US1563357A - Press button - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 1 1925. 1,563,357

A. C. GAYNOR PRESS BUTTON Filed Dec. 22. 922

L1 ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 1, 1925.

ARTHUR C. GAYNOR, 0F STRATFOBD, CONNECTICUT.

BUTTON.

Application filed December 22, 1922. Serial No. 608,443.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR C. GAYNOR, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Stratford, county of Fairfi'eld, State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Press Buttons, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improved press buttons adapted and constructed to cause an electrical contact thus closing a circuit to sound an alarm, or for analogous purposes.

The principal objects of the invention are to provide a strong and rugged structure of few parts which can be readily assembled and disassembled; to always provide for true and efficient electrical contact and which will be neat in appearance and in expensive to manufacture.

Other objects will appear from the following description and claims.

Referring to the drawings which form a part of this specification:

Fig. l is a plan view of the upper face of the press button structure embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a rear view thereof.

Fig. 3 is a section on line 33 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a section on line 4 '-4: of Fig. 1, showing in full lines the contact closed, and in its open position in dotted lines.

Fig. 5 is a section on line 33 of Fig. 2 with the insulating member carrying the terminals in position of removal from the structure.

Fig. 6 is a plan showing the dome shaped blank in its initial step of formation.

Fig 6 is a section on line 6-6 of Fig. 6.

Fig. 7 shows the dome-shaped element in the second stage of manufacture.

Fig. 7 is a section on line 7 7 a of Fig. 7.

Fig. 8 is a side elevation of the domeshaped element with the clamping prongs in position to be inserted in the standard opening in the plate.

Fig. 9 is a view partly in section and partly in elevation of the assembly of the dome-shaped portion in the plate.

Fig. 10 is a plan view partly broken away showing the assembly after the prongs have been turned down to clamp the dome shaped portion to the plate.

Fig. 10 is a section on line 1 10' of Fig. 10.

Fig. 11 is a section of the modified form of the press button showing an insulation between the two metal portions which is useful in certain installations.

Fig. 12 is a side elevation of the press button with the outer metal portion removed.

Fig. 13 is a plan View of the same.

The press buttons are made in a number of designs, rectangular, round and oval, and so forth, with all manner of filigree work on the exposed faces. I have, however, shown in the drawings, in the interest of clearness, a smooth rectangular face plate 2 provided with a downwardly extending border 4, a dome shaped portion 6, a metallic press button 8, each of which is plain and not decorated. In the upper portion of the plate is the usual indentation 10 with holding means 12 for name cards, and so forth, and also suitable holes 14 through which the securing means may pass.

With special reference now to the drawings in which the same reference characters indicate the same parts in the several views, 20 is an opening of standard size cut into the plate 2, the opening being substantially round in contour, yet at intervals throughout its circumference are cut notches 22, 23, 24 and 26, the notch 26 being relatively much wider than the notches 22 to 24. The dome shaped element 6 is stamped out of a sheet of metal and formed over a dome of steel so when the dome shaped element is completed there will be an opening 30 in its center, and tongues 32, preferably three in number, extending from the lower edge thereof.

The dome is preferably pressed from sheet metal in one operation, the punch in a press descending onto the sheet metal, cutting out a circle with three holding tongues, and stretching this piece over a dome of steel to acquire its shape, the tongues lying in a plane at right angles to the axis of the dome. The dome is then pushed through a form or die of such a diameter as to cause the tongues to bend out of their original plane and into a position parallel to the axis of the dome.

The circumference of the lower edge of the dome is slightly larger than thatof the circumference of the standard opening 20 in the plate 2, so that the edge of the dome in assembly will rest upon the plate and lie just outside of the inner edge of the opening 20. Two of the tongues 32 fit into thev notches 22 and 23 and the remaining tongue 32 fits into the notch 24. These tongues are then bent over to securely clamp the dome to the plate.

A piece of insulating material, P, oblong in shape and of sufficient length to be held within the dome and against the edges of the circular opening 20 is fitted into the dome and is held against the plate by means of the spring S which engages the insulation plate on the underside thereof, and extends into the press button 8 and held in place thereby separating the press button from the plate of insulation and holding it under tension. The insulating plate is chopped from a strip of fibre in one operation and the terminal screws i0 and 41 are then screwed into the holes formed in the plate, the screws thus making a thread for themselves in the comparatively soft fibre and eliminating the necessity of cutting a thread, i. e. threading the hole in a separate operation.

The line insulated wire W consisting of two wires C and C is then secured to the respective terminals 1-0 and :1 in the usual manner, which are so placed in the insulating block that the flange 18 of the metal press button 8, when pressed by the operator against the spring, will impinge against the terminals a0 and 41, thus completing the circuit.

The plate of insulation is installed by inserting one end underneath the flange F and the other end fitting into the notch 26, the spring and push button being first inserted in their respective position, the block of insulation being subsequently turned horizontally in either direction so that both ends will engage and be held against the flanges f and f which are formed on the plate 2.

lVhile the press button 8 may be made wholly of metal, I find in some installations it is desirable to pro *ide an insulated press button. As it is desired that the face of the press button be also of metal, I provide a button made up of two domes and 81 litting into each other with a layer of insulation held between the metal portions 80 and 81, thereby insulating the metal against which the hand of the operator engages from the metal portion 81, the flange 83 of which impinges against the terminals 40 and 41.

