Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
21 60924
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Metal-Enclosed Medium-Voltage Switch Gear Panel
with Switching Compartment, Bus Bar Compartment,
and Cable Connecting Compartment
The present invention relates to a metal-enclosed
medium-voltage switch gear panel with a switching compartment
for a power switch and with a bus bar compartment that is
located in a rear part of the switch panel and a cable
connecting compartment and a low voltage compartment and front
doors for the switch gear panel and the low voltage
compartment arranged above the switching compartment.
.
Examples of medium-voltage switch panels are described, for
example, in the German company brochure entitled Seimens:
Mittelspannung-Leistungsschalteranlagen Programmubersicht
[Siemens: Medium-voltage Power Switch Systems Programme
Overview], Order Number E 50001-U 229-Al, release date April
1991. A distinction must be made between switching systems of
this kind, the panels of which are separated from each other
by bulkheads that are of sheet steel, and switching systems in
which such separation is not made, or is made only in part. In
the case of completely compartmented switch panels, the bus
bar compartment, the cable connecting compartment, and the
switching compartment are separated from each other by the
bulkheads referred to above, whereas in the case of
non-compartmented or partially compartmented switch panels,
these compartments are to be regarded as a functional division
of a total space.
EP-A-0 459 593 describes how identical housing sections can be
provided in order to ensure the functional division of
switchgear panels when these are combined in the manner of
modules. However, when this is done, it is impossible to
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provide the differing structural forms for compartmented and
non-compartmented switchgear panels since the functional
association cannot be realized as a function of space.
EP-A-O 144 753 describes a switch gear panel in which the
functional units are completely separated. No reference is
made to problems with respect to non-compartmented or
partially compartmented switch panels.
The various embodiments of the switch panels discussed above
are selected on the basis of the particular requirements. When
this is done, the especially high level of safety achieved
when the interior space is divided by sheet-steel bulkheads is
compared to the smaller depth and thus the smaller space
requirements for switch panels with non-compartmented or
partially compartmented embodiments. Since it has been shown
that both methods of constructing switch panels are used in
practice, it is thus necessary to have the necessary tools and
apparatuses on hand for making both types. This results in a
not-inconsiderable outlay.
It is the task of the present invention to simplify the
selective manufacture of both types of medium-voltage switch
gear panels and thus lower the associated costs.
According to the present invention, this task has been solved
in that the cable connecting compartment and the bus bar
compartment are accommodated in a first housing section that
is open to the front; a front frame for securing the door
system of the switch compartment and at least a part of the
switching compartment are components of a second housing
section that is open to the rear, and the first and the second
housing sections are of identical width and incorporate frame
elements that can be connected to each other.
21 60924
The structure for a switch panel of the non-compartmented type
can now be manufactured in that a first and a second housing
section are connected directly to each other. However, the
same housing sections can be used for a switch panel of the
compartmented type if, according to one embodiment of the
present invention, a third housing section is inserted between
the first and the second housing sections; the depth of this
third housing section is such as to correspond to the space
required for a bulkhead that separates the switching
compartment from the cable connecting compartment and the bus
bar compartment and passages for breaker contacts. Only this
third housing section, i.e., a part that is of relatively
small volume, need be manufactured in order to permit
production of a switch panel of the compartmented type by
using first and second housing sections that are, in any case,
on hand.
In order to simplify assembly of the housing section, it is
recommended that the second housing section has on its back a
connecting frame that can be installed on the first or third
housing section, respectively.
In addition, it is also advantageous with respect to
assembling the housing sections if the first housing section
incorporates a base panel with profiled edges on the sides, a
section of the base panel extending beyond the front frame;
and in that the second housing section can be mounted on the
projecting section of the base panel and joined to this
section.
According to another configuration of the present invention,
the third housing section, too, can be aligned with the other
housing sections in that the third housing section has a base
panel with profiled edge sections; and in that a portal that
is mounted on the base panel dividesthe base panel into a rear
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21 60~24
section and a front section, the foremost section matching the
length and shape of the base panel section of the first
housing section.
Work-protection panels have been developed to ensure safety
when working with switch panels that are not compartmented,
and these separate the bus bar compartment from the switching
compartment on a temporary basis. Work protection panels of
this kind can also be used in switch panels according to the
present invention if the front frame of the second housing
section has a slot-like opening that is located above the door
opening and can be used to install a work protection panel.
The present invention will be described in greater detail
below on basis of the drawings appended hereto.
Figure 1 is a side view of a medium-voltage switch panel of
the non-compartmented type, with the cover removed.
Figure 2 shows a switch panel of the compartmented type.
Figure 3 is a perspective, exploded view of a first housing
section and a second housing section that form a switch panel
of the non-compartmented type.
Figure 4 shows the identical housing sections as in Figure 3
and, in addition, a third housing section that has been
inserted between them. This arrangement serves to construct a
switchgear panel of the compartmented type.
