DESC:FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[001] The present invention relates generally to electrical distribution systems, and more particularly to feeder pillar boxes with horizontal fuse arrangement.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[002] A feeder pillar box is a cabinet for electrical equipment, mounted in the street and controls the electrical supply to a number of houses of the neighborhood. The feeder pillar box (also referred as ‘feeder pillar’ or ‘power box’) includes busbar connections, fuses in an enclosure used in conjunction with underground electrical distribution cables, sensors, switches etc. Feeder pillar boxes (FPBs) are provided in two categories namely Main Feeder pillar and Mini ( Service) feeder pillar. The Main FPB is connected directly with a distribution transformer and pluralities of Mini FPBs are connected to the Main FPB. The Mini FPBs supply power to the consumer location.

[003] There are basically two types of feeder pillar boxes: horizontal type and vertical type based on the arrangement of fuses in the box. The electric fuse is a device that is used to protect electric circuits and electric appliances against high current caused by short - circuiting or overloading due to passage of large current. A fuse is a short piece of wire made of a material of high resistance and low melting point, such that it melts when too much current flows through it, thereby interrupting the current. It is a sacrificial device and once a fuse has operated it is an open circuit, and it must be replaced or rewired.

[004] Sometimes circuit breakers may be used in the feeder pillar boxes instead of fuses to serve the same purpose. However considering the cost, simplicity and speed of action, fuses are preferred over the circuit breakers.

[005] In case of horizontal type boxes, all three fuses of three different live phases R,Y,B are arranged on top of each other in a vertical line. The fuse housing of such horizontal type boxes are configured to be disconnected as one single phase or all three phases in a single disconnecting action.

[006] In vertical type feeder pillar boxes, the fuses of different phases are arranged side by side to each other and it’s is difficult to operate all phase fuses in one pull of the fuse holder.

[007] The feeder pillar boxes are installed near streets on the footways, indoors for industry and household supplies. The problem with presently available feeder pillar boxes is the space occupied by them on the footway, which obstructs movement of people partially. It is constant need to have a feeder pillar box which occupies least possible footprint at the place of installation.

[008] Further the currently available feeder pillar boxes are designed as conventional rectangular boxes with busbars and fuses mounted inside the box. The poor thermal design, arrangement of fuses and busbars adds to the size of the box and increases the footprint area occupied by the feeder pillar. The currently available feeder pillars have several problems during installation and servicing. The live busbars are accessible when feeder pillar door is opened and may cause threat to the life of the person attending any fault or during installation of the feeder pillar.

[009] The feeder pillar is installed on streets also, so it has to withstand the harsh environment such as rains, dust and dirt. Currently available feeder pillar box designs do not address the Ingress Protection very efficiently. Besides this, there are issues of theft of power or internal components by tampering the enclosure door of the feeder pillar box.

[0010] In addition, the currently available FPBs are not technically efficient and lead to high I2R losses due to poor contact between the conductors and busbars. Poor heat dissipation also happens owing to poor design of the enclosure and layout of busbars/ fuse arrangements.

[0011] In view of the limitations inherent in the available feeder pillar boxes, there exists a need for an improved feeder pillar box with horizontal fuse arrangement which overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art and which can be manufactured in a cost effective, reliable, secure and environmental friendly manner.

[0012] The present invention fulfils this need and provides further advantages as described.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0013] In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the prior arts, the general purpose of the present invention is to provide an improved combination of convenience and utility, to include the advantages of the prior art, and to overcome the drawbacks inherent therein.

[0014] A primary objective of the present invention is to provide a feeder pillar box with horizontal fuse arrangement which is compact in size, modular, contemporary, simple and cost effective.

[0015] In one aspect, the present invention provides a feeder pillar box that comprises a hexagonal base, at least one cylindrical fuse panel mounted on the hexagonal base, at least one fuse layer formed by installing a plurality of outgoing connection fuses on a periphery of the at least one cylindrical fuse panel, an incoming fuse layer formed by installing a plurality of incoming connection fuses on the hexagonal base and an enclosure.

