US2215311A - Electric switch - Google Patents

Description

17;' 1949- A. ADAMS 23.15.311 ELEcTRIclITGH i Filed Nov. 20. 1937 la n l l n Y :P0/v6.5 ,eus/ane I I ze lzzb 5a zt zza 4 j ATTORNEY.v

Patented Sept. 17, 1940 UNITED STATES.

PATENT OFFICE y The present invention pertains to electric switches, broadly, and more specifically to sock- 'et switches, operable by pressure upon a side of the switch body, as in the case of the British Patent No. 2,325 of 1899. Among the ob-jects of this invention are to. provide a switch which is easily assembled and inexpensive to manufacture; to provide a 'switch in which the switch parts are enclosed in a moisture-proof casing;

l0 to provide a switch having no operating part projecting through the casing and capable of carrying current to the hand of the user of the switch;

' toprovide a switch of the type indicatedwhich is hermetically sealed to prevent entrance'of vex.

as the preferred embodiment of this invention, I

desire the same to be understood as illustrative only and not to be interpreted in a limiting sense. In the drawing annexed hereto and forming a part hereof, Fig. 1 represents allongitudinal sectional elevation of a construction embodying my present invention, the same being represented as taken approximately along the plane indicated by the line-| l, Fig. 2;

Fig. 2 represents a transverse section substantially along the plane indicated 'by the line 2 2, Fig. l;

.35 Fig. 3 represents a longitudinal sectional elevation of a modied form of my construction, the same being represented as taken substantially along the plane indicated by the ."line 3 3, Figs.

4 and 5; Fig. 4 reprents a transverse section taken approximately along the plane indicated by theq line 4 4, Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 represents a transverse section taken approximately along the plane indicated bythe 'line 5 5, Fig. 3; and

Fig. 6 represents the application of one form of my invention in a switch not provided with a lamp socket.

Reference will now be` made in greater detail to the annexed drawing for a more complete description of this invention. The switch casing is formed from a pair of similar, moulded rubber sections I and 2 which are so shaped that when placed face to face and cemented together or cemented and vulcanized together they will con- `ber 6.

stitute a casing for the switch parts, which casing will be huid-proof so as to prevent short circuit- 'member 6 has one end embedded in the casingl and has its other end turned at a right angle, as l@ shown at 1, to engage projections 8 on the cur- `rent conducting disc 9 which is mounted on and is rotatable about the-axle I0.

The casing is tubular in form and has one end closed, as indicated at II, and has a socket I2. l5 in its opposite end for the reception of the threaded metallic current conducting sleeve I3 into which the threaded base of an electric lamp is to be screwed. One end'of the conducting strip 5 terminates within the sleeve I3 and is bent over 20 in the v'customary manner to engage the center contact of a lamp bulb screwed into the socket I3. The strip 3 and socket I3 are secured together by soldering ,or brazing before assembly of the parts of the switch so that when the metal parts are inserted in the cavities of the rubber blocks no further work will need to be done upon these metal parts in order to be ready to assemble and unite-the parts of the casing. The conducting strip 4 hasan end bent over, as indicated 30 at I4, and to this, one end of the wire I5 is secured by the screw I6. The end of the Wire I1 is secured to the bent over end of the strip 3 by the screw I8. e

The cavity I9 is separated from the cavity I2 35 by a wall 20, made up of parts integral with the two sectionsI and 2. The wall 20 is undercut, as indicated at 2| in Fig. 1, to give greater ilex-l ibilityof the casing 'on the side adj acent'the mem- A knob or linger piece 22 is formed on 40 the outside'of the casing to'indicate where presv sure is to be applied for the actuation of theV member 6 by means of which the disc 9 is rotated.

