal loop conditions within a specified time. The circuit breaker may be applied to distribute electrical energy without the asynchronous motor being actuated frequently, thereby protecting the power supply wire and the motor; besides, the circuit breaker may automatically cut off the electrical circuit in case of serious overload, short circuit, and undervoltage.

Studies show that when a fault occurs to an electrical circuit, an upstream circuit breaker is generally opened to clear the fault. However, the opening action is slow. If the fault is cleared within <NUM> ~ <NUM> after the occurrence of arc fault, the voltage sensitivity load will be shut down (e.g., a variable-frequency speed-governing device), which will incur a severe economic loss to users; besides, serious damages to a system transformer and a fault point may be caused. Further, faults sometimes occurring to medium-voltage circuit breakers are mostly caused by breaker operation failure. Incomplete statistics show that in <NUM>, more than <NUM>% of medium-voltage circuit breaker faults were caused by breaker operation failure. The causes include: mechanism deadlock, crash of the control part, short circuit of the control loop, and failure of energy-storage motor, etc. <CIT> discloses a switching device for driving a vacuum valve at a high speed by electromagnetic repulsion. <CIT> discloses an operating device that can realize the functions of rated opening and closing and fast opening.

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a switch that may lower the odds of occurrence of circuit breaker operation failures and enhance security of a smart grid system.

In one aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a switch according to claim <NUM>.

According to the solution provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure, by adopting a control system that may control different manipulating mechanisms, opening-closing actions at different speeds may be implemented, short-circuit accidents occurring in a grid may be promptly cleared, and grid operating stability may be improved; with cooperative actions between the first manipulating mechanism and the second manipulating mechanism to implement redundancy of switch operating, so that the odds of switch operation failure may be effectively lowered, and security of the whole smart grid system may be enhanced.

To elucidate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure, the drawings used in describing the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. It is apparent that the drawings as described only relate to some embodiments of the present disclosure. To those skilled in the art, other drawings may be derived based on these drawings without exercise of inventive work, wherein:.

In practical applications, circuit breakers may be divided into fast circuit breakers and typical circuit breakers. A typical circuit breaker has a slow opening action. A fast circuit breaker has a relatively motion intensity when being opened and closed as it is mainly actuated by an electromagnetic repulsion mechanism, so that a long-term use thereof tends to cause fatigue and damage, thereby shortening the service life of the whole equipment and lowering the security of the smart grid system.

To make the objects, technical solutions, and advantages of the present disclosure much clearer, embodiments of the present disclosure provide a switch, comprising a control system, a first manipulating mechanism, and a second manipulating mechanism, wherein the control system emits a first action instruction to the first manipulating mechanism and a second action instruction to the second manipulating mechanism, respectively; the first action instruction being configured for instructing the first manipulating mechanism to perform a first action, and the second action instruction being configured for instructing the second manipulating mechanism to perform a second action; and the time taken by the first manipulating mechanism to implement the first action is different from the time taken by the second manipulating mechanism to implement the second action. According to the solution provided in the embodiments of the present disclosure, by adopting the control system that may control different manipulating mechanisms, opening-closing actions at different speeds may be implemented, short-circuit accidents occurring in a grid may be promptly cleared, and grid operating stability may be improved; with cooperative actions between the first manipulating mechanism and the second manipulating mechanism to implement redundancy of the switch operating, the odds of switch operation failure may be effectively lowered, and security of the whole smart grid system may be enhanced.

<FIG> is a structural schematic diagram of a switch according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The switch comprises a control system <NUM>, a first manipulating mechanism <NUM>, and a second manipulating mechanism <NUM>, wherein.

Preferably, the time taken by the first manipulating mechanism to implement the first action is shorter than the time taken by the second manipulating mechanism to implement the second action, i.e., the time taken by the first manipulating mechanism to perform an opening action may be shorter than the time taken by the second manipulating mechanism to perform an opening action. Supposing that the time taken by the second manipulating mechanism to perform the opening action is the time taken by a typical circuit breaker to perform the opening action, namely <NUM> ~ <NUM>, the time taken by the first manipulating mechanism to perform the opening action may be between <NUM> ~ <NUM> (not included).

