High current high voltage switch structure with conductive piston

An electric switch comprising:

• a. a hollow envelope structure generally symmetrically arranged about a longitudinal axis and including an elongated tubular slideway within the envelope coaxially disposed about the longitudinal axis and including electrically conductive and non-conductive sections spaced apart so that said conductive sections are electrically insulated one from the other by said conductive and non-conductive sections cooperating to form a smooth interior surface in said tubular slideway;
• b. terminal means closing opposite ends of said elongated tubular slideway, each of said terminal means being electrically connected to one of said electrically conductive sections of said slideway;
• c. movable contact means reciprocally mounted within said slideway and having contact surfaces thereon adapted to selectively span a dielectric section of said slideway to electrically connect adjacent but axially spaced and normally electrically insulated conductive sections of said slideway to selectively make or break a circuit through said switch;
• d. said movable contact constituting an electrically conductive piston which makes electrical contact with said spaced electrically conductive sections through substantially 360 degrees;
• and
• e. electrically conductive stop means on said movable contact and thermally conductive stop means on said terminal members limiting the extent of movement of said movable contact within said slideway.

A switch structure comprising:

• a. first, second and third terminal members axially aligned and spaced along a longitudinal axis;
• b. fixed contact surfaces formed on said first, second and third terminal members;
• c. dielectric sleeve means disposed between said fixed contact surfaces, the said fixed contact surfaces and the inner peripheries of said dielectric sleeves being coextensive to thereby define a cylindrical slideway;
• d. a movable contact member reciprocable within said slideway and having contact surfaces thereon spaced apart in correlation to the spacing between said fixed contact surfaces whereby longitudinal displacement of said movable contact from a first position to a second position will effect completion of an electrical circuit between a selected pair of said terminal members;
• e. said movable contact constituting an electrically conductive piston which makes electrical contact with said spaced contact surfaces through substantially 360 degrees;
• f. one of said terminal members constituting a common terminal and including an intermediate centrally disposed section forming a stop for limiting movement of an associated movable contact;
• and
• g. a movable contact on the opposite side of said intermediate terminal operable to selectively complete a circuit between said intermediate terminal member and the associated other terminal member.

An electric switch structure comprising:

• a. a pair of axially aligned and spaced terminal connection members having fixed resilient circularly arranged contact surfaces thereon arranged in axially spaced relationship;
• b. a dielectric sleeve disposed between said spaced terminal connection members to retain them in spaced alignment and to electrically insulate one from the other;
• and
• c. a movable contact disposed within the envelope formed by said terminal connection members and said dielectric sleeve and reciprocable between first and second positions to make or break an electric circuit through said terminal connection members;
• d. said movable contact constituting an electrically conductive piston having a smooth cylindrical contact surface which makes electrical contact with said circularly arranged spaced terminal connection members through substantially 360.degree. .