Eaton Corporation

Other

Denis J Leveque

Michael R Larsen

James R Jaeschke

Michael Thomas Little

Michael G Taranowski

Ruth E Hubbell

Paul Wesley Lombard

David Y Tsai

Richard G Johnson

Douglas E Wickert

Lucian J Copeland

Neil A Czarnecki

A two piece molded housing shell is connected by inserting connector terminals on one of the shells into receptacles on the other shell with the connected shells configured for mounting over a vehicle steering column. One of the shells has a stalk/lever pivotally mounted thereon with multiplex adaptive circuitry mounted on the other shell. A two-shot molded plastic insert has conductive strips plated on the surface thereof and is inserted into the housing shells to provide an interconnect from the circuitry to the stalk/lever The stalk/lever has switching contacts on a carrier portion thereof. The switching contacts wipe directly on the plated strips of the insert to effect a switching function.

Steering column stalk switch for use with multiplexed electronic

A control and panel assembly using a thin dielectric carrier strip upon which a sheet of conductive material is adhesively attached. The conductive sheet is perforated to form an array of spaced parallel discrete conductors. The conductors are initially formed as interconnected by transverse webs which are frangibly removed after attachment to the carrier. Individual stand up connectors are then attached to each of the conductors to form a carrier sub-assembly and the terminals are inserted through slots in a dielectric deck plate. Individual user actuated control components are then plugged directly into the terminals with user actuated shafts or levers extending through deck plate and carrier strip.

Making an integrated control and panel assembly

A planar array of electric conductors is stamped from a sheet of conductive material and has tabs for each of the conductors bent outwardly of the plane of the material. The conductors are interconnected by a plurality of webs and are affixed to a dielectric carrier sheet by an adhesive, whereupon the webs are severed and the conductors have electrical isolation. The carrier sheet and conductors are attached to a control panel and electric control devices are attached to the control panel over the conductors. The control devices are provided with terminals that extend in the same direction as the tabs of the conductors, and the control devices are electrically connected to the conductors by double ended push-on preformed connectors.

Integrated control and panel assembly with improved terminations

A push-push latching switch assembly having a switching member with a pushbutton which is received for sliding movement in a switch housing. The housing has spring tabs for snap locking insertion into a hole in a mounting panel. The switching member has lamps disposed in a receptacle portion beneath the button which has translucent lens portions for illumination by the lamps. The switching member has conductive strips formed by plating over two-shot integrally molded plastic strips, with the conductive strips interconnecting the lamps and wiper contacts attached to the switching member. A conductive wiper member with plural wiper fingers is also attached to the switching member. A base member formed of two-shot molded plastic has conductive switching contact strips formed by plating the second shot molded plastic and which are inserted in the housing, with the base releasably attached. User pressure on the button causes the switching member to move relative to the housing sliding the wipers on the strips for switching and continuously providing power to the lamps. The conductive plated strips extend externally to form connector pins. A cardiod cam and latch provide the push to latch, push to unlatch function.

Latching pushbutton switch assembly

A lever operated rotary reversing switch wherein a lever is snap-fit attached to the switch housing with a portion of the lever inserted under an overhang on the housing to maintain that portion of the lever against the exterior surface. A detent is provided between the overhang and the end of the lever to direct the forces longitudinally in the plane of the lever. A rotor plate located exteriorly of the housing is connected to the rotor by an axial shaft, and an eccentric received in a slot in the lever for providing a driving coupling between the lever and internal contact mechanism is located on the exterior surface of the rotor plate.

Electric switch having improved lever operator arrangement

A capacitance change switch with a resiliently deformable conductive pad compressible against a dielectric coating on the surface of a pair of spaced coplanar thin foil plates formed on a refractory substrate. The pad forms with the plates a pair of capacitors electrically in series. User movement of an actuator causes pad compression and a significant electrically detectible change in capacitance for effecting a switching function. In one embodiment the pad is formed of conductive elastomer and in another embodiment the pad is formed of non-conductive elastomer with a conductive foil covering.

Capacitive switching assembly

An illuminated multi-position rotary selector/control switch assembly for switching substantial direct current (20 amps) at low voltages (12 V). A lower plastic housing shell is molded in a two-stage process with the first stage comprising molding platable thermoplastic resin strips and molding thereover second stage unplatable thermoplastic with exposed surface portions of said first first stage subsequently plated to form conductive strips having stationary switching contacts attached. The connector terminal pins are formed integrally with the strips in the first stage molding. The second stage thermoplastic molded thereover forms the part outline. The upper housing shell has a transparent arcuate window molded integrally therein for collecting and feeding light from a lamp to a light pipe carried by the user rotatable actuation knob.

Illuminated rotary switch assembly

A trigger operated speed control wherein the insulating housing is a two-shot molding having metal conductors plated on one of the molding materials on various external and interior surfaces. Stationary contact elements are secured to respective plated conductors within a housing cavity, as are terminals of the FET on an external surface of the housing. A printed circuit board is secured to the housing over an open side thereof to close the housing cavity, retaining all movable parts of the control within the cavity, the board having plated through holes which receive and are soldered to plated pin projections of the housing to secure the board to the housing and complete selected conducting paths between plated conductors and printed circuit traces. A plated molded pin projection also receives a pin receptacle terminal of a separate reversing switch unit when positioned in a pocket formed in the housing.

Electric control apparatus comprising integral electrical conductors

A printed circuit is formed by conventional methods over an adhesive coating applied to a flexible high temperature withstandability disposable backing to form a flexible laminate which is positioned in a cavity of an injection mold to conform to surface variations. The printed circuit conductors are surrounded on three sides by molten plastic material injected into the mold cavity to embed the conductors in the respective surfaces of the molded plastic article, which surfaces are non-coplanar and adjoining and the conductors are continuous from one surface to the other. The bond strength of the adhesive is preferably high with regard to the backing and low with regard to the printed circuit conductors to permit adhesive and backing to be peeled away after molding, thereby providing a three diemensional printed circuit in, for example, a recessed area of a molded plastic housing part of electrical apparatus.

Method for forming a molded plastic article

A proximity switch assembly (10) for signaling the location of a movable member (36) at either of opposite end limits of movement relative to a stationary frame (44,46) includes a compact elongate housing (58) adapted to be mounted on the frame to extend along the path of movement of a power driven member (32), such as the piston rod of a hydraulic cylinder, which shifts the movable member between its end limits. The proximity switch is fixedly mounted in the housing and carries a switch actuating member (68) mounted for sliding movement over a relatively short distance sufficient to move an actuating target (74) into and out of actuating proximity of an air core proximity sensing coil (120) within the housing. A circuit board holder (96) formed of dielectric plastic material nests within the housing to protect, electrically insulate and precisely position components (120, 100, 102) carried thereby.

Growing community of inventors

Milwaukee, WI, United States of America

Denis J Leveque