TECHNICAL FIELD
[001] The present subject matter described herein, in general, relates to
switchboard units and in particular to an enclosure in switchboard unit for housing equipment and more particularly to a safety shutter that opens and/or covers the enclosure to reduce the risk of inadvertent electrical contact while installing and/or removing equipment from the enclosure.
BACKGROUND
[002] A switchboard unit comprises compartments for accommodating draw-
out type modules, bus bars for carrying high current and electrical connectors that connect modules to one or more of the bus bars when modules is placed in an enclosure of the compartment. However when the module is withdrawn from the compartment, the bus bars and electrical connectors get exposed due to the opening of the compartment. Therefore it is necessary to cover the conductors within the enclosure of the compartment so that they are not accidentally accessible to operator personnel who may be working within or around a switchboard unit.
[003] There are two types of the switchboards used to distribute the generated
power; Power Control Centre (PCC) and Motor Control Centre (MCC). Power Control Centre distributes the power to different Motor Control Centre (MCC) and Motor Control Centre (MCC) distributes that power intelligently to different motor loads, lamp loads using feeders/modules. These modules can be of full width, half width and quarter width depending on variety of loads. These modules get necessary current from various tap-offs from busbars which is then supplied to particular loads. These tap-off points should be inaccessible by user when module is kept outside. Such type of shrouding is achieved with a safety shutter.

[004] Modules receive power from tap-off joints in busbars thus exposing
these places. These can be easily accessible when module is kept outside of specified compartment. To prevent personnel access to live parts, safety shutter is provided. In today's scenario a molded safety shutter is used along with a torsional spring. The spring gets charged when safety shutter is lifted up when module is pushed in. When module is racked out spring is actuated resulting in closing of safety shutter thus allowing no access to live parts.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[005] The following presents a simplified summary of the invention in order to
provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the invention. This summary is not an extensive overview of the present invention. It is not intended to identify the key/critical elements of the invention or to delineate the scope of the invention. Its sole purpose is to present some concept of the invention in a simplified form as a prelude to a more detailed description of the invention presented later.
[006] An object of the present invention is to provide safety shutter that is
actuated by module when it opens as well as when it closes. A driver is mounted on the module chassis which helps to perform the required functionality.
.[007] Another object of the present invention is to provide safety shutter is
operated by module thus eliminating the use of spring increasing the reliability of the mechanism.
[008] Yet another object of present invention is to achieve an operation of
safety shutter using a simple component (driver).
[009] Yet another object of present invention is to provide a mechanism
wherein the safety shutter mechanism is independent of gravity or spring.

[0010] Accordingly, in one implementation, in an electrical switchboard having
safety shutter and at least one bracket is disclosed. The electrical switchboard comprises a shutter assembly and a module assembly fixed on said electrical switchboards, wherein said shutter assembly comprises a shutter (1) having a groove and at least two brackets (2) for providing a pin joint to facilitate hinging movement of said shutter; and said module assembly comprises a supporting bracket (3) and a driver (4) fixed on said supporting bracket (3); and said driver (4) is configured to operate said shutter (1).
[0011] In one implementation, in an electrical switchboard having safety shutter
and at least one bracket, said electrical switchboard is disclosed. The shutter assembly and a module assembly fixed on said electrical switchboards, wherein said shutter assembly comprises a shutter (1) having a groove and at least two brackets (2) for providing a pin joint to facilitate hinging movement of said shutter; and said module assembly comprises a supporting bracket (3) and a driver (4)includes a neck means, a head means and at least two ear means fixed on said supporting bracket (3); and said driver (4) is configured to operate said shutter (1), and said driver (4) travels along with a module tc be inserted/removed and said head means is configured to passes through or come out of said groove provided in said shutter (1).
[0012] In one implementation, the present invention provides a compact
mechanism to operate shutter without using spring force or gravitational force.
[0013] In one implementation, the present invention solves the requirement of
avoiding use of external forces like spring and gravity to operate the mechanism.
[0014] Other aspects, advantages, and salient features of the invention will
become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description, which, taken, in conjunction with the annexed drawings, discloses exemplary embodiments of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS
The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be more apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
[0015] Figure 1 and Figure 2 illustrates a shutter sub-assembly, in accordance
with the subject matter of the present invention
[0016] Figure 3 illustrates components involved in module sub-assembly, in
accordance with the subject matter of the present invention.
[0017] Figure 4 illustrates whole sub-assembly is fixed on module chassis, in
accordance with the subject matter of the present invention.
[0018] Figure 5 illustrates a driver (4), in accordance with the subject matter of
the present invention.
[0019] Figure 6 and Figure 7 illustrates positions of module assembly before
and at the time of contact with shutter assembly, in accordance with the subject matter of the present invention.
[0020] Figure 8 illustrates shutter is lifted up as it is hinged to the brackets, in
accordance with the subject matter of the present invention.
[0021] Figure 9 illustrates position of driver (4) and shutter (1) when module is
fully inserted, in accordance with the subject matter of the present invention.
[0022] Figure 10 illustrates different view of figure 9, in accordance with the
subject matter of the present invention.

