Who invented miniature circuit breaker

Application of a breaker in a circuit with a prospective short-circuit current higher than the breaker's interrupting capacity rating may result in failure of the breaker to safely interrupt a fault. In a worst-case scenario the breaker may successfully interrupt the fault, only to explode when reset. Miniature circuit breakers used to protect control circuits or small appliances may not have sufficient interrupting capacity to use at a panelboard; these circuit breakers are called "supplemental circuit protectors" to distinguish them from distribution-type circuit breakers.

The circuit breaker is labeled with the rated current in amperes , but without the unit symbol "A". Instead, the ampere figure is preceded by a letter "B", "C" or "D" that indicates the instantaneous tripping current , that is the minimum value of current that causes the circuit-breaker to trip without intentional time delay i.

For the protection of loads that cause frequent short duration approximately ms to 2 s current peaks in normal operation. For the protection of loads such as semiconductor devices or measuring circuits using current transformers. Many different classifications of circuit breakers can be made, based on their features such as voltage class, construction type, interrupting type, and structural features.

Low voltage less than V AC types are common in domestic, commercial and industrial application, and include:. The characteristics of Low Voltage circuit breakers are given by international standards such as IEC These circuit breakers are often installed in draw-out enclosures that allow removal and interchange without dismantling the switchgear. Large low-voltage molded case and power circuit breakers may have electrical motor operators, allowing them to be tripped opened and closed under remote control.

These may form part of an automatic transfer switch system for standby power. Low-voltage circuit breakers are also made for direct-current DC applications, for example DC supplied for subway lines. Special breakers are required for direct current because the arc does not have a natural tendency to go out on each half cycle as for alternating current.

A direct current circuit breaker will have blow-out coils which generate a magnetic field that rapidly stretches the arc when interrupting direct current. Small circuit breakers are either installed directly in equipment, or are arranged in a breaker panel. The 10 ampere DIN rail -mounted thermal-magnetic miniature circuit breaker is the most common style in modern domestic consumer units and commercial electrical distribution boards throughout Europe.

The design includes the following components:. Magnetic circuit breakers use a solenoid electromagnet whose pulling force increases with the current. Certain designs utilize electromagnetic forces in addition to those of the solenoid.

The circuit breaker contacts are held closed by a latch. As the current in the solenoid increases beyond the rating of the circuit breaker, the solenoid's pull releases the latch which then allows the contacts to open by spring action. Some types of magnetic breakers incorporate a hydraulic time delay feature using a viscous fluid. The core is restrained by a spring until the current exceeds the breaker rating.

During an overload, the speed of the solenoid motion is restricted by the fluid. I'm not an engineer, but my first thought would be the circuit breaker working correctly and sized right for safety. It was Jack Kilby who invented the first integrated circuit in In , Jack was a co-inventor of the first electronic handheld calculator in the world. The invention of the transistor was the first big event to lower cost and size.

Check your Delta connections first if the phases is corresponding, and check your Circuit Breaker if it sufficiently rated. Protect the circuit with an OCPD, an over current protection device, such as a circuit breaker or fuse. Because it needs to be able to cut the power to the load. That's why circuit breakers are always the first piece of equipment in a circuit after the power supply.

First, determine the current draw of the coffee roaster, then check the breaker size. For example, if the roaster is using 14 Amps, and the circuit breaker is rated at 15 amps, that doesn't give much room for anything else on the circuit. Add up all of the current of all devices on the circuit the one that trips the breaker and either move things around so that you don't have too much load on a single circuit, or you may need to bring in an electrician to run a new circuit.

Connect the circuit to the appropriate size circuit breaker to meet the required amperage of the circuit. Turn the breaker on and use the circuit. Unless the circuit is of a very high ampacity, plus amps, don't worry about voltage drop over 50 feet. Viva Palestine. A faulty circuit breaker will either have a tendency to trip when it shouldn't or not trip when it should.

The first is irritating. The second can be fatal. Detecting a faulty circuit breaker requires specialist equipment that is not available to the average householder. If there is any doubt about the performance of a circuit breaker, the simplest course of action is to replace the breaker with a new, equivalent. Note that in some jurisdictions, you need to be properly qualified, licensed and have a permit to replace installed electrical equipment.

If you have any doubts about doing the job, leave it to a properly qualified professional who can undertake the job legally and safely. Log in. Home Electricity. The invention, patented in Germany in November by Hugo Stotz and his chief engineer, Heinrich Schachtner, made the rapidly increasing electrification of private homes safer and more efficient.

When Stotz and Schachtner were toiling away on their landmark invention in the early s, homes in Germany and beyond were increasingly being electrified. At the time, fuses, where a metal wire melts when too much current flows through it, represented cutting-edge technology when it came to shielding buildings from electrical fires.

The problem was, the fuse had to be replaced every time there was a fault. Lamps, refrigerators and other household appliances can operate safely because harmful currents are detected by the miniature circuit breaker and almost instantaneously interrupted. Today, when an ABB miniature circuit breaker reacts to short circuits or overloads, it trips and interrupts the current within 10 milliseconds, 10 times faster than the blink of an eye. When this happens, the breaker is exposed to intense heat ranging from 5, degrees to 6, degrees Celsius, temperatures capable of melting rocks.

Even after all that, homeowners simply must flip the switch that has been tripped, and power resumes its flow. Hugo Stotz, who died at age 66 in in Mannheim, Germany, was an energetic inventor and entrepreneur who founded his first company with a partner in In the intervening years, the business now known as ABB Stotz-Kontakt has manufactured more than million miniature circuit breakers.

The oil was used to dampen the heat generated from the arc forming between the two open contacts. Granville Woods improved upon the design and invented the automatic circuit breaker in Woods was a self taught African-American inventor who patented many ideas for the railroad industry.

His fame comes from devising a way for a train station to communicate directly with train conductors. He became a challenge for Edison who thought that Woods was operating too close to his own space of telegraphy. Edison sued Woods on the grounds of infringement but lost the case. Cutter Manufacturing Company manufactured the first circuit breakers in Philadelphia in Today's electrical catalogs feature different types of ITE breakers.

Specifications for circuit breakers did not appear until leaving a period of 40 years for creative improvisation from electricians and installers AIEE Standards No.