Acceleration responsive switch and method of making the same

Abstract

An acceleration responsive switch includes a receptacle including a housing having a conical face on an inner bottom face and a header fixed to the housing to close an open end of the housing, a lead terminal fixed in a through-aperture of the header, a contact member secured to an end of the lead terminal located in the housing and including a plurality of feather portions arranged radially to be approximately concentric with the housing, an electrically conductive inertia ball enclosed in the closed receptacle so as to be capable of rolling on the inner bottom face of the housing, a plurality of protrusions formed an inner peripheral wall of the housing, an oscillation damping liquid contained in the receptacle and having a viscosity suitable to apply resistance to the inertia ball so that the inertia ball terminates its rotation when the inertia ball is subjected to an external oscillation to be rotated. When subjected to acceleration, the inertia ball rolls to come into contact with one or more of the feather portions of the contact member so that it electrically conducts between the feather portions and the housing. The inertia ball in a rotational motion collides against the protrusion, changing the course of its movement.