[0023] Figure 11 illustrates driver moves along with module, in accordance with
the subject matter of the present invention.
[0024] Figure 12 illustrates a shutter to its original position, in accordance with
the subject matter of the present invention
[0025] Persons skilled in the art will appreciate that elements in the figures are
illustrated for simplicity and clarity and may have not been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figure may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. Throughout the drawings, it should be noted that like reference numbers are used to depict the same or similar elements, features, and structures.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
[0026] The following description with reference to the accompanying drawings
is provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of exemplary embodiments of the invention. It includes various specific details to assist in that understanding but these are to be regarded as merely exemplary.
[0027] Accordingly, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that various
changes and modifications of the embodiments described herein can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, descriptions of well-known functions and constructions are omitted for clarity and conciseness.
[0028] The terms and words used in the following description and claims are not
limited to the bibliographical meanings, but, are merely used by the inventor to enable a clear and consistent understanding of the invention. Accordingly, it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that the following description of exemplary embodiments of the present invention are provided for illustration purpose only and not for the purpose of limiting the invention as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

[0029] It is to be understood that the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include
plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.
[0030] By the term "substantially" it is meant that the recited characteristic,
parameter, or value need not be achieved exactly, but that deviations or variations, including for example, tolerances, measurement error, measurement accuracy limitations and other factors known to those of skill in the art, may occur in amounts that do not preclude the effect the characteristic was intended to provide.
[0031] Features that are described and/or illustrated with respect to one
embodiment may be used in the same way or in a similar way in one or more other embodiments and/or in combination with or instead of the features of the other embodiments.
[0032] It should be emphasized that the term "comprises/comprising" when
used in this specification is taken to specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps or components but does not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, components or groups thereof.
[0033] A person skilled in the art will appreciate that for understanding purpose
the present invention is explained with the help of electrical switchboard units however the disclosed method shall not be considered as the limiting factor for the scope of present invention.
[0034] In one implementation, a new safety shutter mechanism is operated with
the help of module in both conditions i.e. rack-in and rack-out. This differs from presently used mechanism where shutter is operated by module only when it is pushed in. The safety shutter assembly consists' of two main sub-assemblies, namely a shutter assembly and a module assembly.

[0035] In one implementation, the shutter assembly consists of a shutter and two
brackets for providing pin joint to facilitate movement of shutter.
[0036] Figure 1 and Figure 2 shows shutter sub-assembly consisting of shutter
(1) and brackets (2) and how brackets (2) help in achieving hinging movement to shutter.
[0037] Figure 3 shows components involved in module sub-assembly. It
consists of a supporting bracket (3) and driver (4) fixed on this bracket. This whole sub-assembly is fixed on module chassis as shown in Figure 4.
[0038] Figure 5 shows driver (4) is the most essential component, which is
responsible for operating the shutter (1) when module is racked out. It consists of three important features, namely the neck, head and ears.
[0039] Figure 6 and Figure 7 show positions of module assembly before and at
the time of contact with shutter assembly. It is clearly evident how driver(4) travels along with module and its head passes through a T-shape cut-out provided in the shutter(l). This slot is provided so that the head and ears of driver should pass through the shutter; which would later help in bringing the shutter back to its original position.
[0040] When the module is further pushed in, shutter is lifted up as it is hinged
to the brackets (2) as clearly shown in figure 8. As shutter is hinged, neck of driver (4) .. moves in T-shape cut in shutter (1). This motion continues till module is completely inserted. Figure 9 shows position of driver (4) and shutter (1) when module is fully inserted. This satisfies the requirement of opening the safety shutter with the help of module. Figure 10 shows a different view of Figure 9.
[0041] Figure 11 shows when module is racked out, driver moves along with
module but since the head and ears cannot move out of the cut in shutter, driver brings the shutter along with it.

[0042] The driver continues to bring the shutter along with it till it reaches the
bigger cut in shutter where the head is free to move out; resulting in no contact with shutter bringing shutter to its original position as shown in Figure 12. This completes the second functionality of the mechanism.
[0043] Accordingly, in one implementation, in an electrical switchboard having
safety shutter and at least one bracket is disclosed. The electrical switchboard comprises a shutter assembly and a module assembly fixed on said electrical switchboards, wherein said shutter assembly comprises a shutter (1) having a groove and at least two brackets (2) for providing a pin joint to facilitate hinging movement of said shutter; and said module assembly comprises a supporting bracket (3) and a driver (4) fixed on said supporting bracket (3); and said driver (4) is configured to operate said shutter (1).
[0044] In one implementation, in an electrical switchboard having safety shutter
and at least one bracket, said electrical switchboard is disclosed. The shutter assembly and a module assembly fixed on said electrical switchboards, wherein said shutter assembly comprises a shutter (1) having a groove and at least two brackets (2) for providing a pin joint to facilitate hinging movement of said shutter; and said module assembly comprises a supporting bracket (3) and a driver (4)includes a neck means, a head means and at least two ear means fixed on said supporting bracket (3); and said driver (4) is configured to operate said shutter (1), and said driver (4) travels along with a module to be inserted/removed and said head means is configured to passes through or come out of said groove provided in said shutter (1).
[0045] In one implementation, said driver (4) comprises a neck means, a head
means and at least two ear means.
[0046] In one implementation, when a module is inserted in said electrical
switchboard said driver (4) travels along with said module and said head means passes through said groove provided in said shutter (1).

