Eaton Corporation

Cutler-Hammer, Inc.

Tony O Woodard

Timothy L Parrish

Stuart W Grebner

John W Stearley

A one piece seal for an electric switch for sealing the spaces between a pivotal switch actuator and its supporting frame and between such frame and the switch base. This seal comprises a generally rectangular molded member of resilient material having a raised central boot portion containing a pair of downwardly extending leg openings for sealingly receiving respective legs of the switch actuator, a pair of lugs or pads on its bottom surface for locating and retaining the seal with respect to the switch base, and a crisscross pattern of shallow raised ribs on at least one surface of the seal along the perimeter thereof. The seal is pinched between the frame and base, compressing the ribs, and hugs the actuator legs to provide an economical but effective seal.

Sealed electric switch

A molded insulating connector body is pinned to the housing of an electrical device such as a switch, indicating light, instrument, gauge or the like to selectively provide a particularly keyed connector body to devices of the same type by a pin which extends through holes in the device terminals and correspondingly aligned openings in the connector body. The pin is retained in place by a collar which envelopes the electrical device body and is threadably attached thereto.

Means for attaching a connector body to an electric device

A contact carrying portion of a plunger assembly is adjusted linearly in the direction of switch operating movement by a rotatable cam in the plunger assembly to change an initial gap dimension between stationary and movable contacts. The cam is rotatable about an axis parallel to the direction of switch operating movement and comprises a plurality of angularly spaced diametrically oriented grooves, each of a different depth, in an end surface cooperating with a diametrically disposed rib on the contact carrying portion to vary the axial length of the plunger assembly and provide a detent for the cam adjustment. A housing is provided with a window through a lateral wall for accessing slots in the cam to rotate the cam. The pushbutton switch is resiliently disposed in a supplementary housing to accommodate significant overtravel of a switch operating element.

Pushbutton switch with adjustable pretravel

A plunger operated switch has a pair of movable contacts on a movable contact carrier bridged by a secondary contact supported on a pushbutton operator member which is biased apart from the contact carrier. Depression of the pushbutton operator for the plunger assembly moves the primary movable contacts into bridging engagement with the stationary contacts through the secondary contact member. In the event the primary movable contacts weld to the stationary contacts and an operating force is removed from the plunger operator, a spring biases the secondary contact away from the primary movable contacts to open the bridging relationship therebetween and open the circuit controlled by the switch. A pair of normally closed contacts are arranged for operation by the pushbutton operator so that the contacts open before the main contacts close and close after the main contacts open, rendering them particularly suitable for use as dynamic braking contacts in a motor control application. Insulating means are provided between the primary movable contacts and the secondary bridging contact to prevent reclosure thereof once the secondary contact is separated from the primary movable contacts.

Electric switch with welded contact sensor lockout

A plunger axially depressible within a tubular housing against a return spring has a conductive pin contact contained within a helically shaped slot through the plunger to project radially from opposite sides of the plunger. A spring biases the pin toward a first pair of stationary contacts. Depression of the plunger effects abutting engagement of the pin on the stationary contacts and continued depression causes the slot to rotationally wipe the pin on the stationary contacts. A conductive washer is slidably disposed over the plunger, keyed to a helical track on the exterior surface of the plunger to cooperatively abut and subsequently rotationally wipe a second pair of stationary contacts to provide a second pole for the switch.

Pushbutton switch with rotational contact wiping action

A solenoid (28) is mounted to a frame (26) secured to panel mounting clips (24) of a pushbutton switch for snap-on attachment to the switch housing (2). The switch has a hollow central chamber and a hole (32) is formed in the lower end (6) adjacent the solenoid (28) whereby an operator cap (10) may be removed and a headed coupling rod (34) inserted through the hollow chamber of the switch to project out the hole (32) for connection to the solenoid plunger (28b). The operator cap (10) is subsequently replaced to permit manual operation of the switch or remote operation wherein the solenoid (28) is energized to pull the pushbutton operator (4) to a depressed position.

Pushbutton switch with remotely controlled operating attachment

An auxiliary add-on attachment is disclosed for use in combination with an existing rocker switch. The attachment includes a spring loaded latch mechanism which upon release drives the rocker button to an OFF position. The latch mechanism is released upon retraction of a solenoid plunger when the solenoid is energized by a trip signal which may, for example, be delivered from a timing circuit when a designated machine should be automatically turned off after a certain length of time, such as cathode ray tubes, computers, photocopy machines, etc. Depressing the rocker button back to its ON position loads and resets the latch mechanism.

Electric switch with kick-off attachment

A sealed rocker switch wherein a light transmitting lens is provided in a sealing member to focus and align with a switch position indicating lamp mounted in the switch base and a translucent window in the front of the switch operating rocker.

Illuminated sealed rocker switch

A pushbutton switch having an extremely small size for its number of contacts and capability. The switch has a tubular insulating housing with the snap-in pushbutton non-rotatably keyed in and extending through the upper reduced bushing end thereof for longitudinal reciprocal movement. Bifurcated spring contacts are molded into a snap-in base and extend upwardly therefrom into the housing. A ring-shaped common terminal is snap-in attached to the base before snap-in assembly thereof in the housing. A cylindrical bar movable contact guided in grooves in the housing is snap-in assembled between tabs in the bifurcated inner end of the snap-in pushbutton and keeps the snap-in tabs spread apart to prevent removal of the pushbutton from the housing. A helical return spring lines the walls of the housing and is compressed between the common terminal and the ends of the movable contact bar to act as both a return spring and as a connector. A tactile tongue integral with the pushbutton acts on the housing to provide operating position 'feel' to enable the user to sense when the contacts close.

Miniature multi-contact pushbutton switch

An off-lock for a toggle switch of the type having a slotted guide plate and a spring-biased toggle lever having flats on opposite sides of the portion thereof extending through the elongated slot in the guide plate to confine the toggle lever for non-rotatable pivotal motion. The lever lock consists of arcuate grooves around the toggle lever slightly above the guide plate deep enough to allow rotation of the toggle lever after it is pressed down to bring such grooves to the level of the guide plate. For off-lock in its center off position, the toggle lever is pressed down against the force of the plunger springs and turned 90.degree. so as to cause the opposite edges of the slot in the guide plate to mesh with the arcuate grooves and thus lock the toggle lever against pivotal movement. To release the off-lock, the toggle lever is turned 90.degree. whereupon it snaps up to normal position allowing pivotal movement.

Growing community of inventors

Pine Level, NC, United States of America

Tony O Woodard