Patent ID: 8171543

Claim:
A method of limiting read/write access of circuit breaker settings, comprising: providing a circuit breaker electronic trip unit, the circuit breaker electronic trip unit having a processor, a memory operably coupled to the processor, a display device operably coupled to the processor and an interface operably coupled to the processor and the display device, the interface having at least a first pushbutton and a second pushbutton; providing a digit selection portion on the display device, the digital selection portion being operably coupled to the first pushbutton; providing a password display portion on the display device of the electronic trip unit, the password display portion being operably coupled to the second pushbutton; wherein the processor is configured to execute a method comprising: requesting a password on the display device; receiving the requested password from the interface; determining if the requested password is valid based on password information stored on the memory; and limiting read/write access of the circuit breaker settings stored on the electronic trip unit when the received password is determined invalid, wherein the circuit breaker settings include settings associated with operation of the electronic trip unit.