CLIAMS:1. An circuit breaker comprising an electronic trip unit, said trip unit further comprising a:
a battery operatively coupled with a switch;
an OR-ing circuit operatively coupled to said battery through said switch to power a display module, wherein when line current is available, said display module is powered up from said line current using said OR-ing circuit, and wherein when said line current is not available, said battery is kept isolated using said switching such that activation of the switch connects said battery to said OR-ing circuit to power said display module; and
a controller for controlling said switch and sensing when said line current is regained.
2. The circuit breaker of claim 1, wherein said switch is a keypad switch such that pressing of the switch connects said battery to said OR-ing circuit to power said display module.
3. The circuit breaker of claim 1, wherein said switch comprises a switching circuit having a plurality of MOSFETs that act as switching elements.
4. The circuit breaker of claim 3, wherein said battery is connected to source terminal of PMOS such that during isolated state of said battery, gate of said PMOS is pulled up through a resistor to make biasing voltage higher than is required to turn said PMOS on, and wherein pressing of said switch drops the gate potential to zero Volts, making PMOS operate in active region.
5. The circuit breaker of claim 4, wherein once the PMOS operates in the active region, after a defined switching duration, output of said PMOS is stepped down to a defined voltage value.
6. The circuit breaker of claim 3, wherein said battery is connected to drain terminal of NMOS such that during isolated state of said battery, the drain terminal of said NMOS is pulled up through a resistor and gate terminal is pulled down to zero potential to keep NMOS in off state, and wherein pressing of said switch enables release of a control signal by said controller for said gate terminal to turn on said NMOS.
7. The circuit breaker of claim 6, wherein when said line current is regained, said controller withdraws said control signal to re-isolate said battery.
8. The circuit breaker of claim 6, wherein time delay between pressing said switch and release of said control signal by said controller is maintained to avoid glitch in maintaining continuous supply.
9. The circuit breaker of claim 1, wherein said battery is configured to power up one or more modules of said electronic trip unit.
10. The circuit breaker of claim 1, wherein said circuit breaker comprises a voltage monitoring unit configured to monitor battery voltage and perform any or a combination of enabling one or more components of said electronic trip unit to function in low power mode, and indicating low battery indication to user of said circuit breaker.
11. The circuit breaker of claim 1, wherein said circuit breaker comprises a regulator unit.
,TagSPECI:TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present disclosure generally relates to the field of power management. In particular, the present disclosure relates to mechanisms for powering up of display module used in circuit breakers using auxiliary means of supply such as Battery.

BACKGROUND
[0002] Background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention, or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
[0003] Circuit Breaker typically includes an electronic trip unit that has various blocks such as power up section, sensing module, signal conditioning module, data processing unit, memory management module, user interface and tripping mechanism, among other like blocks, wherein the trip unit derives it power from the line current. An electronic trip unit typically comprises voltage and current sensors that provide analog signals indicative of current or voltage in a power distribution circuit. The analog signals are converted by an A/D (analog/digital) converter to digital signals that are processed by a microcontroller. The trip unit further includes RAM (random access memory), ROM (read only memory) and EEPROM (electronic erasable programmable read only memory) all of which interface with the microcontroller. The ROM includes trip unit application code, e.g., main functionality trip setting values, including initializing parameters, boot code, and operational parameters (e.g., trip setting instructions). Operational parameters for the application code are also stored in the EEPROM. An output of the electronic trip unit actuates a trip module, such as a solenoid, that trips a mechanical operating mechanism. The mechanical operating mechanism, in turn, separates a pair of main contacts within the circuit breaker. When the contacts open, circuit current is prevented from flowing from one contact to the other, and electrical current is prevented from flowing to a load that is connected to the breaker. The electronic trip unit initiates a trip for instantaneous, short time, long time, ground fault, and manual conditions.
[0004] For visual indication and interface, displays with navigation switches are deployed on the trip units, wherein such display units are powered up through line power or by auxiliary means such as external power supply or battery in absence of the line power. In absence of line power, display is required/configured to enable reading of critical parameters such as protection settings, trip history, etc.. Display module typically includes a controller section, a display driver IC, backlight, LED indication and keypad, which together consumes current of the order mA depending on low power mode to full power mode operation. While deriving its power from line current, operation in full mode is feasible but by using a simple or-ing circuit, in absence of line power, battery directly connects to the rest of the circuit, thus powering it up. For example, even in Low power mode, 5mA consumption from 110mAh capacity battery can give only 22 hrs i.e. approx. 1 day life.
[0005] In an implementation, after a trip occurs, line power to the trip unit of the breaker is cut off. In order to read the settings or records for tripping history, a backup supply is therefore needed, wherein, many a times an external auxiliary supply is needed to power up the trip unit or display module for data access.. However, such external auxiliary supplies are not reliable and working thereof for the circuit breakers cannot be flexibly controlled.