[0016] In another aspect of the present invention, the feeder pillar box includes three cylindrical fuse panels representative of three live electrical phases.

[0017] In an aspect of the present invention, the cylindrical fuse panel is a hollow cylindrical structure adapted to be longitudinally connected to another cylindrical fuse panel.

[0018] In another aspect of the present invention, the cylindrical fuse panel comprises a plurality of fuse holders mounted on the periphery of the cylindrical fuse panel, each of the fuse holder is configured to receive the outgoing connection fuse, a main busbar electrically connected with the plurality of fuse holders, the main busbar includes a circular connector and a connecting busbar, such that the circular connector is mounted on the periphery of the cylindrical fuse panel from outside and the connecting busbar is mounted from inside the cylindrical fuse panel; and a plurality of tapping busbars mounted on the inside of the cylindrical fuse panel, such that one tapping busbar is associated with each of the outgoing connection fuse and electrically connects the outgoing connection fuse with a respective outgoing connection wire.

[0019] In yet another aspect of the present invention, the circular connector is a ring mounted on the cylindrical fuse panel defining a curve for mounting the fuse holders on the fuse panel and the connecting busbar is a straight busbar located inside the fuse panel connecting the circular connector with an incoming connection wire for termination.
[0020] In an aspect of the present invention, each of the plurality of tapping busbars comprising a fuse end and a wire end, such that the fuse end is connected with the outgoing connection fuse and the wire end is connected with the outgoing connection wire for termination.

[0021] In another aspect of the present invention, the top portion of each of the plurality of fuse holders is electrically connected with the main busbar on outside of the cylindrical fuse panel and a bottom portion of the fuse holder is connected with corresponding tapping busbar on the inside of the cylindrical fuse panel.

[0022] In yet another aspect of the present invention, the wire end of each of the plurality of tapping busbars is located at same level in the hexagonal base.

[0023] In an aspect of the present invention, the hexagonal base is formed of six faces, each including a fuse holder and a bridge bar, such that the fuse holder is adapted to receive an incoming connection fuse and the bridge bar electrically connects two corresponding incoming connection fuses having same live phase with each other.

[0024] In another aspect of the present invention, the hexagonal base includes hinged connections about alternate edges of the six faces, thereby making it adaptable to be opened from three sides.

[0025] In yet another aspect of the present invention, the feeder pillar box further includes a neutral block located in the hexagonal base for connecting a plurality of neutral connection wires with each other.

[0026] In an aspect of the present invention, the neutral block comprises of a solid metallic block having a plurality of connection holes for inserting the neutral connection wires. The neutral block is coated with a polymeric insulating material to avoid electrical contact with other components in the hexagonal base.

[0027] In another aspect of the present invention, the feeder pillar box further includes a plurality of fuse housings for containing the plurality of outgoing connection fuses and the plurality of incoming connection fuses. A SFU (Switch Fuse Unit) is also provided for multiple connection and disconnection of fuses.

[0028] In yet another aspect of the present invention, the cylindrical fuse panel further includes a plurality of inclined support members adapted to allow mounting of the outgoing connection fuses at an angle ranging from 30 to 60 degrees and preferably 45 degrees with the axis of the cylindrical fuse panel.

[0029] In one aspect of the present invention, the plurality of fuse holders are mounted on the plurality of inclined support members for installing the plurality of outgoing connection fuses.

[0030] In another aspect of the present invention, the enclosure comprises a frame of at least two rods which act as guide and support for the enclosure and a hollow cylinder longitudinally split into two halves mounted on the frame of two rods, such that each of the half includes at least one sliding door which opens when pulled upwards.

