Sealed Tilt Switch

Abstract

A sealed switch housing including an external tiltable switch actuating member adapted to be operatively connected to an internal switch actuator, with the actuating member and actuator arranged upon a cover utilized to close and seal a switch components compartment. Means are provided whereby the cover is positionable in sealing relation upon the peripheral edges of the compartment after the external actuating member and internal actuator are connected together to either side of the cover, with the cover and compartment providing complementary elements that form rotatable bearing seats for bearing members provided by the internal switch actuator.

Description

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A switch having a tiltable actuator and a sealed casing, housing the switch components. The casing includes a base providing a bottom wall through which a plurality of terminals project, and side and end wall, all of which define a compartment having an open top. A cover is provided with a peripheral lip that overlies edge portions of the side and end walls of the base and which also provides a thickened body portion adapted to sit upon an internal peripheral shoulder provided by the side and end walls of the base. Beneath the cover is positioned an internal switch actuator having end portions mounted in channels provided by an external tiltable actuating lever positioned on the top of the cover when the same is sealed upon the base.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

The invention will be best understood by reference to the accompanying drawing, which shows the preferred form of construction, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the sealed tiltable switch;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the underside of the switch cover;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the switch base with the cover removed;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the switch cover and the external actuating member and the internal switch actuator in exploded relation with respect to each other;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the underside of the cover with the internal actuator mounted thereon;

FIG. 6 is a detailed sectional view taken on line 6--6 of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a side elevational view of the switch base and cover mounted thereon;

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary sectional detail view to enlarged scale taken on line 8--8 of FIG. 4.

Tiltable switches as exemplified in the art normally provided a base or switch component compartment having operatively mounted thereon a tiltable switch actuator. To close the switch compartment so as to protect the switch components against dirt, dust, moisture and the like, a yieldable switch boot was normally positioned over the top of the switch compartment and beneath the switch actuator. This yieldable switch boot itself became subject to rust or deterioration and soon lacked the capacity to protect the internal compartment of the switch base.

The present invention is directed to a structure for positively sealing the switch base compartment with a cover member of like material and which will not interfere with the actuating movement of the external actuating member.

Referring to FIG. 1, there is perspectively disclosed an assembled tilt switch 10 that includes a base compartment member 11 through the bottom wall of which projects a plurality of terminals 12. The assembled tilt switch 10 includes a cover plate 13 positioned on and sealing the normally open top of the base 11. Mounted upon the cover plate 13 is a tiltable switch actuating lever 14.

To accommodate the cover plate 13, the base 11 has a peripheral edge provided at the top of the side and end walls 15 and 16, respectively. The medial portions of the side walls 15 are indented as at 17 so as to form enlarged end sections 18 and 19. The same medial portions have their top edges inclined upwardly as at 21, out of their normal plane as best seen in FIG. 7, with their uppermost apex being formed to provide a semicircular bearing 22, the purpose of which will be hereinafter made apparent.

The edge portions of the enlarged end sections 18 and 19 of the base 11 provide an internal depressed shoulder 23, which forms a seat for the inwardly protruding body portion 24 formed on the underside of the cover 13. As clearly shown in FIG. 2, the cover 13 is provided with enlarged end sections 25 and 26 which correspond to the enlarged end sections 18 and 19 of the base 11, which, like the medial portions 27 of the side edges of the cover 13, are outlined by a peripheral lip 28. This lip 28 sits upon the exposed top edges of the side and end walls of the base 11, while the body portions 24 of the end sections of the cover 13 sit upon the internal depressed shoulder 23 provided by the base 11.

Referring to FIGS. 4, 6 and 7, it is there shown that the center portion of the cover 13 which extends between the enlarged end sections 25 and 26 is deformed upwardly out of the normal plane of the cover 13 into a substantially triangularly shaped rise 29. The rise 29 has its side wall 29' portions provided with semicircular openings 30 which, when the cover 13 is positioned upon the upper edge portions of the base 11, as hereinbefore described, will cooperate with the semicircular bearings 22 provided by the upwardly inclined side walls 15 of the base 11, to form a complete circular bearing for the end portions 31 of an internal actuator 32.

The internal switch actuator 32 is shown in perspective in FIG. 4 and, as thus shown, provides the circular end portions 31 which terminate at their free ends into rectangularly shaped mounting blocks 33. A center portion of the internal actuator 32, between the circular end portions 31, is formed to provide at one side thereof a triangularly shaped section 34 having disposed on either side thereof actuating fingers 35, the free ends of which extend beneath the base of the triangular section 34 and which are laterally offset with respect to each other as seen in FIG. 4.