[0006] Therefore, there is a need in the art for an electronic trip unit that incorporates a backup battery that can be used flexibly whenever desired by the user and can be used to restrict the consumption from battery and display metering data only when required in absence of the line power.
[0007] All publications herein are incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual publication or patent application were specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference. Where a definition or use of a term in an incorporated reference is inconsistent or contrary to the definition of that term provided herein, the definition of that term provided herein applies and the definition of that term in the reference does not apply.
[0008] In some embodiments, the numbers expressing quantities of ingredients, properties such as concentration, reaction conditions, and so forth, used to describe and claim certain embodiments of the invention are to be understood as being modified in some instances by the term “about.” Accordingly, in some embodiments, the numerical parameters set forth in the written description and attached claims are approximations that can vary depending upon the desired properties sought to be obtained by a particular embodiment. In some embodiments, the numerical parameters should be construed in light of the number of reported significant digits and by applying ordinary rounding techniques. Notwithstanding that the numerical ranges and parameters setting forth the broad scope of some embodiments of the invention are approximations, the numerical values set forth in the specific examples are reported as precisely as practicable. The numerical values presented in some embodiments of the invention may contain certain errors necessarily resulting from the standard deviation found in their respective testing measurements.
[0009] As used in the description herein and throughout the claims that follow, the meaning of “a,” “an,” and “the” includes plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Also, as used in the description herein, the meaning of “in” includes “in” and “on” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.
[0010] The recitation of ranges of values herein is merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range. Unless otherwise indicated herein, each individual value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g. “such as”) provided with respect to certain embodiments herein is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element essential to the practice of the invention.
[0011] Groupings of alternative elements or embodiments of the invention disclosed herein are not to be construed as limitations. Each group member can be referred to and claimed individually or in any combination with other members of the group or other elements found herein. One or more members of a group can be included in, or deleted from, a group for reasons of convenience and/or patentability. When any such inclusion or deletion occurs, the specification is herein deemed to contain the group as modified thus fulfilling the written description of all Markush groups used in the appended claims.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
[0012] An object of the present disclosure is to provide an electronic trip unit that is integrated with a battery/auxiliary supply means.
[0013] An object of the present disclosure is to provide an electronic trip unit that is integrated with a battery/auxiliary supply means such that the battery consumption can be restricted only to situations when it is required.
[0014] An object of the present disclosure is to provide an electronic trip unit that is integrated with a battery/auxiliary supply means that is cut-off from the trip unit and comes into action only when needed by the user.
[0015] An object of the present disclosure is to provide an electronic trip unit that is integrated with a battery/auxiliary supply means, wherein the unit incorporates a switching mechanism that is deployed using low cost MOSFETS, which connect to the battery only while access to the trip unit information is needed.
[0016] An object of the present disclosure is to provide an electronic trip unit that considerably reduces power consumption by monitoring voltage and taking actions to make economical usage of available power source.

SUMMARY
[0017] The present disclosure generally relates to the field of power management. In particular, the present disclosure relates to mechanisms for powering up of display module or other modules used in circuit breakers using auxiliary means of supply such as Battery. In an aspect, circuit breaker of the present disclosure can include an electronic trip unit having a battery operatively coupled with a switch; an OR-ing circuit operatively coupled to the battery through the switch to power a display module, wherein when line current is available, the display module is powered up from the line current using the OR-ing circuit, and wherein when the line current is not available, the battery is kept isolated using the switching such that activation of the switch connects the battery to the OR-ing circuit to power the display module; and a controller for controlling the switch and for sensing when the line current is regained.
[0018] One should appreciate that although the present disclosure has been explained with reference to the display module, any other module that needs to be powered by the battery of the present disclosure is completely within the scope of the present disclosure.
[0019] In an aspect, switch of the electronic trip unit can be a keypad switch such that pressing of the switch connects the battery to the OR-ing circuit to power the display module/or any other module. In another aspect, the switch can include a switching circuit having a plurality of MOSFETs that act as switching elements. In an embodiment, one end of the battery can be connected to the source terminal of PMOS (hole side of the MOSFETS) such that during isolated state of the battery, gate of the PMOS can be pulled up through a resistor to make biasing voltage higher than that is required to turn the PMOS ON, and wherein pressing of the switch drops the gate potential to zero Volts, making the PMOS operate in active region. Once the PMOS operates in the active region, after a defined switching duration, output of the PMOS can be stepped down to a defined voltage value.
[0020] In an aspect, other end of the battery can be connected to drain terminal of NMOS (electron side of the MOSFETS) such that during the isolated state of the battery, the drain terminal of the NMOS is pulled up through a resistor and gate terminal is pulled down to zero potential to keep NMOS in OFF state, and wherein pressing of the switch enables release of a control signal by the controller for the gate terminal to turn on the NMOS.
