Abstract: Systems and methods for sensing current utilize a coil-less sensor based circuit to detect current. The current sensing circuit includes a first conductive line segment that carries mains AC current, and a second conductive line segment conductively coupled in electrical parallel to the first line segment. The coil-less sensor is mounted between the two conductive line segments proximate to and generally opposite the second conductive line segment. Any suitable coil-less sensor may be used, including Hall effect sensors, tunneling magneto resistive (“TMR”) sensors, anisotropic magneto resistive (“AMR”) sensors, and other types of sensors that do not use coils to sense current. This arrangement results in two magnetic fields being induced that are additive at the coil-less sensor, which allows the sensor to produce a higher output voltage, thereby providing a more accurate current sensor.

Abstract: A method of monitoring a circuit having load(s) includes receiving normal-mode data from circuit breakers operating in a normal mode, transforming the normal-mode data into first display data, providing the normal-mode display data to a remote user device for display by a GUI of the user device, and receiving an external diagnostics request via the GUI of the user device for selected circuit breaker(s) to enter a diagnostics mode. In response to the external diagnostics request, an internal diagnostics request is sent to the selected circuit breaker(s). Diagnostics-mode data is received from the selected circuit breaker(s), wherein the diagnostics-mode data was obtained by the selected circuit breaker(s) operating in a diagnostics mode responsive to the internal diagnostics request. The method further includes determining second display data as a function of the diagnostic-mode data and providing the second display data to the user device for display by the user device's GUI.

Abstract: A method of monitoring electrical faults includes processing features of signals output by sensors of a circuit breaker about electrical properties of a circuit coupled with a load and transitioning between states of operation based on the processed features. The states include a normal state, a fault state, and a trip state, wherein the state remains in the normal state until the processed features no longer satisfy normal criteria, after which the state transitions to the fault state, wherein the state transitions back to the normal state when a trip condition is not satisfied, and transitions from the fault state to the trip state when the trip condition is satisfied. The method further includes detecting a warning event when the state transitions from the normal state to the fault state and back to the normal state and outputting a warning event notification upon detection of the warning event.

Abstract: Systems and methods for detecting an arc fault in a circuit breaker use a single-coil current rate of change (di/dt) sensor for monitoring both low frequency alternating current (AC) and broadband high frequency noise on a power line. The di/dt sensor is optimized to amplify any broadband high frequency noise, typically from about 1 MHz to 40 MHz, that may be present on the power line. Low frequency signals representing the current being monitored, typically from about 1 Hz to 10 KHz, is provided to an active integrator circuit with a high gain to enable the single-coil sensitivity. To shorten capacitor charge up time of the active integrator circuit, a charging current is provided to the active integrator circuit upon startup of the circuit breaker.

Abstract: A method for locating an electrical arc fault upstream or downstream of an electrical protection device connected in series in an electrical circuit between an electrical energy source and an electrical load, the source supplying a supply current to the electrical load. The method includes the measurement of several electrical quantities linked to the supply current, the detection of a simultaneous variation of at least two electrical quantities linked to the supply current, the confirmation of the presence of the arc fault, and the determination of the position of the arc fault upstream or downstream of the protection device. Also, a protection device can implement such a method.

Abstract: Example embodiments of the invention include a powdered core bead body configured to become an inductive impedance to current signals with high frequencies in a power wire threaded through the powdered core bead body. The signals are detectable by a high frequency voltage sensor that is configured to output an arc fault tripping indication to an arc fault tripping circuit in response to an occurrence of high frequency current signals in the power wire.

Abstract: An arc fault detection system samples a high frequency signal on a power line sequentially at different frequency regions according to a frequency hopping sequence, which is repeated a number of times over a predefined period. The different frequency regions include at least one region with a carrier for power line communication on the power line and at least one region without a carrier for power line communication on the power line. The system obtains energy measurements for each frequency region based on the sampled signals, computes an energy level for each frequency region based on the measurements for each region, and assigns a binary value to each region according to the corresponding energy level. The binary value represents a presence or absence of signal content in the frequency region. The system determines a presence or absence of an arc fault based on the binary values for the frequency regions.

