FORM 2
The Patents Act 1970
(39 of 1970)
&
The Patent Rules 2003
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION
(See Section 10 and rule 13)
TITLE OF THE INVENTION: MODULAR CONTACT SYSTEM
APPLICANT: LARSEN & TOUBRO LIMITED
L&T House, Ballard Estate, P.O. Box No. 278,
Mumbai, 400 001, Maharashtra,
INDIA.
PREAMBLE OF THE DESCRIPTION:
THE FOLLOWING SPECIFICATION PARTICULARLY DESCRIBES THE INVENTION AND THE MANNER IN WHICH IT IS TO BE PERFORMED

A) TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present invention generally relates to electrical contact systems, and particularly to contact systems for switchboards. The present invention more particularly relates to fault free contact system for rack-in and draw-out type switchboards.
B) BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] It is known that in order to cater to the requirements of distribution and protection of the end application devices, incoming power is routed through various electrical monitoring and controlling devices (hence forth called as switching devices). The use of electrical devices is well known for making, breaking and to provide safety in a typical electrical distribution system." These switching devices are mounted inside an enclosure with all electrical connections made within the enclosure for the necessary distribution and finally the required power is delivered to the end application devices.
[0003] Electrical power distribution and circuit protection apparatus are often housed within cubicles. A cubicle cabinet is often configured in vertically stacked sections, wherein separate apparatus are stacked one on top of the other. Each cabinet section is generally separated by a horizontal barrier, often constructed of sheet metal. Power is distributed to each apparatus in the vertical section by way of vertically aligned section busses. In many field installations, cubicle cabinet sections are aligned next to each other to make a row of cabinets. Power is distributed from one cubicle to the next by way of through busses that are generally horizontally aligned and connected to the vertical bus. In this way, a row of separate cubicle cabinets has a network of vertically aligned section busses and horizontally aligned through busses which form a grid-like pattern.

[0004] Conventional designs demands higher space for feeders. Also some prior designs use insulation sleeves which may get damaged with time due to heat and industrial environmental factors. These designs always have a risk of insulation failure or sleeve damage and posses a higher risk factor. Also, some designs use fix barriers with sleeves which increases the total cost.
[0005] Hence there is a need to develop an improved modular contact system with compact design and suitable for different types of feeders. Also there exists a need to provide a contact system to enable an operator to remove the module from the switchboard such that maintenance can be done
remotely.
[0006] The above mentioned shortcomings, disadvantages and problems are addressed herein and which will be understood by reading and studying the following specification.
C) OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
[0007] The primary object of the present invention is to develop an improved contact system suitable for different type of feeders.
[0008] Another object of the present invention is to develop a compact contact system which uses multifunctional parts and can be used for multiple feeders in the same space.
[0009] Yet another object of the present invention is to develop a modular contact system which will have flexibility to get change in any type, required by customer.

[0010] Yet another object of the present invention is to develop a modular contact system which requires less space for a switchboard panel.
[0011] These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become readily apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
D) SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0012] The above mentioned shortcomings, disadvantages and problems are addressed herein and which will be understood by reading and studying the following specification.
[0013] The various embodiments of the present invention provide a fault free modular contact system. The present invention deals with a draw-out type contact system with a capacity of accommodating six outgoing terminals and hence cater to needs of star-delta starters, twin feeder starters, soft starters, DOL starters and other feeders which requires upto six outgoing terminals.
[0014] According to an embodiment of the present invention, in the fault free modular contact system the contacts are housed in the modular contact housing. For each phase one modular contact housing assembly, which holds power contact, is used and it is fixed on a molded barrier. The molded barrier acts as a support to modular contact housing and also as a barrier between two adjacent phases. The molded barrier insulates the power contacts from the metallic member of the mechanism by providing required clearance and creepages.

