| FR2266278A1 | 1975-10-24 | |||
| US4350967A | 1982-09-21 | |||
| FR1175864A | 1959-04-02 | |||
| EP0182487A2 | 1986-05-28 |
| 1. | UNIVERSAL SWITCH WITH INTEGRAL CONTACT TABS, whose feature is the i nterchangeabi I ity of the fixing parts (9,10) and of the insulating case (1,2) of the switch. |
| 2. | Switch, according to Claim 1, whose feature is that the switch proper has two compositionmetal tabs (3) which are electric conductors and original ly Lshaped; the lower part of the "L" is the part i n tended to make contact (3') being associated with a bridge conductor (5) and an impulse device (8) to al low the make and the break of the circuit. |
| 3. | Switch, according to Claim 2, whose feature is that the contact tabs are "l ightened", i.e. their fibers are preyielded (3") in order to obtain vari¬ ous possibi l ities of bending after the assembly. |
| 4. | 4 Switch, according to Claim 1, whose feature is that to be formed by: the switch proper, formed by: "" two opposed contact tabs, original ly Lshaped, moved to the side so that one cannot touch the other, leaving in the iddle a determinate space between the respective contacts (3'); ";:" a make bridge conductor (5) which is placed trans^ versely in order to touch, by an axial motion, the contacts (3')of the two tabs (3); ";;" a spring device (4) which keeps the make bridge conductor (5) elastical ly in touch with the con¬ tacts (3') of the two tabs (3); an impulse device (8) which is associated with a small transmission rod (7) and a guide (6) to operate the make bridge conductor (5) from ON to OFF and vice versa; an interchangeable, variously shaped case (1,2) which contains the contact tabs (3) and gives dif¬ ferent possibi lities of electric connection; an interchangeable case (9,10) containing the im¬ pulse device and the transmission rod (6,7,8) and having different shapes and dimensions according to the fixing system. |
| 5. | Switch, according to Claim 4, whose feature is that the case containing the switch can be: the short type (1) where the contact tabs (3) come out al lowing the "faston" connection; the long type (2) where the contact tabs (3) ^^ entirely enclosed inside the case, so that the case itself can act as a protected connector. |
| 6. | Switch, according to Claim 4 and/or 5, whose feature is that the case containing the impulse de¬ vice (8) can be: a cap of various shape and dimensions, according to where it is fitted, which reacts to the tempera¬ ture depending on the specific characteristics of the appl iance the switch is intended for. |
| 7. | Switch, according to Claim 2 and any of the fol¬ lowing, whose feature is that the prebending oper¬ ation carried out on the contact tab (3) consists of two stages: the former is a "cove" bending obtain¬ ed by cold molding (a), the latter is a cold squeez¬ ing of the bend (b) in order to bring the contact tab (3) back into l ine. |
| 8. | Switch, according to Claim 2 and any of the fol¬ lowing, whose feature is that the impulse device, in a thermostatic switch, consists of a bimetal l ic disc which warps from concave to convex and vice versa according to the temperature, thus pushing an insulating smal l rod of transmission (7) which is guided on the axis (6). |
• The subject of this invention is an UNIVERSAL SWITCH WITH INTEGRAL CONTACT TABS.
This innovation is properly and pecul iarly appl ied in electric switches and simi lar devices, including thermostatic switches or simi lar devices which are power-operated and/or control led by various para- meters (moisture meters, thrust meters, etc.).
. At present we know a wide range of switches having different functions whose general feature is that . of being designed for one specific function; there¬ fore, they usual ly involve complex manufactu ing prolb I ems due to the necessity to produce different types of devices according to the appl ication they are in¬ tended for. For example, the necessity to have a dif¬ ferent fixing system involves the production of a specific device for this purpose. Moreover, the switches we already know are general ly
designed with contact strips made of valuable ma¬ terials; such strips are general ly riveted or welded so that they cannot be replaced. This inven ion aims at removing the above mentioned disadvantages by means of a simple, cheap and highly rel iable device with a high conductance; it also aims to make both the fixing system and the wiring system un i versa I . This innovation, according to the features mentioned in the enclosed Claims, solves the problem by means of an interchangeabi I ity of the fixing parts and of the insulating case of the switch. These features al low:
- the fixing of the switch by different systems, thus adjusting the switch itself to the specific requ i re_ ments of various appl iances;
- the electrical connection by different systems.