Preferably, the time taken by the first manipulating mechanism to implement the first action is shorter than the time taken by a typical circuit breaker to implement the opening action; the specific time length for the first manipulating mechanism to implement the opening action is not limited herein.

Preferably, upon a fault occurring to a wire, the control system <NUM> emits a first action instruction to the first manipulating mechanism <NUM> and a second action instruction to the second manipulating mechanism <NUM>, respectively;
It needs to be noted that a wire condition may be autonomously monitored by a control system or other device; then, a monitoring result is transmitted to the control system. The way for the control system to obtain the wire condition is not specifically limited herein.

When a short-circuit accident occurs in the smart grid system, an embodiment of the present disclosure may implement first half-wave synchronized switching and quickly clear the short-circuit accident, thereby further improving a breaking capacity and service life of the switch; besides, a phase-controlled circuit closing of the switch may be implemented so as to reduce the impact caused by the switch closing action to the smart grid system, e.g., limiting the inrush current when an empty-load transformer is switched on.

According to the solution in the embodiments of the present disclosure, by adopting the control system to control different manipulating mechanisms, opening-closing actions at different speeds may be implemented when the wire fails, short-circuit accidents occurring in a grid may be promptly cleared, and grid operating stability may be improved; besides, the odds of switch operation failure may be effectively lowered, reliability of actions may be improved, and security of the whole smart grid system may be enhanced.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the control system <NUM> is further configured to emit an operating instruction to the second manipulating mechanism <NUM> when the wire works normally, the operating instruction being configured for instructing the second manipulating mechanism to perform an opening action or a closing action.

It needs to be noted that the operating instruction is configured for instructing the second manipulating mechanism to perform normal opening/closing actions. The "normal" herein may be construed as a normal condition of the circuit in the prior art.

In the solution provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure, the control system selectively controls different manipulating mechanisms dependent on different wire conditions. In other words, when the wire works normally, a normal opening speed is selected, which may effectively avoid fatigue and damage caused by only using one fast circuit breaker in a long term, prolong the service life of the whole apparatus, and effectively enhance the security of the smart grid system.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, <FIG> is a schematic diagram of a switch according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. On the basis of <FIG>, the switch further comprises an arc extinguishing component <NUM>, wherein the arc extinguishing component comprises a movable contact <NUM> and a stationary contact <NUM>.

Connections among the first manipulating mechanism <NUM>, the second manipulating mechanism <NUM>, and the arc extinguishing component <NUM> include one of the followings:.

In a further embodiment of the present disclosure, <FIG> is a structural schematic diagram of a switch according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. It may be seen from <FIG> that the connection between the first manipulating mechanism and the movable contact and the connection between the second manipulating mechanism and the first manipulating mechanism specifically comprise:
the connection between a motion lever <NUM> of the first manipulating mechanism and the movable contact <NUM> and the connection between a motion lever <NUM> of the second manipulating mechanism and a housing <NUM> of the first manipulating mechanism.

Based on the structure of the switch shown in <FIG>, the working principle of the switch is described as follows:
When performing a fast opening action, the first manipulating mechanism and the second manipulating mechanism are in a closed position; when the control system determines a need to quickly open or receives an instruction from an upstream control system, the control system issues an action instruction to the first manipulating mechanism and the second manipulating mechanism, and the first manipulating mechanism actuates the movable contact to implement fast opening to cut off the circuit; the time taken by the second manipulating mechanism to perform the opening action is longer than the time taken by the first manipulating mechanism to perform the opening action, and after the circuit is cut off, the movable contact is continued to be pulled to make an opening motion and the first manipulating mechanism is reset to cause the first manipulating mechanism to resume the closed position, thereby guaranteeing normal operations of the next fast opening action, implementing a redundant action (the redundant here may be construed as such: the first manipulating mechanism is opened to act once to separate the contact, thereby implementing circuit break; the second manipulating mechanism acts to separate the contact, implementing circuit break; the two actions implement the same function, so that when one mechanism fails, normal actions can still be guaranteed), and guaranteeing normal operations of the switch. During this period, the circuit is always in an opening state.