[0015] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the
orientation of the modular contact housing is vertical. The vertical orientation provides for accommodating at least six outgoing terminals. The moulded barrier is fixed on a horizontal metallic member driven through a mechanism. A braid on one side is braized to the power contact and to copper terminal on the other. An internal cable is terminated through a lug on copper terminal. The copper terminal is fixed with the terminal housing which gets fixed with the module chassis.
[0016] According to an embodiment of the present invention, a customer terminal mounting plate is fixed on the customer terminal side on a horizontal partition. The horizontal partition is also known as tray. Further a terminal housing is fixed on the customer terminal mounting piate. The housing includes a groove which facilitates its fixing with one screw. The slots and threading required for fixing the terminal housing are provided in customer terminal mounting plate. The customer terminal and a customer cable lug are fixed to terminal housing using a screw. The threads are provided on the back plate of the customer terminal for fixing. A customer terminal barrier is provided between two adjacent terminal housings and corresponding threads are provided in customer terminal mounting plate.
[0017] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the metallic member on which the modular contact housing is fixed moves when an operator operates the mechanism of the feeder. The power contact also moves with the metallic member as it is housed in modular contact housing. The power contact gets engaged with the customer terminal which has a provision for termination of the customer cable lug. In this way, the outgoing side circuit gets completed. Similarly, when the operator moves back the mechanism, the metallic member moves back and the power contact gets disengaged from the customer terminal. The moulded barrier moves with the

modular contact housing and ensures that no two different potentials can see each other, thereby making the system fault free.
E) BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0018] The other objects, features and advantages will occur to those skilled in the art from the following description of the preferred embodiment and the accompanying drawings in which:
[0019] FIG. 1 illustrates the perspective view of the modular contact system assembly according to one embodiment of the present invention.
[0020] FIG. 2 illustrates the side view of the moulded barrier of modular contact system according to one embodiment of the present invention.
[0021] FIG. 3 illustrates the rear view of the customer terminal according to one embodiment of the present invention.
[0022] FIG. 4 illustrates a perspective view of the contact assembly
and module terminal with back plate according to one embodiment of the present invention.
[0023] FIG. 5 illustrates the top view of the customer terminal mounting plate according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0024] Although specific features of the present invention are shown in
some drawings and not in others. This is done for convenience only as each feature may be combined with any or all of the other features in accordance with the present invention.

F) DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0025] In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which the specific embodiments that may be practiced is shown by way of illustration. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the embodiments and it is to be understood that the logical, mechanical and other changes may be made without departing from the scope of the embodiments. The following detailed description is therefore not to be taken in a limiting sense.
[0026] The various embodiments of the present invention provide a fault free modular contact system. The present invention deals with a draw-out type contact system with a capacity of accommodating six outgoing terminals and hence cater to needs of star-delta starters, twin feeder starters, soft starters, DOL starters and other feeders which requires upto six outgoing terminals. This eliminates the need for providing different contact systems for different types of feeders thereby resulting in reduction of total number of components and different manufacturing processes. Therefore such a design provides a large cost reduction.
[0027] FIG. 1 illustrates the perspective view of the modular contact
system assembly according to one embodiment of the present invention. In the fault free modular contact system, the contacts are housed in the modular contact housing. For each phase one modular contact housing assembly is provided. The modular contact housing assembly holds the power contact which is used and is fixed on the moulded barrier which acts as a support to modular contact housing and also as a barrier between the two adjacent phases. The moulded barrier insulates the power contact from the metallic member of the mechanism by providing required clearance and creepages.

[0028] In modular contact system the terminal housing 1 is fixed on the module chassis 10. A module terminal 15 is fixed with terminal housing
1 with the help of a module terminal back plate 14 and hardware. An internal
cable 3 is terminated over the module terminal 15.contact assembly 4 is
fixed on the moulded barrier 2 which acts as a support to the contact
assembly 4. The customer terminal barrier 5 is provided between two
adjacent terminal housings and corresponding threads, for fixing, are
provided in the customer terminal mounting plate 8. The customer cable 6 is
terminated through a lug 7 on the customer terminal 9. The customer
terminal 9 is fixed with the terminal housing 1 which gets fixed with the
customer terminal mounting plate 20(new added; needs change in fig. 1).
The customer terminal mounting plate 20 is fixed on the horizontal partition.
The horizontal partition is also known as tray 11.
[0029] FIG. 2 illustrates a side view of the moulded barrier of modular
contact system according to one embodiment of the present invention. The moulded barrier 2 is provided with a separation wall 19 which provides a support to the modular contact housing. The base 18 of the moulded barrier is as shown in the FIG. 2.
[0030] FIG. 3 illustrates the rear view of the customer terminal
according to an embodiment of the present invention. The power contact gets engaged with the customer terminals 9 which have a provision for termination of the customer cable lug 7 thereby completing the outgoing side circuit. The slot 12 is provided, for the terminal housing locator 13, on the customer terminal mounting plate 20. When the operator moves back the mechanism, the metallic member moves back and the power contact gets disengaged from the customer terminal 9. In this process the moulded barrier
2 moves with the modular contact housing and ensures that no two different
potentials come in contact with each other.

