Patent ID: 7772945

Claim:
An electrical switching device for use with an electrical-energy meter, said switching device comprising: a solenoid assembly comprising an electromagnetic solenoid, an actuator plunger coupled to said solenoid, and at least one magnet; a yoke coupled to said actuator plunger such that said yoke is biased away from said solenoid, said yoke comprises a channel at least partially defined by a first wall and a second wall that is substantially parallel to said first wall, a first pair of shorting bars and a second pair of shorting bars positioned within said channel on opposite sides of said actuator plunger and between said first and second walls, each of said pairs comprises a first shorting bar and a second shorting bar that each float independently of each other within said channel such that each of said shorting bars is moveable independently of said yoke and independently of each other, wherein said first and second shorting bars are not coupled to said yoke by a coil spring; and at least two conductor busbars electrically coupled within said switching device such that at least a first circuit and a second circuit are defined within said switching device, said solenoid assembly is configured to selectively move said yoke between a first position in which at least one of said shorting bars is a distance away from said at least two conductor busbars, and a second position in which at least one of said shorting bars is electrically coupled against at least one of said at least two conductor busbars, each of said two conductor busbars comprises a first end, a second end, and a body extending therebetween, said body has a substantially rectangular cross-sectional profile.