Patent ID: 7242291

Claim:
A tester for an arc fault circuit interrupter (AFCI), the AFCI being connectable between hot and neutral conductors of an AC power line, the tester comprising: a first full wave bridge rectifier having first and second inputs and an output, the first and second inputs being connectable to the hot and neutral conductors, respectively, of the AC power line; a resistive load and a switch connected in series between the first bridge rectifier output and ground; and a controller operative in first and second modes to provide at least one switch control pulse for turning the switch on to generate current in the AC power line, wherein the controller is operative in the first mode to provide a first plurality of switch control pulses for generating simulated arc fault current in the AC power line, and further operative in the second mode to provide a second plurality of switch control pulses for generating simulated noise current in the AC power line, whereby the tester is operative in the first and second modes of the controller to determine proper operation of the AFCI under arcing and nuisance load conditions, respectively.