Patent ID: 7220933

Claim:
An arc quenching device for a circuit breaker, comprising: a first and a second fixed contact which can each be connected to connection terminals of the circuit breaker; a contact path, which carries current in a closed state of the breaker, between the fixed contacts, comprising a moving contact link having a first link contact which forms a first contact point with the first fixed contact; a first link-side arc guide rail, through which no current flows in the closed state of the breaker, for the purpose of taking over an arc which forms when the first contact point is opened, and a quenching chamber for the purpose of quenching the arc; and a quenching path, through which no current flows in the closed state of the breaker, comprising the first link-side arc guide rail and a current-limiting element, wherein the quenching path is connected to the second fixed contact, and the first link-side arc guide rail is designed to take over a link-side arc base point from the first link contact.