Electricity: circuit makers and breakers – Special application – Change of inclination or of rate of motion responsive
Patent
1998-05-26
2000-05-09
Luebke, Renee S.
Electricity: circuit makers and breakers
Special application
Change of inclination or of rate of motion responsive
200 6145M, H01H 3514
Patent
active
060606738
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to inertia switches in which an inertia body is caused by an acceleration over a threshold to move, thus causing a toggle switch to change its state.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Examples of such toggle switches include those described in British Patent Specification 2160017 and WO 83/02196. These specifications disclose an inertia switch device comprising an inertia body, a casing forming a compartment for the inertia body and providing a rest position therefor, and a toggle operable by the inertia body when it is disturbed from its rest position from a first to a second toggle position, and a member mounted in the casing operable for moving the toggle from its second to its first position; and WO 83/02196. These specifications disclose an inertia switch device comprising an inertia body, a casing forming a compartment for the inertia body and providing a rest position therefor, and a toggle operable by the inertia body when it is disturbed from its rest position from a first to a second toggle position, and a member mounted in the casing operable for moving the toggle from its second to its first position.
Various aspects of the invention are set forth in the following detailed description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Examples of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
FIGS. 1 and 2 show a vertical central section through an inertia switch in its two states,
FIG. 3 is an underplan of one form of cap for the casing used in FIGS. 1 and 2,
FIG. 4 is a plan view of the same cap,
FIG. 5 is an underplan view of an alternative cap,
FIG. 6 is a diagrammatic diametral section through another alternative cap,
FIG. 7 is a side elevation of the inertia switch of FIGS. 1 and 2 mounted in a fixing adaptor, and
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the switch separated from the adaptor of FIG. 7.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
FIG. 1 shows an inertia switch containing improvements according to the invention. The basic components of the switch include a lower support 11 defining the bottom of a chamber and providing a frusto-conical seat 14 for an inertia body in the form of a sphere 12 of magnetisable material. The seat contains an optional magnet 13 which is provided to bias the inertia body to its rest position and to hold it in that position while any accelerations to which the switch is subjected remain below a given threshold.
The top of the chamber is defined by a toggle linkage 15 which is movable between a first position in which the toggle is extended as shown in FIG. 1 and a second position in which the toggle is contracted, as shown in FIG. 2.
When the inertia switch is primed, the toggle is in its extended position as shown in FIG. 1 and an electrical switch operable by the toggle is in a first state. When the switch is subjected to an acceleration above the given threshold, the ball moves against the bias of gravity and, if present, the magnet below it, from its rest position to the top of the chamber and strikes the toggle, causing it to move from its extended position to its retracted position as shown in FIG. 2 and this causes the electrical switch to change to a second state. The switch therefore reacts to the application of an acceleration above the given threshold to change the state of the switch and this switch can be used to operate an electrical circuit to respond to the experienced acceleration.
The switch includes a fixed contact 21 and a movable contact 22 on one side of the chamber, the movable contact being movable into and out of contact with the fixed contact when the toggle moves between its positions. This arrangement provides a switch which is made when the acceleration over the given threshold is experienced, since the upwards movement of the inertia body causes the toggle to move from its extended to its contracted position and allows the movable contact 22 to return under its own resilience into contact with the fixed contact 21.
This arrangement can be further
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patent: 5456541 (1995-10-01), Ching-Shui
patent: 5753872 (1998-05-01), Komiya et al.
First Inertia Switch Limited
Luebke Renee S.
LandOfFree
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