[0031] These together with other aspects of the invention, along with the various features of novelty that characterize the invention, are pointed out with particularity in the description annexed hereto and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be made to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there are illustrated exemplary embodiments of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0032] The advantages and features of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

[0033] FIG.1 illustrates a schematic diagram of an inside view of a feeder pillar box, according to one embodiment of the present invention;

[0034] FIG. 2A illustrates a schematic diagram of the fuse panel from outside showing the fuse housing and circular connector, according to one embodiment of the present invention;

[0035] FIG. 2B illustrates a sectional view of the fuse panel, according to one embodiment of the present invention;

[0036] FIG. 3 illustrates a schematic diagram of the hexagonal base, according to one embodiment of the present invention;

[0037] FIG. 4 illustrates a view of the hexagonal base in open position, according to one embodiment of the present invention;

[0038] FIG. 5 illustrates a schematic diagram of the fuse panel with two fuse layers, according to one embodiment of the present invention;

[0039] FIG. 6A illustrates a schematic diagram of the fuse panel with fuse arrangement, according to another embodiment of the present invention;

[0040] FIG. 6B illustrates a sectional view of the fuse panel with fuse arrangement, according to another embodiment of the present invention;

[0041] FIG. 7A illustrates a schematic diagram of the enclosure of the feeder pillar box with doors in closed position, according to one embodiment of the present invention; and

[0042] FIG. 7B illustrates a schematic diagram of the enclosure of the feeder pillar box with doors in open position, according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0043] Like reference names refer to like parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0044] In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details.

[0045] As used herein, the term ‘plurality’ refers to the presence of more than one of the referenced item and the terms ‘a’, ‘an’, and ‘at least’ do not denote a limitation of quantity, but rather denote the presence of at least one of the referenced item.

[0046] Reference herein to “one embodiment” or “another embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment can be included in at least one embodiment of the invention. The appearances of the phrase “in one embodiment” in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment, nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of other embodiments. Further, the diagrams representing one or more embodiments of the invention do not inherently indicate any particular order nor imply any limitations in the invention.

[0047] Referring to FIG. 1, that illustrates a schematic diagram of an inside view of a feeder pillar box 10, according to one embodiment of the present invention. The feeder pillar box 10 includes a hexagonal base 12, at least one cylindrical fuse panel 14 mounted on the hexagonal base 12, at least one fuse layer 16 formed by installing a plurality of outgoing connection fuses 18 on a periphery of the at least one cylindrical fuse panel 14, an incoming fuse layer 20 formed by installing a plurality of incoming connection fuses 22 on the hexagonal base 12 and an enclosure 24 (not shown) for enclosing all components of the feeder pillar box 10.

[0048] In one embodiment of the present invention, wherein the cylindrical fuse panel 12 is a hollow cylindrical structure adapted to be longitudinally connected to another cylindrical fuse panel. The fuse layers 16 are formed by installing a plurality of outgoing connection fuses 18 at the same height along the periphery of the cylindrical fuse panel 14.

[0049] Referring to FIGs. 2A and 2B, that illustrates outside schematic diagram and sectional view respectively of the fuse panel 14, according to one embodiment of the present invention. The cylindrical fuse panel 14 comprises a plurality of fuse holders 26 mounted on the periphery of the cylindrical fuse panel, a main busbar 28 electrically connected with the plurality of fuse holders 26 and a plurality of tapping busbars 30 mounted on the inside of the cylindrical fuse panel, such that one tapping busbar is associated with each of the outgoing connection fuse 16 and electrically connects the outgoing connection fuse 16 with a respective outgoing connection wire.

[0050] Each of the fuse holder 26 is configured to receive the outgoing connection fuse 18. The main busbar 28 is used to provide the incoming connection to the outgoing connection fuses 18 and is connected electrically with each and every fuse 18 on the panel 14. In one embodiment of the present invention, the main busbar 28 includes a circular connector 28CB and a connecting busbar 28CB, such that the circular connector 28CC is mounted on the periphery of the cylindrical fuse panel from outside and the connecting busbar 28CB is mounted from inside the cylindrical fuse panel. In one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the circular connector 28CC is a ring mounted on the cylindrical fuse panel 14 defining a curve for mounting the fuse holders 26 and the connecting busbar 28CB is a straight busbar connecting the circular connector 28CC with an incoming connection wire. In one embodiment of the present invention, the circular connector 28CC may be covered in an insulated coating to prevent any contact with live electrical part by any person.