By means of this assembly I provide a metallic press button held by means of a spring in operative relation with the floating insulating piece of fiber which carries the two terminals or contact screws and against which spring the button is pressed to cont-act with the terminals and close the circuit.

From the above it will be readily understood that the entire construction is such that the parts may be readily assembled and disassembled for adjustment and cleaning and for any other purpose desired, yet the parts are automatically held in perfect alignment and are always in postion for proper co-operation.

As changes of construction could be made within the scope of my invention it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying, drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention what T claim as new and desire to secure by Let-- ters Patent is:

l. A device of the type described which comprises, a face plate, a dome member mounted on said face plate, said face plate having an opening beneath said dome member, a plate of insulating material within said dome and extending across said open ing, a push button mounted in said dome, contact terminals on said insulator plate positioned to be contacted and bridged by said push button and a spring between said push button and said insulator plate to hold said insulator plate against a portion of the face plate projecting within the dome member.

2. A device of the type described which comprises, a face plate, a dome element mounted on said face plate, an opening in said face plate beneath said dome, the face plate extending within said dome about said opening, a piece of insulating material in said dome member spanning said opening, a pair of contact terminals on said piece of insulating material, a metallic push button extending through a hole in said dome element and having an outwardly extending flange bearing against the innner face of said dome element about said hole and adapted to contact with and bridge said contacts, and a spring between said push button and said piece of insulating material holding said piece of insulating material against the portion of said face plate within said dome member.

3. A device of the type described which comprises, a face plate, a dome member mounted on said face plate, a piece of insulating material in said dome member and resting against the face of said face plate within said dome member, a pair of contact terminals in said piece of insulating material, a push button mounted on said dome member and adapted to contact with and bridge said contact terminals, and a spring between said push button and said piece of insulating material, said face plate being provided beneath said dome member with an opening spanned by said piece of insulating material, the edge of said opening having a notch for the insertion of said insulating piece.

4:. A device of the type described which comprises, a face plate having a substantially circular opening therein, said opening having a number of notches in its periphery, a dome member mounted on said face plate over said opening, tongues on said dome member extending through said notches and turned back of said face plate, a piece of insulating material spanning said opening and resting against the face of said plate within said dome member, contact terminals on said insulating piece, a push button in said dome member adapted to contact with and bridge said contact terminals, and a spring between said push button and said piece of insulating material.

5. A device of the type described which comprises, a face plate, a dome member on said plate, a piece of insulating material within said dome member resting against the face of said plate, contact terminals on said insulating piece, a push button in said dome member adapted to contact with and bridge said contact terminals, and a spring between said push button and said insulating piece to hold said push button out of contact with said terminals and to hold said insulating piece against said face plate.

6. A device of the type described which comprises, a face plate, a dome member mounted on said face plate and having a hole for the mounting of a push button, a piece of insulating material in said dome member, contact terminals on said insulating piece, a metallic push button mounted in the hole of said dome and having a flange resting against the inner face of said dome about said hole, and a spring between said push button and said insulating piece to hold said insulating piece against the face plate beneath same dome.

7. A device of the type described which comprises, a dome shaped push button mounting member, a pair of contacts within said dome member insultated from each other, and a push button having an inner metallic shell normally insultated from said contacts and adapted to contact with and bridge said contacts, an intermediate in sulating layer and an outer shell.

8. A device of the type described which comprises, a member for mounting a push button, a pair of insulated contact terminals in said member and a push button having a metallic inner member normally insulated from said contacts and adapted to contact with and bridge said contact terminals and an operating outer face electrically insulated from said inner metallic face.

9. A device of the type described which comprises, a dome member for mounting a push button, a piece of insulating material loosely mounted in said dome member, a pair of contact terminals on said insulating piece, a push button mounted in said dome member and having a metal surface adapted to cont-act with and bridge said contact terminals, and a spring between said push button and said insulating piece to hold said insulating piece against the base of said dome member and said push button out of contact with said contact terminals.

10. In a device of the type described, a face plate having a substantially circular opening, said opening having a number of notches in its periphery, a dome member mounted on said face plate over said opening, and tongues on said dome member extending through said notches and bent over against the rear of said face plate to hold said dome member rigidly in position over said opening, said face plate having a notch from said opening of sufiicient width to receive an end of a bridge member.

11. In a device of the type described, a push button contact element which comprises a metallic dome shaped shell having an outwardly projecting flange adapted to contact with and bridge a pair of contact terminals, and a coating of insulating material covering the opposite and convex side of said shell.

12. A device of the type described which comprises, a face plate, a dome member mounted on said face plate, an opening in said face plate within said dome forming a circular flange about said opening, a bridge member spanning said opening and resting on said flange, contact members mounted on said bridge member and insulated from each other, said dome having a push button opening, a push button in said opening, and a spring between said push button and said bridge member.

13. A device of the type described which comprises, a face plate, a dome member mounted on said face plate, an o ening in said face plate within said dome orming a circular flange about said opening, a bridge member spanning said opening and resting on said flange, said opening having a notch adapted to permit the passage of one end of said bridge, contact members mounted on said bridge member and insulated from each other, said dome having a push button opening, a push button in said opening, and a spring between said push button and said bridge member.

Signed this 21st day of December, 1922.

ARTHUR G. GAYNOR.

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