Electrical line-fault detector and circuit breaker device

摘要

An electrical circuit breaker device for connection between a load device and a power source, capable of disconnecting the load device from the power source upon detection of an electrical fault condition present in the wiring between the load and the power source is provided. A time delay prevents the load from being disconnected due to the reporting of a temporary voltage fluctuation. One embodiment of the present invention measures a voltage value representative of the voltage across the source and compares it with the voltage drop across the load to determine the voltage drop due to the wiring between the source and the load. The load device is disconnected from the power source if the resulting power loss or voltage difference due to the resistance of the wiring indicates a power loss in the wiring sufficient to cause combustion. Another embodiment of the present invention compares an arbitrary voltage to the voltage drop across the load device to determine whether a fault condition exists within the wiring, and if such a fault condition is detected, the load device is disconnected from the power source.