[0051] In one embodiment of the present invention, a top portion 26T of each of the plurality of fuse holders is electrically connected with the main busbar 28 on outside of the cylindrical fuse panel 14 and a bottom portion 26B of the fuse holder is connected with corresponding tapping busbar 30 on the inside of the cylindrical fuse panel.

[0052] Each of the plurality of tapping busbars 30 comprises a fuse end 30F and a wire end 30W, such that the fuse end 30F is connected with the outgoing connection fuse 18 and the wire end 30W is connected with the outgoing connection wire for termination through plugin connector or lugs. Each of the outgoing connection fuse 18 has an independent tapping busbar 30 associated with it. As can be seen that from FIG. 2B, the tapping busbars 30 are arranged, such that they do not touch each other and are bent and orientated with each other to occupy minimum space and maintain electrical clearance between the busbars. Mounting the tapping busbars 30 on inner side of the cylindrical fuse panel 14, makes them inaccessible thereby preventing any damage and assures complete human safety by accidental human touch. Further the tapping busbars 30 are designed and located to have better thermal cooling by natural convection.

[0053] In one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the wire end 30W of each of the plurality of tapping busbars 30 is located at the same level in the hexagonal base 12. The connections from the wires can be made with the wire end 30W of all the tapping busbars 30 at same location. The incoming and outgoing connection wires are also arranged in the hexagonal base 12. This assures termination of all the outgoing connections at the same level, thereby making the installation and maintenance easier. It makes easy for an operator to make connections at the ground level from the hexagonal base 12 and there is no need to disturb the busbars on the fuse panel 14.

[0054] The feeder pillar box 10, includes a plurality of fuse housings 32 for containing the plurality of outgoing connection fuses 18 and the plurality of incoming connection fuses 22. Each of the fuse 18 and 22 is provided with a fuse housing 32 to reduce the risk of exposure of live parts for any attendant during operation of the feeder pillar box 10. The fuse holder 26, fuses 18, 22 and fuse housings 32 used in the feeder pillar box 10 of the present invention are as used as available in the art. A SFU (Switch Fuse Unit) is also provided for multiple connection and disconnection of fuses.

[0055] The fuse holders 26, outgoing connection fuses 18 and fuse housings 32 installed on the circular fuse panel 14 are referred to as a fuse layer 16. Similarly the fuse holders 26 on the hexagonal base 12, incoming connection fuses 22 and fuse housings 32 installed on the circular fuse panel 14 are referred to as an incoming fuse layer 20.

[0056] In one embodiment of the present invention, the fuse panels 14 may be made of any insulating material such as ebonite, plastic, Bakelite, FRP (Fibre Reinforced Plastic) or any similar material known in the art which provides strength and electrically & thermal insulating properties needed for the feeder pillar box construction and its respective components.

[0057] Referring to FIG. 3, that illustrates a schematic diagram of the hexagonal base 12, according to one embodiment of the present invention. The hexagonal base 12 is formed of six faces 34, each including a fuse holder 36 and a bridge bar 38, such that the fuse holder 36 is adapted to receive an incoming connection fuse 22 and the bridge bar 38 electrically connects two corresponding incoming connection fuses 22 having same live phase with each other. The hexagonal base 12 of the feeder pillar box acts as a housing for some components of the feeder pillar box 10 and also provides structural support to the cylindrical fuse panels 14.

[0058] In one preferred embodiment of the present invention, there are two incoming connection cables which are provided with two sets of R, Y, B wires, so total six live phase connections are made as input to the corresponding six incoming connection fuses 22. Each of the face 34 of the hexagonal base 12, further includes fuse holders 36 and bridge bars 38. The bridge bars 38 connect two corresponding fuses sharing same live phase with each other. For example, the R wire from both the incoming cables may be connected to a couple of incoming connection fuses 22 connected by bridge bars 38, so both the fuses are R phase. The bridge bar 38 connects them electrically, so both are R phase. Similarly it may be done for Y and B phase wires. The incoming connection wires end in base and main busbar 28 is used to connect the phase wires with the fuses. The set of fuses representing a particular phase (say R) are connected by the connecting busbar 28CB of the main busbar 28 to corresponding fuse panels 14 in the feeder pillar box.