In its preferential form the switch has two composi¬ tion-metal tabs which are electric conductors and original ly L-shaped; the lower part of the "L" is the part intended to make contact being associated with a bridge conductor which al lows the make and the break of the circuit. This feature makes the switch universal as either different ways of fixing the switch to a support or different insulating cases can be used.
A further important characteristic of such contact tabs is that they are "l ightened", i .e. their fibers are pre-yielded in order to obtain various possibi l¬ ities of bending after the assembly. This characteristic also al lows different orienta¬ tions of the contact tabs.
Herebelow the invention is explained in detai l by means of sketches showing some preferential solutions whose manufacturing details, however, are ' purely i l lustrative and not restrictive.
- Sketch no. 1 shows a schematic view of possible combinations of components which, in this case, may form after assembly four different thermostatic switches. - Sketch no. 2 shows a front view of a couple of contact tabs which, in this case, are used in a single-circuit switch.
- Sketch no. 2A shows the successive stages of the yielding operation carried out on a contact tab so that it can be bent in the desired position.
- Sketch no. 3 shows one of the possible bending posj_ t i ons.
- Sketch no. 4 shows a different orientation as to sketch no. 3 - - Sketch no. 5 shows a view from side A of the con¬ tact tabs shown on sketch no. 2; the dashing points out the bending solution according to sketch no. 4.
- Sketch no. 6 is an enlarged view of the fibers during the pre-bending operation ("a" and "b") and the possible final bending after assembly ("c" and "d"). As outl ined in the above mentioned sketches the pref¬ erential thermostatic switch is formed by:
- the switch proper, formed by:
" " two opposed contact tabs, original ly L-shaped, moved to the side so that one cannot touch the other, leaving in the middle a determinate space between the respec ive contacts (3'); - """ a make bridge conductor (5) which is placed tran j s versely in order to touch, by an axial motion, the contacts of the two tabs (3'); ";;" a spring device (4) which keeps the make bridge conductor (5) elastical ly in touch with the con¬ tacts (3') of the two tabs (3);
- an impulse device (8) which is associated with a sma I I transmission rod (7) and a guide (6) to operate the make bridge conductor (5) from ON to OFF and vice versa;
- an interchangeable, variously shaped case (1,2) which contains the contact tabs;
- an interchangeable, variously shaped case (9,10) which contains the impulse device and the trans¬ mission rod (6,7,8).
In particular, the case containing the switch can be:
- the short type (l) where the contact tabs (3) come out al lowing the "fasten" connection; - the long type (2) where the contact tabs are entire_ ly enclosed inside the case, so that the case it¬ self can act as a protected connector. In the same way, the case containing the impulse device (8) can be: - a plain cap, e.g. when the switch is fitted on washing machines, coffee-makers, etc. (9);
- with thread, e.g. when the switch is screwed on the radiator of a vehicle (10).
Moreover, it is important to underl ine that the pre- bending operation (a,b) carried out on the contact tab (3) consists of 2 stages: the former is a "cove" bending obtained by cold molding (a), the latter is a cold squeezing of the bend (b) in order to b ing the contact tab (3) back into l ine. This wi l l al low, after assembly, to bend the upper part of the contact tab with "faston" connection in the desired position.
In a thermostatic switch the above mentioned impulse device (8) consists of a bimetal l ic disc which warps from concave to convex and vice versa according to the temperature, thus pushing an insulating smal l
rod of transmission (7) which is guided on the axis
(6).
Obviously, the manufacturing detai ls can vary without that changing anything of the protection range of the invention which is defined by the features enun¬ ciated in the enclosed Claims.