When performing a fast closing action, the first manipulating mechanism and the second manipulating mechanism are in an opening position; when the control system determines a need to quickly close or receives an instruction from an upstream control system, the control system issues an action instruction to the first manipulating mechanism and the second manipulating mechanism, and the first manipulating mechanism actuates the movable contact to implement fast closing to conduct the circuit; the time taken by the second manipulating mechanism to perform the closing action is longer than the time taken by the first manipulating mechanism to perform the closing action, and after the circuit is conducted, the movable contact is continued to be pushed to make a closing motion and the first manipulating mechanism is reset to resume the opening position, thereby guaranteeing normal operations of the next fast closing action, implementing a redundant action, and guaranteeing normal operations of the switch. During this period, the circuit is always in a conducting state.

Upon a normal action, the first manipulating mechanism does not act, which may be regarded as a rigid linkage, and the movable contact is actuated by the second manipulating mechanism to act, thereby implementing normal closing and opening of the switch. In this way, fatigue and damage caused by fast action is avoided in normal operations, thereby prolonging the service life.

In a further embodiment of the present disclosure, <FIG> is a structural schematic diagram of a switch according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. It may be seen from <FIG> that the connection between the first manipulating mechanism to the movable contact and the connection between the second manipulating mechanism and the first manipulating mechanism specifically comprises:
The connection between the motion lever <NUM> of the first manipulating mechanism and the movable contact <NUM> and the connection between the motion lever <NUM> of the second manipulating mechanism and the housing <NUM> of the first manipulating mechanism via the linkage <NUM>.

Based on the switch structure shown in <FIG>, the working principle of the switch is described as follows:
When performing a fast opening action, the first manipulating mechanism and the second manipulating mechanism are in a closed position; when the control system determines a need to quickly open or receives an instruction from an upstream control system, the control system issues an action instruction to the first manipulating mechanism and the second manipulating mechanism, and the first manipulating mechanism actuates the movable contact to implement fast opening to cut off the circuit; the time taken by the second manipulating mechanism to perform the opening action is longer than the time taken by the first manipulating mechanism to perform the opening action, and after the circuit is cut off, the movable contact is continued to be pulled to make an opening motion and the first manipulating mechanism is reset to resume the closed position, thereby guaranteeing normal operations of the next fast opening action, implementing a redundant action, and guaranteeing normal operations of the switch. During this period, the circuit is always in an opening state.

Upon a normal action, the first manipulating mechanism does not act, which may be regarded as a fixed connection, and the movable contact is actuated by the second manipulating mechanism to act via a linkage, thereby implementing normal closing and opening of the switch. In this way, fatigue and damage caused by fast action is avoided in normal operations, thereby prolonging the service life.

In a further embodiment of the present disclosure, <FIG> is a structural schematic diagram of a switch according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. It may be seen from <FIG> that the connection between the first manipulating mechanism and the movable contact and the connection between the second manipulating mechanism and the first manipulating mechanism specifically comprises:
The connection between the motion lever <NUM> of the first manipulating mechanism and the stationary contact <NUM> and the connection between the motion lever <NUM> of the second manipulating mechanism and the movable contact <NUM>.

Based on the switch structure shown in <FIG>, the working principle of the switch is described as follows:
When performing a fast opening action, the first manipulating mechanism and the second manipulating mechanism are in a closed position; when the control system determines a need to quickly open or receives an instruction from an upstream control system, the control system issues an action instruction to the first manipulating mechanism and the second manipulating mechanism, and the first manipulating mechanism actuates the stationary contact to implement fast opening to cut off the circuit; the time taken by the second manipulating mechanism to perform the opening action is longer than the time taken by the first manipulating mechanism to perform the opening action, and after the circuit is cut off, the movable contact is continued to be pulled to make an opening motion and the first manipulating mechanism is reset to resume the closed position, thereby guaranteeing normal operations of the next fast opening action, implementing a redundant action, and guaranteeing normal operations of the switch. During this period, the circuit is always in an opening state.

When performing a fast closing action, the first manipulating mechanism and the second manipulating mechanism are in an opening position; when the control system determines a need to quickly close or receives an instruction from an upstream control system, the control system issues an action instruction to the first manipulating mechanism and the second manipulating mechanism, and the first manipulating mechanism actuates the stationary contact to implement fast closing to conduct the circuit; the time taken by the second manipulating mechanism to perform the closing action is longer than the time taken by the first manipulating mechanism to perform the closing action, and after the circuit is conducted, the movable contact is continued to be pushed to make a closing motion and the first manipulating mechanism is reset to resume the opening position, thereby guaranteeing normal operations of the next fast closing action, implementing a redundant action, and guaranteeing normal operations of the switch. During this period, the circuit is always in a conducting state.