A plurality of notches 23, preferably eight in number, are formed in the edge of an insulating disc 24 to be engaged by the inner ends oi' the strips 4 and 5. The conducting vdisc 9 has arms 25, half as numerous as the notches 23, and these arms occupy alternate notches 23 in the edge of the disc 24. It is obvious that these parts can be arranged in various ways to accomplish the same purpose and I therefore do not wish my claim to be limited to the particular structur herein disclosed. When it is desired to operate the 5,',

switch, one presses on the knob 22, forcing the side of the container inwardly against the member 6 and flexing this to cause the end 1 to engage,

22 is released. Various other similar modes of operating the ratchet disc in which the notches 23 are cut may be employed without departing from the spirit of this invention. For example, the member 6 may be much shorter and nearly straight, with its outer end extending through the wall and into the knob 22 so that the member 6 will be yieldably mounted and will move .with the movable portion of the wall of the container.

A small flange 26 is formed around the end of the switch container remote from the socket end and a unitary cap 21, having a flange to engage the ange 26, is provided and s'naps over the end of the container to enclose the ends of the wires I and I1 and the screws I6 and I8. Because of this arrangement, it is impossible for the hand of the user to come in contact with any metal current-carrying part or to contact any wet part capable of carrying a current whereby the user might get an electric shock.

Instead of having the grooves for the strips 3, 4 and 5 formed in mating grooves in the two parts I and 2, it is possible to form these groovesdeeper and entirely in one part so that the edges of the metal strips will come just flush with the fiat face of the rubber part and then the other rubber part will act as a cover for the openings in the first part. 'I'he parts I and 2 may be merely cemented together or they may be cemented and vulcanized. It is regarded as important that these parts shall be more or less permanently united in such a manner as to be substantially proof against fluid entering the chamber I9.

In a large measure, the structure shown in Figs. 3, 4, and 5 is similar to that shown in Figs. 1 and 2, but there are certain minor variations, all being connected with the bridging member between the contact strips and the means for actuating this bridging member. In the construction shown in Figs. 3, 4, and 5, a lever 28 is pivoted at 29 and'may be rocked on its pivot, as is obvious from Fig. 3. InFig. 3, the strips 4 and 5 are denoted by the numerals 4a and 5a because of the fact that the'y ditler somewhat in shape from the corresponding elementsof the previously described construction. 'I'he lever 28 has a post 30 projecting transversely from its middle These strips then hold the disc against portion and this post has a small central projection at its end which extends into a spring 3|, the opposite end of which engages the inner face of the wall forming the opposite side of the chamber I9 from that which is pressed to cause actu"l ation of the switch. When pressure is exerted on the knob or projection 22a, rocking of the lever 28 about its axle 29 is caused, and the switch has more or less of a snap action, due to the connection between the parts 30 and 3I passing a dead center. .Pressure upon the knob 22h will cause rocking of the lever 28 in the opposite direction to cause closure of the switch, as illustrated in Fig. 3. A bent metal piece 32 prevents the piece 14a from working outwardly, even if the cement should fail to hold it rigidly connected to the rubber.

, The structure shown in Fig. 6 is similar to that shown in Fig. 1 with the lamp socket omitted and other minor changes made. In this form, the strips 3 and 5 are joined into one and the actuator member 6 is replaced by an element 6a ernbedded in the knob 22, as suggested above. Otherwise, the structure is unchanged. This strucp ture may be further modified by forming a ilange 26 at each end of the body shown inFig. 6 and applying a cap 21 to each end. The central contact in the lamp socket, as shown in Fig. 1, would be shortened and bent in against'thewall 20, and the vend of strip 3 would likewisebe bent against the wall 20. `Screws comparable to I6 4 and I8 would be provided for the attachment of Wires to the strips 3 and 5.

This arrangement would include the switch in one wire only of a pair of wires.

It will of course be understood that the speciiic description of structure set forth above may be departed from without departing from the spirit of this invention as set forth in this specification and the appended claim.. l

Having now described my invention, I claim:

An electric switch comprising a substantially unitary fluid-proof hollow rubber body, a pair of circuit terminals extending through the wall of said body and into the hollow in said body, and a contact member having two normal rest positions, in one of which it makes electrical contact with said terminals and in the other of which it is out of electrical contact with said terminals, said contact member'comprising a rotatable element having a notched edge, one`pair of notches being out of electrical contact and another pair of terminal engaging notches being in electrical contact, a section of the wall of said body being operative upon exure into the hollow to. shift said contact member from either of said positions to the other. Y

- CHAS. A. ADAMS.

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