Patent ID: 8232804

Claim:
A time alert device ( 1 ) for use with an earth leakage protection device installed in an electrical installation zone to remind the user of an earth leakage protection device to perform an integrity test on the earth leakage protection device, said electrical installation zone including live and neutral wires and an earth wire and said time alert device being packaged separately from the earth leakage protection device, said time alert device comprising: a microprocessor system ( 10 ) comprising a CPU ( 21 ), a memory ( 23 ), an alert trigger timer ( 22 ) and an I/O interface ( 25 ); at least one annunciator ( 11 ) electrically connected to the I/O interface ( 25 ) of the microprocessor system ( 10 ); a tripping initiation circuit ( 20 ) comprising a current limiting resistor ( 17 ) connected in series with a tripping switch ( 16 or 36 ) between the live and earth wires of the electrical installation zone to enable the user of the earth leakage protection device to intentionally generate an earth leakage current during performance of integrity test; test detection means ( 19 ) to enable the microprocessor system ( 10 ) to determine that the user has performed an integrity test on the earth leakage protection device; trip detection means ( 13 ) to enable the microprocessor system ( 10 ) to determine the tripping of the earth leakage protection device; means for connecting the trip detection means ( 13 ) to the live and neutral wires of the electrical installation zone protected by the earth leakage protection device, said connection of the trip detection means to the live and neutral wires of the electrical installation zone being outside the earth leakage protection device; and means for receiving and applying power supply to the time alert device ( 1 ); wherein the microprocessor system ( 10 ) activates the at least one annunciator ( 11 ) to alert the user to perform an integrity test on the earth leakage protection device when the alert trigger timer ( 22 ) of the microprocessor system ( 10 ) has timed out; and wherein the time alert device ( 1 ) recognizes the integrity test as being successful if and only if the microprocessor system ( 10 ) of the time alert device ( 1 ) determines, through the test detection means ( 19 ), that the user has performed an integrity test and subsequently determines, through the trip detection means ( 13 ), that the earth leakage protection device has tripped.