Vacuum circuit breaker with arc rotation contact means

Claim 1

AN ELECTRIC CIRCUIT INTERRUPTER COMPRISING: (A) A PAIR OF ELECTRODES BETWEEN WHICH AN ARC IS DEVELOPED DURING CIRCUIT INTERRUPTION, (B) ONE OF SAID ELECTRODES COMPRISING A TUBULAR MEMBER OF RELATIVELY HIGH CONDUCTIVITY METAL, (C) SAID TUBULAR MEMBER HAVING A PAIR OF END SURFACES EXTENDING TRANSVERSELY OF THE LONGITUDINAL AXIS OF THE TUBULAR MEMBER AND LOCATED IN SPACED-APART RELATIONSHIP ALONG SAID LONGITUDINAL AXIS, (D) ONE OF SAID END SURFACES FACING THE OTHER OF SAID ELECTRODES AND CONSTITUTING AN ACR-RUNNING SURFACE FOR ARCS DEVELOPED BETWEEN SAID ELECTRODES, THE OTHER END SURFACE CONSTITUTING A BACK SURFACE, (E) CURRENT-DIRECTING MEANS FOR FORCING THE NET CURRENT FLOWING THROUGH SAID TUBULAR MEMBER TO AN ARC TERMINAL LOCATED AT ANY POINT ON SAID ARC-RUNNING SURFACE OF FOLLOW A PATH THROUGH SAID TUBULAR MEMBER THAT HAS A COMPONENT EXTENDING CIRCUMFERENTIALLY OF SAID TUBULAR MEMBER, (F) SAID CURRENT-DIRECTING MEANS COMPRISING: (1) A SLOT IN SAID TUBULAR MEMBER EXTENDING BETWEEN SAID TWO END SURFACES AND INTERSECTING THE RESPECTIVE END SURFACES AT POINTS CIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED FROM EACH OTHER, (2) AND MEANS FOR FORCING THE MAJOR PORTION OF THE CURRENT FLOWING THROUGH SAID TUBULAR MEMBER TO AN ARC TERMINAL AT ANY POINT ON SAID ARCRUNNING SURFACE TO ENTER SAID TUBULAR MEMBER THROUGH AN ENTRY REGION LOCATED ADJACENT THE POINT WHERE SAID SLOT INTERSECTS SAID BACK SURFACE AND ON THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF SAID SLOT FROM THE LOCATION OF ANY POINT ON SAID ARC RUNNING SURFACE THAT IS CIRCUMFERENTIALLY ALIGNED WITH SAID ENTRY REGION, (G) AND MEANS FOR SUPPORTING SAID TUBULAR MEMBER COMPRISING A PLURALITY OF ELEMENTS OF RELATIVELY LOW CONDUCTIVITY MATERIAL CIRCUMFERANTIALLY SPACED ABOUT SAID TUBULAR MEMBER AND JOINED TO SAID TUBULAR MEMBER AT SAID BACK SURFACE.