Snap acting switch
OwnerSpencer C. Schantz, Gary R. Kueblerinventors
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A snap acting switch has a switch blade which is pivotally mounted for movement between two positions and is normally held in one position by an actuator spring. An actuator lever is pivotally mounted on the switch housing and has an external lever arm portion and an inner lever arm portion within the housing which is engageable with the actuator spring to move the spring laterally past the longitudinal axis of the switch blade in response to movement of the external actuator lever arm portion, to thereby cause snap acting movement of the switch blade from its normal position to a second position. Release of pressure on the external lever arm portion permits the actuator spring to cause snap acting movement of the switch blade back to its normal position.
Claims18
In an electric snap-action switch having a housing, a switch blade fulcrumed within said housing, having a first electrical contact on said switch blade, having a second electrical contact mounted within said housing in cooperative relationship with said first contact, having spring means arranged to be movable to either side of the fulcrum for said switch blade to cause snap opening and snap closing of said contacts, and having actuator means positioned to be responsive to an external force for shifting a portion of said spring means from one side of said fulcrum to the other, the improvement wherein said actuator means comprises a lever, means for pivotally mounting said lever on said housing intermediate its length for rocking movement about an axis parallel to the longitudinal axis of said spring for movement of the lever in a plane transverse to said spring and the longitudinal extent of said switch blade and having an external end and having an integral inner portion positioned for swinging in response to said rocking movement in a direction to engage and shift a portion of said spring means over center with respect to said fulcrum.
In an electric snap-action switch having a housing, a switch blade fulcrumed within said housing, having a first electrical contact on said switch blade, having a second electrical contact mounted within said housing in cooperative relationship with said first contact, having spring means arranged to be movable to either side of the fulcrum for said switch blade to cause snap opening and snap closing of said contacts, and having actuator means positioned to be responsive to an external force for shifting a portion of said spring means from one side of said fulcrum to the other, the improvement wherein said actuator means comprises a lever, means for pivotally mounting said lever on said housing intermediate its length for rocking movement about an axis in a plane generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of said spring and having an external end and having an integral inner portion positioned for swinging in response to said rocking movement in a direction to engage and shift a portion of said spring means over center with respect to said fulcrum.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.