Patent ID: 6924446

Claim:
A circuit breaker comprising: a housing including a first surface and a second surface; separable contacts; an operating mechanism adapted to open, to close and to trip open said separable contacts, said operating mechanism comprising: a cross bar within said housing, said cross bar being supported by the first surface of said housing and being adapted to move in an arcuate path between a first position wherein said separable contacts are open or tripped open, and a second position wherein said separable contacts are closed, a cradle pivotally mounted within said housing, said cradle including a latch, a primary latch pivotally mounted within said housing, said primary latch including a pivot, an opening and a free end, the latch of said cradle adapted to rest within the opening of said primary latch when said separable contacts are not tripped open, and a secondary latch pivotally mounted within said housing, said secondary latch including a pivot and a surface, said primary latch and said secondary latch being between the second surface of said housing and said cross bar in the first position of said cross bar, said cross bar being offset from said primary latch and said secondary latch in the second position of said cross bar, the surface and the pivot of said secondary latch being between the second surface of said housing and the pivot of said primary latch, the surface of said secondary latch engaging the free end of said primary latch when said separable contacts are not tripped open, in order to maintain the latch of said cradle within the opening of said primary latch; and a trip mechanism cooperating with said operating mechanism to trip open said separable contacts.