Abstract: Example embodiments of the invention include a powdered core bead body configured to become an inductive impedance to current signals in a power wire with high frequencies. The signals are detectable by a high frequency voltage sensor, which is configured to output an arc fault tripping indication to an arc fault tripping circuit. The bead body includes a magnetic flux-density sensing device embedded in an air cavity of the bead body, having a magnetic field sensing surface oriented substantially perpendicular to the circumferential periphery of the bead body. The bead body is configured to provide measurable magnetic flux through the magnetic flux-density sensing device, for currents in the power wire having low frequencies. The measurable magnetic flux is detectable by a low frequency magnetic flux-density sensing device, to output a low frequency current measurement for power metering devices or to determine power consumption within a protected branch.

Abstract: A detection method and system are provided to detect an arc fault signal in a (HF) high frequency signal monitored on a power line. The HF signal is monitored on the power line over a predefined time period such as a half-cycle of a base frequency, and is partitioned into a plurality of smaller time-segmented signal segments over the period. For each signal segment, a first filter is applied to a signal spectrum of the signal segment to produce a filtered signal spectrum having one or more frequency intervals associated with power line communication filtered from the signal spectrum. HF signal content is checked in the filtered signal spectrum, and a binary value is assigned to the signal segment based upon a presence or absence of HF signal content. Thereafter, an arc fault event is determined based on the accumulated binary values of the signal segments.

Abstract: A circuit interrupt device provides a controller and method thereof that is programmed to receive a plurality of data sequences, each data sequence containing a set of data points corresponding to a waveform of line current flowing through the circuit interrupt device. The controller performs spectral reduction on the plurality of data sequences using a finite series transform to reduce bandwidth requirement and transmits a spectrally reduced version of the plurality of data sequences to an external system using reduced bandwidth. The data can then be processed and converted to meta data for monitoring and tracking purposes.

Abstract: Example embodiments of the invention perform updating of arc-fault detection protection software in a dual function/combination arc-fault circuit interrupter (DF/CAFI) device, without requiring any hardware changes to the device. Maintenance software running in a processor in the device synchronizes downloading the updated protection software as packets of modulated data from a host device, downloaded over an electric power line connected to the device. The modulated data on the power line is sensed by a current sensor of the device and is filtered, demodulated, and sampled by the device. The maintenance software then assembles packets of the demodulated and sampled data and loads them into memory in the device as the updated arc-fault detection protection software.

Abstract: An arc fault detection system samples a high frequency signal on a power line sequentially at different frequency regions according to a frequency hopping sequence, which is repeated a number of times over a predefined period. The different frequency regions include at least one region with a carrier for power line communication on the power line and at least one region without a carrier for power line communication on the power line. The system obtains energy measurements for each frequency region based on the sampled signals, computes an energy level for each frequency region based on the measurements for each region, and assigns a binary value to each region according to the corresponding energy level. The binary value represents a presence or absence of signal content in the frequency region. The system determines a presence or absence of an arc fault based on the binary values for the frequency regions.

Abstract: Example embodiments of the invention include a powdered core bead body configured to become an inductive impedance to current signals in a power wire with high frequencies. The signals are detectable by a high frequency voltage sensor, which is configured to output an arc fault tripping indication to an arc fault tripping circuit. The bead body includes a magnetic flux-density sensing device embedded in an air cavity of the bead body, having a magnetic field sensing surface oriented substantially perpendicular to the circumferential periphery of the bead body. The bead body is configured to provide measurable magnetic flux through the magnetic flux-density sensing device, for currents in the power wire having low frequencies. The measurable magnetic flux is detectable by a low frequency magnetic flux-density sensing device, to output a low frequency current measurement for power metering devices or to determine power consumption within a protected branch.