[0031] FIG. 4 illustrates a perspective view of the contact assembly and the module terminal with back plate according to an embodiment of the present invention. The terminal housing 1 includes a contact assembly 4, an internal cable 3 and a moulded barrier 2 which acts as a support to modular contact housing as shown in FIG. 1. The terminal housing 1 is fixed on a customer terminal mounting plate 14. The housing has a groove which facilitates its fixing with one screw. The slots and the threading required for fixing are provided in the module chassis 10.. The module terminal 15and the internal cable 3 are fixed to the terminal housing 1 with a screw. The threads are provided in the customer terminal back plate 15 for fixing as shown in FIG. 4.
[0032] FIG. 5 illustrates the top view of the customer terminal mounting plate according to an embodiment of the present invention. The slot 12 is provided for terminal housing locator 13, a hole 16 for locator in customer terminal barrier 5 and a threading 17 for fixing of the customer terminal barrier 5 are provided on the customer terminal mounting plate 20. The customer terminal 9 and the customer cable lug 7 are fixed to the terminal housing 1 with a screw. The threads are provided in the customer terminal back plate 8 for fixing. The customer terminal barrier 5 is provided between two adjacent terminal housings 1 and corresponding threads are provided in customer terminal mounting plate.
G) ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION
[0033] The fault free compact system of the present invention provides a single compact design which is able to adapt for different type of feeders. The fault free compact system of the present invention provides draw-out feature in the starters.

[0034] The design of the system is such that it uses available space efficiently by providing inherent barrier in the design and minimizing the compulsion of providing space between two phases; The system is compact and uses multifunctional parts and more feeders can be provided in a given space. The starter with this system will have flexibility to get change in any type, required by user. The barriers move with the contact and always provide separation between two adjacent phases.
[0035] Although the invention is described with various specific embodiments, it will be obvious for a person skilled in the art to practice the invention with modifications. However, all such modifications are deemed to be within the scope of the claims.
[0036] It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the present invention described herein and all the statements of the scope of the invention which as a matter of language might be said to fall there between.

CLAIMS
What is claimed is:
1. A modular contact system comprising;
a modular contact housing;
one or more power contacts arranged in the modular contact housing ; and
a moulded barrier;
a metallic member; and
at least one terminal;
wherein a movement of the modular contact housing during operation causes the
power contacts to get engaged or disengaged from the terminal such that no two
different terminals comes in contact with each other thereby providing a fault free
operation.
2. The modular contact system according to claim 1, wherein the modular contact
housing is arranged vertical.
3. The modular contact system according to claim 2, wherein the vertical orientation provides for connecting a plurality of outgoing terminals.
4. The modular contact system according to claim 3, wherein the plurality of outgoing terminals include at least six outgoing terminals.
5. The modular contact system according to claim 1, wherein the moulded barrier is fixed on a horizontal metallic member.
6. The modular contact system according to claim 5, wherein the molded barrier insulates the power contact from the metallic member.
7. The modular contact system according to claim 1, further comprising a braid attached to at least one of the power contact and a copper terminal.
8. The modular contact system according to claim7, wherein the copper terminal is fixed with a terminal housing attached to the module chassis.
9. The modular contact system according to claim 1, wherein the terminal
housing is mounted on a terminal mounting plate.
10. The modular contact system according to claim 9, wherein the terminal
housing includes the terminal and a cable lug fixed on with at least one screw.
11. The modular contact system according to claim 9, wherein the customer
terminal back plate includes thread provided for fixing the terminal to the
terminal housing.

12. The modular contact system according to claim 9, further comprising a customer terminal barrier provided between two adjacent terminal housings.
13. The modular contact system according to claim 1, wherein the power contact gets engaged with at least six terminals, having a provision for termination of the customer cable lugs.
14. The modular contact system according to claim 1, wherein the moulded
barrier moves with the modular contact housing thereby ensuring that no two
different potentials come in contact with each other.