[0059] The cylindrical fuse panel 14 along with the fuse layers 16 including outgoing connection fuses 18 and busbars inside it, is mounted on the hexagonal base 12 to form the feeder pillar box. The fuse panel 14 is held on the hexagonal base 12 and mounted by using nuts and bolts, any other fixtures, fastening devices. Whenever needed, the fastening devices may be unscrewed to remove the panel 14.

[0060] Each of the cylindrical fuse panel 14 is configured to represent a single live phase and include number of fuses as per the requirement of feeder pillar box 10. There may be two to twelve number of outgoing connection fuses 18 of a single phase on a fuse panel 14 to form the fuse layer 16 as per the needs of the feeder pillar box 10 rating. Design is flexible i.e. the footprint can be varied with respect to the arrangement of fuses. In one embodiment of the present invention, the feeder pillar box 10 includes three cylindrical fuse panels 14 with respective fuse layers 16 representative of three live electrical phases. Three fuse layers 16 each one for a live phase viz: R, Y and B. In an alternative arrangement, the feeder pillar box 10 may include may include four fuse layers 16 one each for R, Y, B phase and one for neutral phase.

[0061] In one embodiment of the present invention, the incoming connection wire and an outgoing connection wire are arranged in the hexagonal base 12. This assures termination of all the connections at the same level, thereby making the installation and maintenance easier. It makes easy for an operator to make connections at the ground level from the hexagonal base 12 and there is no need to disturb the busbars on the fuse panels 14.

[0062] Referring to FIG. 4, that illustrates a view of the hexagonal base 12 in open position, according to one embodiment of the present invention. The hexagonal base 12 includes hinged connections 40 about alternate edges of the six faces 34, thereby making it adaptable to be opened from three sides. All parts of the hexagonal base are accessible by opening the hinged doors. This provides ease of installation and maintenance activities to be performed when needed.

[0063] In one embodiment of the present invention, the feeder pillar box 10 further includes a neutral block(not shown) located in the hexagonal base 12 for connecting a plurality of neutral connection wires with each other. The neutral block comprises of a solid metallic block having a plurality of connection holes for inserting the neutral connection wires. In one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the neutral block is coated with a polymeric insulating material to avoid electrical contact with other components in the hexagonal base.

[0064] In one embodiment of the present invention, the hexagonal base 12 may be made of any insulating material such as ebonite, plastic, Bakelite, FRP (Fibre Reinforced Plastic) or any similar material known in the art which provides strength and insulating properties needed for the feeder pillar box construction.

[0065] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the incoming connection fuses 22 are mounted on the hexagonal base 12, however in another embodiment, the incoming connection fuses 22 may also be mounted on the cylindrical fuse panel 14 in a separate fuse layer.

[0066] In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the incoming connection fuses 22 may be installed on the fuse layers 16 along with the outgoing connection fuses 18. The fuse layer 16 will contain both outgoing 18 and incoming connection fuses 22 of a single live phase. In such cases the hexagonal base 12 will only provide structural support to the fuse panel.

[0067] The present design of the feeder pillar box 10, further provides the adaptability to use only one or two cylindrical fuse panels 14 instead of all three. For example where the requirement is of only for two phases, one of the cylindrical fuse panel 14 may be removed by detaching from the hexagonal base 12 and the feeder pillar box 10 may be used with only two fuse panels as shown in FIG.6 and the feeder pillar box 10 becomes a two phase feeder pillar box. Fastening means 44 may be provided to detachably attach two cylindrical fuse panels 14 with other to form the feeder pillar box 10 of the present invention.