[0047] In one implementation, said groove is a T-shape cut-out along a length of
said shutter, which comprises a bigger cut at one end to fit said head and ear means in it, and comparatively smaller cut throughout said length. The said cut may not have a specified dimension as the shutter length can vary with respect to height of module.
[0048] In one implementation, said head means and said ear means of said
driver are configured to pass through said groove of said shutter which further helps in bringing said shutter back to original position.
[0049] In one implementation, when said module is pushed in, said shutter as
hinged is lifted up to said brackets (2) and said neck means of said driver (4) moves in T-shape cut-out in said shutter (1), and this sliding motion continues till said module is inserted completely in said electrical switchboard.
[0050] In one implementation, when said module is racked out, said driver
moves along with said module, thereby restricting said head means and said ear means to move out of said groove, therefore said driver brings said shutter along till it reaches said bigger cut in said shutter where the head is free to move out, and after reaching said bigger cut, resulting in no contact with said shutter bringing said shutter to said original position.
[0051] In one implementation, the present invention has a distinct advantage
over the existing method in terms of pre-assembly time and subsequent ease of assembly. Moreover, if spring is used its life is bound to degrade over a certain period of time which would lead to improper functioning of mechanism. Using the new invention not only do we avoid any glitches in its functioning but also give positive opening and closing of shutter every single time.
[0052] In one implementation, said pin joint is used to keep the shutter in a
specified place and provide a hinge contact for free rotation.

[0053] It may be Understood by the person skilled in that art that, the coupling,
joining, fitting of the two components mentioned the present invention may be achieved by any of the existing coupling techniques that may include but not limited to nut and bolt arrangement, gluing, pasting, welding, and the like.
[0054] Although a pad lock safety shutter for switchboard have been described
in language specific to structural features and/or methods, it is to be understood that the embodiments disclosed in the above section are not necessarily limited to the specific features or methods or devices described. Rather, the specific features are disclosed as examples of implementations of the pad lock safety shutter for switchboard.

WE CLAIM:
1. In an electrical switchboard having safety shutter and at least one bracket, said
electrical switchboard CHARACTERIZED IN THAT comprising a shutter assembly
and a module assembly fixed on said electrical switchboards, wherein:
said shutter assembly comprises a shutter (1) having a groove and at least
two brackets (2) for providing a pin joint to facilitate hinging movement of said
shutter; and
said module assembly comprises a supporting bracket (3) and a driver (4) fixed on said supporting bracket (3); and
said driver (4) is configured to operate said shutter (1).
2. The electrical switchboard as claimed in claim 1, wherein said driver (4) comprises a neck means, a head means and at least two ear means.
3. The electrical switchboard as claimed in claims 1 and 2, wherein, when a module is inserted in said electrical switchboard said driver (4) travels along with said module and said head means passes through said groove provided in said shutter (1).
4. The electrical switchboard as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein, said groove is a T-shape cut-out along a length of said shutter, which comprises a bigger cut at one end to fit said head and ear means in it, and comparatively smaller cut throughout said length.
5. The electrical switchboard as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein, said head means and said ear means of said driver are configured to pass through said groove of said shutter which further helps in bringing said shutter back to original position.

6. The electrical switchboard as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein, when said module is pushed in, said shutter as hinged is lifted up to said brackets (2) and said neck means of said driver (4) moves in T-shape cut-out in said shutter (1), and this sliding motion continues till said module is inserted completely in said electrical switchboard.
7. The electrical switchboard as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein, when said module is racked out, said driver moves along with said module, thereby restricting said head means and said ear means to move out of said groove, therefore said driver brings said shutter along till it reaches said bigger cut in said shutter where the head is free to move out, and after reaching said bigger cut, resulting in no contact with said shutter bringing said shutter to said original position.
8. The electrical switchboard as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein, said neck means is preferably of 5 x 22 mm.
9. The electrical switchboard as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein, said head means is preferably of 10 x 8 mm.
10. In an electrical switchboard having safety shutter and at least one bracket, said electrical switchboard CHARACTERIZED IN THAT comprising a shutter assembly and a module assembly fixed on said electrical switchboards, wherein:
said shutter assembly comprises a shutter (1) having a groove and at least two brackets (2) for providing a pin joint to facilitate hinging movement of said shutter; and
said module assembly comprises a supporting bracket (3) and a driver (4) includes a neck means, a head means and at least two ear means fixed on said supporting bracket (3); and
said driver (4) is configured to operate said shutter (1), and said driver (4) travels along with a module to be inserted/removed and said head means is configured to passes through or come but of said groove provided in said shutter.