Upon a normal action, the first manipulating mechanism does not act, which may be regarded as a fixed connection, and the movable contact is actuated by the second manipulating mechanism to act, thereby implementing normal closing and opening of the switch. In this way, fatigue and damage caused by fast action is avoided in normal operations, thereby prolonging the service life.

In a further embodiment of the present disclosure, <FIG> is a structural schematic diagram of a switch according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. It may be seen from <FIG> that the connection between the first manipulating mechanism and the movable contact and the connection between the second manipulating mechanism and the first manipulating mechanism specifically comprises:.

When performing a fast closing action, the first manipulating mechanism and the second manipulating mechanism are in an opening position; when the control system determines a need to quickly close or receives an instruction from an upstream control system, the control system issues an action instruction to the first manipulating mechanism and the second manipulating mechanism, and the first manipulating mechanism actuates the movable contact to implement fast closing to conduct the circuit; the time taken by the second manipulating mechanism to perform the closing action is longer than the time taken by the first manipulating mechanism to perform the closing action, and after the circuit is conducted, the stationary contact is continued to be pushed to make a closing motion and the first manipulating mechanism is reset to resume the opening position, thereby guaranteeing normal operations of the next fast closing action, implementing a redundant action, and guaranteeing normal operations of the switch. During this period, the circuit is always in a conducting state.

Upon a normal action, the first manipulating mechanism does not act, which may be regarded as a fixed connection, and the stationary contact is actuated by the second manipulating mechanism to act, thereby implementing normal closing and opening of the switch. In this way, fatigue and damage caused by fast action is avoided in normal operations, thereby prolonging the service life.

In a still further embodiment of the present disclosure, the first manipulating mechanism <NUM> is configured for actuating the movable contact <NUM> and the stationary contact <NUM> to perform an opening action or a closing action, respectively, when receiving the first action instruction emitted by the control system.

When a short-circuit accident occurs in the system, the present disclosure may implement first half-wave synchronized switching and quickly clear the shirt-circuit accident, thereby improving a breaking capacity and service life of the switch; besides, it may also implement a phase-controlled circuit closing of the switch so as to reduce the impact caused by the switch closing action to the system, e.g., limiting the inrush current when an empty-load transformer is switched on. Meanwhile, the first manipulating mechanism and the second manipulating mechanism may separately actuate the stationary contact to perform functions of opening and closing the circuit; in addition to a cluster of action instructions issued by the control system having an independent control unit, multiple opening and closing may be implemented to execute redundancy, thereby greatly reducing the odds of operation failure; when it is solely needed to perform normal opening and closing actions of the circuit, only the second manipulating mechanism needs to be manipulated, which may avoid fatigue and damage caused by fast actions and prolong the service life of the whole apparatus.

Preferably, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a switch, comprising a control system, a first manipulating mechanism, and a second manipulating mechanism, wherein:.

Claim 1:
A switch comprising a control system (<NUM>), a first manipulating mechanism (<NUM>), and a second manipulating mechanism (<NUM>), characterized in that:
the control system (<NUM>), emits an operating instruction to the second manipulating mechanism (<NUM>) when a wire works normally, the operating instruction being configured for instructing the second manipulating mechanism (<NUM>) to perform an opening action or a closing action;
the control system (<NUM>) emits a first action instruction to the first manipulating mechanism (<NUM>) and a second action instruction to the second manipulating mechanism (<NUM>), respectively, when the wire fails;
and wherein the first action instruction is configured for instructing the first manipulating mechanism (<NUM>) to perform a first action; the second action instruction is configured for instructing the second manipulating mechanism (<NUM>) to perform a second action,
a cooperative action between the first manipulating mechanism (<NUM>) and the second manipulating mechanism (<NUM>) implements redundancy of switch operating; and
a time taken by the first manipulating mechanism (<NUM>) to implement the first action is different from a time taken by the second manipulating mechanism (<NUM>) to implement the second action.