[0068] Similarly if only one phase is required then two cylindrical fuse panels 14 may be removed and height of the feeder pillar box 10 can be reduced as per the requirements of space. In case a two phase feeder pillar box 10 needs to be made as three phase, a cylindrical fuse panel 14 may be added to the existing feeder pillar box 10 and fuse layer 16 is mounted on it. The enclosure 24 dimensions may be changed to suit the change in height of the feeder pillar box 10.

[0069] Referring to FIGs. 6A and 6B, that illustrates a schematic diagram of the cylindrical fuse panel 14 with fuse arrangement, according to another embodiment of the present invention. The cylindrical fuse panel 14 includes a plurality of inclined support members 46 adapted to allow mounting of the outgoing connection fuses 18 at an angle ranging from 30 to 60 degrees and preferably 45 degrees with axis of the cylindrical fuse panel 14. The plurality of fuse holders 26 are mounted on the plurality of inclined support members 46 for installing the plurality of outgoing connection fuses 18. These inclined outgoing connection fuses 18 make it easier for operating of the switching and also prevents sparking during electrical connection and disconnection. The top part of the inclined support member 46 is located near the circular connector 28CC such that the top portion 26T of the fuse holder is in electrical contact with the circular connector 28CC. A portion of the tapping busbar 30 is mounted on the inclined support member 46 and is in electrical contact with the lower portion 26L of the fuse holder.

[0070] Referring to FIGs. 7A and 7B, that illustrates a schematic diagram of the enclosure 24 of the feeder pillar box, according to one embodiment of the present invention. The enclosure 24 comprises a frame 48 of at least two rods which act as guide and support for the enclosure 24 and a hollow cylinder longitudinally split into two or more sections mounted on the frame 48 of two rods, such that each of the section includes at least one sliding door 50 which opens when pulled upwards.

[0071] The sliding door 50 consist of at least two parts. In one embodiment the sliding door 50 includes three parts A,B and C as shown in FIG. 7A. The sliding door 50 with three parts is such that, the three parts A, B and C remain as one single wall of the cylindrical enclosure as a locked door, however when the door 50 needs to be opened, the part A is unlocked and pulled upwards such that it slides under the part B and then engages with it and slides the part B along with it. Further pulling makes the combined part A and part B slide upwards under the part C, and then all three parts can be combinely folded to form an inclined shade as shown in FIG. 7B. This serves the purpose to protect the service personnel from sunlight and rain while attending the feeder pillar.

[0072] Each of the sliding door 50 gives 180 degree accessibility to the inside components of the feeder pillar box 10. The two halves of the enclosure with two sliding doors 50 give all round accessibility from both the sides. The doors 50 are provided with a locking mechanism that allows the door to remain locked. The purpose of providing sliding doors 50 is to reduce the length of the door in open position, thereby occupying minimum space needed during servicing and maintenance of the feeder pillar box 10.

[0073] The enclosure 24 further includes arrangements to mount the fuse panels 14 on its desired position on the hexagonal base 12. The enclosure 24 is not connected to any of the cylindrical fuse panels 14. The enclosure 24 may also be provided with louvers for allowing circulation of air by natural convection, and keeping the temperature of enclosure 24 within acceptable limits. The louvers may also include a water arresting back plate which prevents any splash of water to go inside the enclosure 20. The arrested water is accumulated from the back plate at the bottom and drained outside from the enclosure 20. A drainage pipe may also be provided to drain the accumulated water outside the enclosure 20. The shape and size of louvers is designed based on the heat produced as per the rating of the feeder pillar box. The enclosure 24 may also include thermal windows for example a mesh which is adapted to only allow air to pass through but not dust or any other things.

[0074] The enclosure 24 is designed with additional space on top of the space required to contain the cylindrical fuse panels 14, for installation of any other retrofit components such as remote monitoring box, RTU box, sensors, PCBs and any components required in future.

[0075] The enclosure 24 may be made of mild steel to provide greater strength to prevent any vandalism and designed for required Ingress Protection. A canopy may also be provided on top of enclosure 24 to cover it from top and avoid rain, dirt and dust going inside. Additional space is also provided to contain RTU box that include sensors and monitoring devices.

