Patent ID: 7915548

Claim:
A combined circuit breaker and disconnector for an alternator, comprising: a first interrupter, being a disconnecting interrupter, that comprises a first pair of contacts (movable in straight line motion relative to each other; a second interrupter, being a switching interrupter, that comprises a second pair of contacts movable in straight line motion relative to each other, the second interrupter being connected electrically in parallel with the first interrupter; a third interrupter, being a disconnecting interrupter and comprising a third pair of contacts that are movable in straight line motion relative to each other, the third interrupter being connected electrically in series with the second interrupter and in parallel with the first interrupter; actuator means for actuating a moving contact of each interrupter; and synchronizer means serving, during a given opening operation of the circuit breaker, to cause the contacts of the first interrupter to separate before the contacts of the second interrupter are separated from each other, the contacts of this second pair being separated before the third contacts are fully separated from each other; the synchronizer means and the actuator means of the three interrupters being themselves coupled and actuated by a single control means; and the first and third pairs of contacts being movable along a common axis, the circuit breaker and disconnector being characterized in that: the actuator means for the first disconnecting interrupter include at least one main shaft that is adapted to be set in rotation by said single control means, and a main lever that is fixed to the main shaft and that has one end connected to one of the moving contacts; the actuator means for the third interrupter comprise at least one accessory shaft parallel to the main shaft, and an accessory lever that is fixed to the accessory shaft, and one end of the accessory lever being coupled to one of the moving contacts by means of a multiplier device; and the synchronizer means between the first and third interrupters are so arranged that, during a given opening operation of the circuit breaker, the accessory shaft is set in rotation over only a final angle of rotation of the main shaft, whereby to separate the third pair of contacts entirely from each other.