[0021] In an aspect, when the line current is regained, the controller withdraws the control signal to re-isolate the battery. In another aspect, time delay between pressing the switch and release of the control signal by the controller is maintained to avoid glitch in maintaining continuous supply. In yet another aspect, the battery can be configured to power up one or more modules of the electronic trip unit.
[0022] The circuit breaker can further include a voltage monitoring unit that is configured to monitor battery voltage and perform any or a combination of enabling one or more components of the electronic trip unit to function in low power mode, and indicating low battery indication to the user of the circuit breaker. Circuit breaker of the present disclosure can further include a regulator unit.
[0023] Various objects, features, aspects and advantages of the inventive subject matter will become more apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments, along with the accompanying drawing figures in which like numerals represent like components

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0024] The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the present disclosure, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the present disclosure.
[0025] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary representation of a circuit breaker in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0026] The following is a detailed description of embodiments of the disclosure depicted in the accompanying drawings. The embodiments are in such detail as to clearly communicate the disclosure. However, the amount of detail offered is not intended to limit the anticipated variations of embodiments; on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims.
[0027] Each of the appended claims defines a separate invention, which for infringement purposes is recognized as including equivalents to the various elements or limitations specified in the claims. Depending on the context, all references below to the "invention" may in some cases refer to certain specific embodiments only. In other cases it will be recognized that references to the "invention" will refer to subject matter recited in one or more, but not necessarily all, of the claims.
[0028] Various terms as used herein are shown below. To the extent a term used in a claim is not defined below, it should be given the broadest definition persons in the pertinent art have given that term as reflected in printed publications and issued patents at the time of filing.
[0029] Various embodiments and features shall now be described in detail with reference to drawings.
[0030] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary representation of a circuit breaker 100 in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown, circuit breaker 100 of the present disclosure can include an electronic trip unit having a battery 102 operatively coupled with a switch 104; an OR-ing circuit 106 operatively coupled to the battery 102 through the switch 104 to power a display module 108, wherein when line current is available, the display module 108 is powered up from the line current using the OR-ing circuit 106, and wherein when the line current is not available, the battery 102 is kept isolated using the switching such that activation of the switch 104 connects the battery 102 to the OR-ing circuit 106 to power the display module 108; and a controller 110 for controlling the switch 104 and for sensing when the line current is regained. By means of the switch 104 therefore, the present disclosure enables Power up from the battery and display metering data through display module 108 or any other module only when required, in absence of line power, increasing battery’s life.
[0031] One should appreciate that although the present disclosure has been explained with reference to the display module 108, any other module that needs to be powered by the battery of the present disclosure is completely within the scope of the present disclosure.
[0032] In an aspect, switch 104 of the electronic trip unit can be a keypad switch such that pressing of the switch 104 connects the battery 102 to the OR-ing circuit 106 to power the display module 108/or any other module. In another aspect, the switch 104 can include a switching circuit having a plurality of MOSFETs that act as switching elements. In present invention therefore, a MOSFET driven logical switching circuit (also referred to as 104 hereinafter) is included, which along with access to navigation switch can connect the battery 102 to rest of the module (including but not limited to display module 104) only when user wants to access. In isolated mode, consumption is in nano Amps, which amounts to more than say 2 years of life of the battery.
[0033] The present disclosure therefore includes a replaceable battery such as 102 that forms an integrated part of the module so that even in the absence of line power, the display module or any other like module of the trip unit can be used to read the trip record and other important parameters or perform any other configured module function. Replaceable Battery 102 forms an integral part of the trip unit 100 and thus trip history information is available even in the absence of the main supply. Battery 102 of the present disclosure is therefore totally cut-off from the module and comes into action only when needed, by the user. The switching mechanism 104 is deployed using low cost MOSFETS, which connect to the battery 102 only while access to the trip unit information is needed.
[0034] In an embodiment, one end of the battery 102 can be connected to the source terminal of PMOS (hole side of the MOSFETS) such that during isolated state of the battery 102, gate of the PMOS can be pulled up through a resistor to make biasing voltage higher than that is required to turn the PMOS ON, and wherein pressing of the switch 104 drops the gate potential to zero Volts, making the PMOS operate in active region. Once the PMOS operates in the active region, after a defined switching duration, output of the PMOS can be stepped down to a defined voltage value. In an implementation therefore, in the MOSFET Switching Circuit 104, battery 102 can be connected to the source terminal of PMOS, whose gate can be pulled up to same potential through a resistor making biasing voltage VGS (VG-VS) higher than is required to turn the P-MOS ON. Thus, no output is available at the drain terminal and battery remains isolated from the rest of the circuit.
