Circuit breaker releases / Tripping units

The main objective of circuit breaker tripping units and protective functions in general is to
detect faults and to selectively isolate faulted parts of the system. It must also permit short
clearance times to limit the fault power and the effect of arcing faults.

The Basics Of Circuit Breaker Tripping Units (on photo: Siemens molded case circuit breaker
'Sentron' Series; 400 Amp Frame - 400 Amp Trip)

The protective function of the circuit breaker in the power distribution system is determined by
the selection of the appropriate release (see Figure 1). Releases can be divided into:

 Thermal-magnetic tripping units – TMTU, also called electromechanical releases and

 Electronic tripping units – ETU
Figure 1 – Variants of circuit breaker tripping curves

Thermal-magnetic tripping units //

The thermomagnetic trip unit consists of two parts:

The thermal trip unit – Made up by a bimetal thermal device which actuates the opening of a
circuit breaker with a delay depending on the overcurrent value. This trip unit is intended for the
protection against overloads.

The magnetic trip unit – Made up by an electromagnetic device, with fixed (fixed instantaneous
trip) or adjustable (adjustable instantaneous trip) threshold, which actuates the instantaneous trip
of the circuit breaker on a pre-determined overcurrent value (multiple of the In) with a constant
trip time (about some tens of milliseconds). This trip unit is intended for the protection against
short circuit.
Figure 2 – TM thermal-magnetic and MA magnetic tripping units