[0076] For installing the feeder pillar box 10, the hexagonal base 12 is mounted on a concrete foundation or a base plate, where the feeder pillar box has to be installed and the fuse panels 14 are mounted on the hexagonal base 12. The hexagonal base 12 may be mounted at a height above the ground allowing ventilation from bottom of the feeder pillar box 10. Then the required number of cylindrical fuse panels 14 are mounted over the base 12 using nuts and bolts and then the fuse layers 16 are formed by installing the required outgoing connection fuses 18. The incoming and outgoing cables coming from underground are inserted from bottom in the hexagonal base 12 of the feeder pillar box. The wires of the incoming cable are connected to the connecting busbars 28CB and the outgoing wires are connected to the tapping busbars 30 by connectors. The neural wires of the incoming and outgoing wires are connected to a neutral block. Now the enclosure is mounted to cover the whole structure.

[0077] The feeder pillar box of the present invention may provide advantages as below:
- Compactness: The present design makes it more compact and reduces the footprint as compared to currently available feeder pillar boxes in the Indian market
- Modularity: The current design allows to be used as a single or two phase feeder pillar box 10 by putting the required number of cylindrical fuse panels 14 as per the purpose of electricity distribution
- Ease of Installation: The present design has all the terminations at same level in the hexagonal base 12 which reduces the time and complexity to make connections.
- Accessibility: The openable hexagonal base 12 and the enclosure doors 50 gives 100% all round accessibility of internal component for the lineman for any installation, repair or maintenance purposes
- Anti-theft feature: The enclosure door 50 is locked and the internal busbars are hidden which makes difficult for illegal power tapping
- Touch proof: The main busbar 28 on the front side of cylindrical fuse panel 14 is insulated and the tapping busbars 30 are hidden behind the fuse panel 14, which makes the feeder pillar box 10 a touch proof system preventing any damage to person who may touch any component for making connections.
- Insulated Busbar system: The main busbar 28 used in the feeder pillar box 10 is insulated which makes it safer for operation.
- Safety: The tapping busbars 30 are hidden inside the cylindrical fuse panel 14, making it safe to operate
- Low I2R loss
- Scalability: The height of the fuse panel 14 and the enclosure 24 may be designed as per the rating and requirement of the incoming and outgoing connection fuses.
- Light weight: The enclosure is light weight as compared to the existing feeder pillar boxes
- Each of the connection fuse 18, 22 is further provided with a fuse housing 32 to reduce risk of exposure of live parts to any attendant. A SFU (Switch Fuse Unit) is also provided for multiple connection and disconnection of fuses.

[0078] Although a particular exemplary embodiment of the invention has been disclosed in detail for illustrative purposes, it will be recognized to those skilled in the art that variations or modifications of the disclosed invention, including the rearrangement in the configurations of the parts, changes in steps and their sequences may be possible. Accordingly, the invention is intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variations as may fall within the spirit and scope of the present invention.

[0079] The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching.

[0080] The foregoing description of the specific embodiments will so fully reveal the general nature of the embodiments herein that others can, by applying current knowledge, readily modify and/or adapt for various applications such specific embodiments without departing from the generic concept, and, therefore, such adaptations and modifications should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalents of the disclosed embodiments. It is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation. Therefore, while the embodiments herein have been described in terms of preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the embodiments herein can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.
,CLAIMS:1. A feeder pillar box comprising:
- a hexagonal base;
- at least one cylindrical fuse panel mounted on the hexagonal base;
- at least one fuse layer formed by installing a plurality of outgoing connection fuses on a periphery of the at least one cylindrical fuse panel;
- an incoming fuse layer formed by installing a plurality of incoming connection fuses on the hexagonal base; and
- an enclosure.

2. The feeder pillar box according to claim 1, wherein the feeder pillar box includes three cylindrical fuse panels with respective fuse layers representative of three live electrical phases.

