Claims
- 1. A relay for use in an electrical system comprising:
a field-effect transistor having an output; and a processor connected to said field-effect transistor, wherein said processor controls whether the relay appears as a closed or open circuit by controlling whether said transistor is in an on or off state.
- 2. A relay according to claim 1, wherein said field-effect transistor is a MOSFET, and wherein said processor is connected to the gate of said transistor and the source of said transistor is connected to ground.
- 3. A relay according to claim 1 further comprising an over-current circuit.
- 4. A relay according to claim 3, wherein said over-current circuit comprises:
a resistor connected to the output of said field-effect transistor; and an analog to digital converter connected across said resistor for detecting the voltage across said resistor, wherein said converter is further connect to said processor such that said processor may monitor the current through field-effect transistor.
- 5. A relay according to claim 1 having a housing conforming to ISO standard packaging footprint.
- 6. A relay according to claim 1 having a housing conforming to 150 series footprints.
- 7. A mechanical relay system comprising:
a housing having a selected electrical wiring footprint; a mechanical relay located in said housing; and a mechanical circuit breaker for operating in conjunction with said relay, wherein said breaker is also located in said housing, such that said relay and breaker are in a packaged unit.
- 8. A relay system comprising:
a solid state relay implemented in a field-effect transistor; and a mechanical circuit breaker in electrical communication with said solid state relay for controlling whether the relate is in an on or an off state.
- 9. A relay system comprising:
a mechanical relay; and a solid state circuit breaker in electrical communication with said solid state relay for controlling whether the relate is in an on or an off state.
- 10. A relay according to claim 9, wherein said solid state circuit comprises:
a resistor connected to an output of said relay; an analog to digital converter connected across said resistor to sense the voltage across said resistor; and a processor for evaluating the current through said relay by observing the voltage across said resistor.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The present application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application Serial No. 60/352,357 entitled SOLID STATE RELAY/CIRCUIT BREAKER SYSTEM, filed Jan. 28, 2002, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
Provisional Applications (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60352357 |
Jan 2002 |
US |