Abstract: Example embodiments of the invention include a powdered core bead body configured to become an inductive impedance to current signals with high frequencies in a power wire threaded through the powdered core bead body. The signals are detectable by a high frequency voltage sensor that is configured to output an arc fault tripping indication to an arc fault tripping circuit in response to an occurrence of high frequency current signals in the power wire.

Abstract: An arc fault detection system samples a high frequency signal on a power line sequentially at different frequency regions according to a frequency hopping sequence, which is repeated a number of times over a predefined period. The different frequency regions include at least one region with a carrier for power line communication on the power line and at least one region without a carrier for power line communication on the power line. The system obtains energy measurements for each frequency region based on the sampled signals, computes an energy level for each frequency region based on the measurements for each region, and assigns a binary value to each region according to the corresponding energy level. The binary value represents a presence or absence of signal content in the frequency region. The system determines a presence or absence of an arc fault based on the binary values for the frequency regions.

Abstract: A method for locating an electrical arc fault upstream or downstream of an electrical protection device connected in series in an electrical circuit between an electrical energy source and an electrical load, the source supplying a supply current to the electrical load. The method includes the measurement of several electrical quantities linked to the supply current, the detection of a simultaneous variation of at least two electrical quantities linked to the supply current, the confirmation of the presence of the arc fault, and the determination of the position of the arc fault upstream or downstream of the protection device. Also, a protection device can implement such a method.

Abstract: Systems and methods for detecting an arc fault in a circuit breaker use a single-coil current rate of change (di/dt) sensor for monitoring both low frequency alternating current (AC) and broadband high frequency noise on a power line. The di/dt sensor is optimized to amplify any broadband high frequency noise, typically from about 1 MHz to 40 MHz, that may be present on the power line. Low frequency signals representing the current being monitored, typically from about 1 Hz to 10 KHz, is provided to an active integrator circuit with a high gain to enable the single-coil sensitivity. To shorten capacitor charge up time of the active integrator circuit, a charging current is provided to the active integrator circuit upon startup of the circuit breaker.

Abstract: An arc fault detection system samples a high frequency signal on a power line sequentially at different frequency regions according to a frequency hopping sequence, which is repeated a number of times over a predefined period. The different frequency regions include at least one region with a carrier for power line communication on the power line and at least one region without a carrier for power line communication on the power line. The system obtains energy measurements for each frequency region based on the sampled signals, computes an energy level for each frequency region based on the measurements for each region, and assigns a binary value to each region according to the corresponding energy level. The binary value represents a presence or absence of signal content in the frequency region. The system determines a presence or absence of an arc fault based on the binary values for the frequency regions.

Abstract: Example embodiments of the invention perform updating of arc-fault detection protection software in a dual function/combination arc-fault circuit interrupter (DF/CAFI) device, without requiring any hardware changes to the device. Maintenance software running in a processor in the device synchronizes downloading the updated protection software as packets of modulated data from a host device, downloaded over an electric power line connected to the device. The modulated data on the power line is sensed by a current sensor of the device and is filtered, demodulated, and sampled by the device. The maintenance software then assembles packets of the demodulated and sampled data and loads them into memory in the device as the updated arc-fault detection protection software.

Abstract: A detection method and system are provided to detect an arc fault signal in a (HF) high frequency signal monitored on a power line. The HF signal is monitored on the power line over a predefined time period such as a half-cycle of a base frequency, and is partitioned into a plurality of smaller time-segmented signal segments over the period. For each signal segment, a first filter is applied to a signal spectrum of the signal segment to produce a filtered signal spectrum having one or more frequency intervals associated with power line communication filtered from the signal spectrum. HF signal content is checked in the filtered signal spectrum, and a binary value is assigned to the signal segment based upon a presence or absence of HF signal content. Thereafter, an arc fault event is determined based on the accumulated binary values of the signal segments.