3. The feeder pillar box according to claim 1, wherein the cylindrical fuse panel is a hollow cylindrical structure adapted to be longitudinally connected to another cylindrical fuse panel.

4. The feeder pillar box according to claim 1, wherein the cylindrical fuse panel comprising:
- a plurality of fuse holders mounted on the periphery of the cylindrical fuse panel, each of the fuse holder is configured to receive the outgoing connection fuse;
- a main busbar electrically connected with the plurality of fuse holders, the main busbar includes a circular connector and a connecting busbar, such that the circular connector is mounted on the periphery of the cylindrical fuse panel from outside and the connecting busbar is mounted from inside the cylindrical fuse panel; and
- a plurality of tapping busbars mounted on the inside of the cylindrical fuse panel, such that one tapping busbar is associated with each of the outgoing connection fuse and electrically connects the outgoing connection fuse with a respective outgoing connection wire.

5. The feeder pillar box according to claim 4, wherein the circular connector is a ring mounted on the cylindrical fuse panel defining a curve for mounting the fuse holders and the connecting busbar is a straight busbar connecting the circular connector with an incoming connection wire.

6. The feeder pillar box according to claim 4, wherein each of the plurality of tapping busbars comprising a fuse end and a wire end, such that the fuse end is connected with the outgoing connection fuse and the wire end is connected with the outgoing connection wire.

7. The feeder pillar box according to claim 4, wherein a top portion of each of the plurality of fuse holders is electrically connected with the main busbar on outside of the cylindrical fuse panel and a bottom portion of the fuse holder is connected with corresponding tapping busbar on the inside of the cylindrical fuse panel.

8. The feeder pillar box according to claim 6, wherein the wire end of each of the plurality of tapping busbars is located at same level in the hexagonal base.

9. The feeder pillar box according to claim 1, wherein the hexagonal base is formed of six faces, each including a fuse holder and a bridge bar, such that the fuse holder is adapted to receive an incoming connection fuse and the bridge bar electrically connects two corresponding incoming connection fuses having same live phase with each other.

10. The feeder pillar box according to claim 9, wherein the hexagonal base includes hinged connections about alternate edges of the six faces, thereby making it adaptable to be opened from three sides.

11. The feeder pillar box according to claim 1, wherein an incoming connection wire and an outgoing connection wire are arranged in the hexagonal base.

12. The feeder pillar box according to claim 1, wherein the fuse panel is made of any electrically insulating material including at least one from a ebonite, a plastic, a Bakelite, a FRP (Fibre Reinforced Plastic) or a combination thereof.

13. The feeder pillar box according to claim 1, further includes a neutral block located in the hexagonal base for connecting a plurality of neutral connection wires with each other.

14. The feeder pillar box according to claim 13, wherein the neutral block comprises of a solid metallic block having a plurality of connection holes for inserting the neutral connection wires.

15. The feeder pillar box according to claim 13, wherein the neutral block is coated with a polymeric insulating material to avoid electrical contact with other components in the hexagonal base.

16. The feeder pillar box according to claim 1, further includes a plurality of fuse housings for containing the plurality of outgoing connection fuses and the plurality of incoming connection fuses.

17. The feeder pillar box according to claim 1, wherein the cylindrical fuse panel further includes a plurality of inclined support members adapted to allow mounting of the outgoing connection fuses at an angle ranging from 30 to 60 degrees with axis of the cylindrical fuse panel.

18. The feeder pillar box according to claim 17, wherein the angle is 45 degrees with axis of the cylindrical fuse panel.

19. The feeder pillar box according to claim 17, wherein a plurality of fuse holders are mounted on the plurality of inclined support members for installing the plurality of outgoing connection fuses.

20. The feeder pillar box according to claim 1, wherein the enclosure comprising:
- a frame of at least two rods which act as guide and support for the enclosure; and
- a hollow cylinder longitudinally split into a plurality of sections mounted on the frame of the at least two rods, such that each of the section includes at least one sliding door which opens when pulled upwards.