Figure 1 and Figure 2 serve simply to show equipment
configurations used for non-compartmented and compartmented
medium-voltage switching systems that are known per se, and
the various space requirements for the switch gear panels that
result from these. The construction of the housing for such
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switch gear panels according to the present invention is
explained on the basis of Figure 3 and Figure 4. The switch
gear panel 1 that is shown in Figure 1 incorporates a
switching compartment 2 within which a vacuum power switch 3
is shown as an example of a switch gear. Within the upper rear
area of the switch gear panel 1 there is a bus bar compartment
4 with bus bars 5. Breaker contact systems make it possible to
move the power switch 3 from the operating position that is
shown into a break position with the door 7 closed. Within the
lower rear area of the switch gear panel 1 there is a cable
connecting compartment 10, into which cable 11 is introduced
from below. In the example that is shown, this is connected
through a current transformer 12 to the breaker contact system
6 on the output side. An output ground 13 and a voltage
converter 14 are shown as additional components. In addition,
the insertion of a work protection panel 15 is indicated by a
dashed line between the switching compartment 2 and the bus
bar compartment 4. Above the front part of the switching
compartment 2 there is a low-voltage compartment 16 that
accommodates display, warning, and operating systems.
As can be seen from Figure 1, the switching compartment 2,
the bus bar compartment 4, and the cable connecting
compartment 10 are simply areas of a total space within the
switch gear panel 1 and are not compartmented. For this
reason, this arrangement is referred to as a
non-compartmented switch gear panel.
The components referred to in connection with Figure 1 are
also used in the switch gear panel 2 that is shown in Figure
2, where they bear the same reference numbers; in Figure 2,
however, the switching compartment 2, the bus bar compartment
4, and the cable connecting compartment 10 are separated from
each other by bulkheads. To this end, a bulkhead 21 that
extends to the whole height of the switch gear panel 20, and
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21 60924
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an additional bulkhead 22 that separates the bus bar
compartment from the cable connecting compartment 10 are used.
Upper passages 23 and lower passages 24 are provided in the
bulkhead 21 to accommodate the breaker contact systems. The
bulkheads 21 and 22 ensure that any arcing that occurs in the
compartment 2, 4, and 10 is confined to the compartment in
which it occurs, so that the remaining compartments are not
affected. As can be seen, however, a construction that
incorporates bulkheads means that the switch gear panel 20
must be deeper than the switch gear panel 1 that is shown in
Figure 1.
The manner in which the housing for the switch gear panel can
be manufactured by using identical housing sections, despite
different installed depths, will be described below.
As is shown in Figure 3, a switch gear panel of the
non-compartmented type, as is shown in Figure 1, is to be
installed in a housing 30 that can be assembled from a first
housing section 31 and a second housing section 32. In Figure
3, the housing sections 31 and 32 are shown separated from
each other, although for purposes of clarity the overall
dimensions are indicated by dashed lines. The housing section
31 consists in part of solid wall sections and in part of
framework or frame elements. These parts form two side frames
33 and a front frame 34 beyond which a section 36 of the base
panel 35 extends at the front. The base panel 35 has profiled
edges 37. The second housing section 32 has a front frame 38
for a door system, and an insertion slot 40, which is located
above this, for a work protection panel. Above this there is a
separate area that is used as a low-voltage compartment
(compare the low-voltage compartment 16 that is shown in
Figure 1 and Figure 2). The housing section 32 is of the same
height as the housing section 31 and when assembled this is of
a depth, as is shown in Figure 3 by dashed lines, with respect
21 60924
to the housing section 31, that results in a volume that is
sufficient for a non-compartmented switch gear panel. The
profiled edges 37 that extend beyond the front frame 34
simplify the precise assembly of the two housing sections 31
and 32 in that there is a matching recess 41 on the sides of
the second housing section 32. This recess extends as far as
the back of the front frame 38. The connection of the housing
section 31 and 32 can be effected in such a manner that after
the installation of the second housing section 32 on the edges
37, those of the front frame 34 of the housing section 31 are
aligned with a rear frame 42 of the housing section 32 and
fastened with a number of bolts or are joined by a continuous
weld or by spot welds.
Figure 4 shows a third housing section 45 in addition to the
housing section 31 and a housing section 32; this is of the
same height and width as the housing sections 31 and 32.
Essentially, the housing section 45 consists of a base panel
46 with profiled edges 47, the shape of which corresponds to
the edges 36 of the housing section 31. A portal 50 is mounted
on the base panel 46 and this has a top panel and side walls.
The portal 50 divides the base panel 46 into a short rear
section 51 and a longer section 52, the longer section 52
corresponding to the section 36 of the housing section 31. The
rear section 51 is so ~imensioned that together with the
section 36, the space between the first housing section 31 and
the second housing section 32 is that which is necessary for a
compartmented switch gear panel as is shown in Figure 2. A top
panel 53 and side walls 54 of the third housing section 45 are
connected with the first housing section 31. The front of the
portal 50 matches the front frame 34 of the first housing
section 31, so that the second housing section 32 can be
connected as in the example that is shown in Figure 3. This
results in a housing of greater structural strength and the
volume that is required to construct a compartmented switch
21 60924
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gear panel. A bulkhead with passages ~or breaker contacts can
also be incorporated between thefirst housing section 31 and
the third housing section 45 as a component of the same
installed height.
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