[0035] In an aspect, other end of the battery 102 can be connected to drain terminal of NMOS (electron side of the MOSFETS) such that during the isolated state of the battery 102, the drain terminal of the NMOS is pulled up through a resistor and gate terminal is pulled down to zero potential to keep NMOS in OFF state, and wherein pressing of the switch 104 enables release of a control signal by the controller 110 for the gate terminal to turn on the NMOS. In an exemplary implementation, as mentioned above, drain terminal of the NMOS can be pulled up through a resistor and gate terminal can be pulled down to zero potential, keeping NMOS in cut-off region and hence OFF. Or-ing unit 106, which can use a diode, can give one of the two high potential voltages at its input as output, and also prevents the battery 102 to back supply the trip unit in absence of main supply.
[0036] In an aspect, when the line current is regained, the controller 110 withdraws the control signal to re-isolate the battery 102. In another aspect, time delay between pressing the switch 104 and release of the control signal by the controller 110 is maintained to avoid glitch in maintaining continuous supply. In yet another aspect, the battery 102 can be configured to power up one or more modules of the electronic trip unit.
[0037] The circuit breaker can further include a voltage monitoring unit 112 that is configured to monitor battery voltage and perform any or a combination of enabling one or more components of the electronic trip unit to function in low power mode, and indicating low battery indication to the user of the circuit breaker. Power consumption is therefore considerably reduced by monitoring battery voltage by unit 112, and taking actions to make economical usage of available power source. Circuit breaker of the present disclosure can further include a regulator unit 114.
[0038] In an implementation of the working of the circuit, as also mentioned above, when line current is available, all the modules are powered up from the main supply through the or-ing circuit 106, whereas in absence of the main supply and battery 102 being isolated, no power will be available for any module. Whenever the user wants to read the data from say the display module, and presses the keypad switch 104, gate potential drops to zero Volts making PMOS operate in active region. It remains active till keypad switching duration (say around 100ms - 300ms), after which output of the PMOS is then stepped down to 3.3V, required for controller 110 and other modules by using Regulator 114. As soon as the Controller 110 is powered up through battery 102, the controller 110 releases a control signal for the gate terminal of Q2, thus turning it ON. The control signal keeps the VGS voltage of PMOS always at negative potential, even after the switch 104 is released. Thus the battery 102 remains connected to the circuit and powers up the controller 110, display and other modules. The controller 110 keeps on monitoring the main supply for its availability, When main supply is regained, the controller 110 will sense the same and withdraw the control signal to NMOS, thus isolating the battery 102 again.
[0039] In an aspect, the battery 102 of the present disclosure forms an integral part of the trip unit 100, all critical information is available for reading on display even in absence of the supply. Proper isolation between main supply and battery supply can be maintained to avoid power up race and back charging. Furthermore, timing delay between pressing the switch 104 and release of the control pulse can be precisely maintained to avoid any glitch in maintaining continuous supply. Battery voltage can further be monitored using voltage monitoring module unit 112 for its drainage. This is useful to operate the module in low power mode and provide a low battery indication to the user.
[0040] In another aspect, in absence of supply, instead of operating display module 108 in sleep mode which still consumes current in order of uA, the battery 102 is kept completely isolated reducing the consumption in order of nA. Very low cost switching and control mechanism using MOSFETS are deployed to control the supply from battery 102. The keypad switch 104 used for navigation can also be used to connect the battery 102 to the circuit, eliminating the need of any extra switching component. Furthermore, life of the battery is considerably increased by having a mechanism to keep it isolated. The battery monitoring module such as unit 112 keeps the check on discharge of battery and provides signal for controller to take action.
[0041] While the foregoing describes various embodiments of the invention, other and further embodiments of the invention may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof. The scope of the invention is determined by the claims that follow. The invention is not limited to the described embodiments, versions or examples, which are included to enable a person having ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention when combined with information and knowledge available to the person having ordinary skill in the art.

ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION
[0042] The present disclosure provides an electronic trip unit that is integrated with a battery/auxiliary supply means.
[0043] The present disclosure provides an electronic trip unit that is integrated with a battery/auxiliary supply means such that the battery consumption can be restricted only to situations when it is required.
[0044] The present disclosure provides an electronic trip unit that is integrated with a battery/auxiliary supply means that is cut-off from the trip unit and comes into action only when needed by the user.
[0045] The present disclosure provides an electronic trip unit that is integrated with a battery/auxiliary supply means, wherein the unit incorporates a switching mechanism that is deployed using low cost MOSFETS, which connect to the battery only while access to the trip unit information is needed.
[0046] The present disclosure provides an electronic trip unit that considerably reduces power consumption by monitoring voltage and taking actions to make economical usage of available power source.