The switch is provided with an external actuating lever 14, the configuration of which is clearly shown in FIG. 4 and, as such, discloses a center body section 36 which is curved throughout its length and which is provided at its opposite sides with depending triangularly shaped side walls 37 and 38. A finger grip member 39 extends in an opposite direction with respect to the side walls 37 and 38 and perpendicularly to a center line drawn therethrough. The inner wall surfaces of the side walls 37 and 38 of the actuating lever 14 are provided with rectangularly shaped channels 40 which are of a size to receive and retain the rectangularly shaped blocks 33 provided on the opposite ends of the internal actuator 32. These channels 40 provide at their open ends inwardly protruding retaining hooks 40', for a purpose hereinafter explained.

In assembly, the switch components which make up no part of the present invention but which, as shown here, include two switch blades 41 and 42, are pivotally mounted within the confines of the hollow base 11. The external actuating lever 14 is placed upon the cover 13 such that the side walls 37 and 38 thereof overlie the side walls of the cover and depend below the normal longitudinal plane thereof as seen in FIG. 1. The internal switch actuator 32 is then placed on the opposite side of the cover 13 and is connected to the external actuating lever 14 by having its mounting blocks 33 pressed through the channels 40 over and inwardly of the retaining hooks 40', provided by the side walls 37 and 38 of the external actuator 14, so as to be mounted in the manner shown in FIG. 6. The cover 13, together with the external actuating lever 14 and internal actuator 32, is placed upon the indented side walls of the base 11 where the semi-circular bearings 22 and 30 of the base 11 and cover 13, respectively, cooperate to form a complete bearing support for the circular end sections 31 of the internal actuator 32.

The triangular section 34 of the actuator 32 will rest upon a flat spring member 43 carried by the base 11 while the fingers 35 will engage the corresponding opposite free ends of the switch blades 41 and 42 positioned within the base 11.

When the cover 13 is sealed to the base 11, the internal actuator 32 may be partially rotated in the housing so as to actuate the switch components, by corresponding pivotal movement of the external actuator 14, notwithstanding that the switch housing is sealed as desired.

While we have illustrated and described the preferred form of construction for carrying our invention into effect, this is capable of variation and modification without departing from the spirit of the invention. We, therefore, do not wish to be limited to the precise details of construction set forth, but desire to avail ourselves of such variations and modifications as come within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. A switch having a pivotal actuating lever externally of a sealed switch housing for rotating an internal switch actuator including

a. a hollow open-top base member providing a compartment for the switch components,

b. a cover for said base member for closing and sealing the open top thereof,

c. means provided by said base member and said cover cooperating to form a sealed closure therebetween,

d. a tiltable external actuating lever positioned upon said cover and providing side walls adapted to overlap corresponding side walls of said cover and said base member,

e. a rotatable internal actuator positioned beneath said cover and within a said base member and concealedly connected to the inner surfaces of said side walls of said external actuating lever,

f. means provided by said external actuating lever and said actuator for connecting the same together on opposite sides of said cover for tiltable and rotatable movement, and

g. means provided by said cover and said base member through which portions of said actuator are rotatably projected for external connection by said connecting means to said external actuating lever.

2. A switch as defined by claim 1 wherein said means provided by said base member and said cover that form a sealed closure therebetween, comprises an internal recessed shoulder formed in a portion of the peripheral edge of said base member for providing a seat for corresponding body portions of said cover, and a peripheral lip provided by said cover overlapping corresponding peripheral edges of the open top of said base member.

3. A switch as defined by claim 1 wherein said means provided by sad actuating lever and said actuator for connecting the same together comprises substantially rectangularly shaped mounting blocks formed on opposite ends of the actuator and extending beyond said means provided by said cover and said base member through which said actuator rotatably projects, with said mounting blocks adapted to be retained in elongated channels formed in the inner wall surface of the side walls of said external actuating lever that overlaps the corresponding side walls of said cover and said base member.

4. A switch as defined by claim 3 wherein said means provided by said base member and said cover that form a sealed closure therebetween, comprises an internal recessed shoulder formed in a portion of the peripheral edge of said base member for providing a seat for corresponding body portions of said cover, and a peripheral lip provided by said cover overlapping corresponding peripheral edges of the open top of said base member.

5. A switch as defined by claim 1 wherein said means provided by said cover and said base member through which portions of said actuator are rotatably projected comprise semicircular openings formed in mating wall sections provided by said cover and said base member, so as to form bearings for end portions of said actuator that project therethrough and externally of the sealed switch housing.

6. A switch as defined by claim 4 wherein said means provided by said cover and said base member through which portions of said actuator are rotatably projected comprise semicircular openings formed in mating wall sections provided by said cover and said base member, so as to form bearings for end portions of said actuator that project therethrough and externally of the sealed switch housing.

7. A switch as defined by claim 1 wherein said cover is formed to provide a raised medial section having side edges adapted to be mated to inclined side wall portions provided by said base member, circular bearings formed by said mating side edge and side walls of said cover and said base member through which project circular end portions of said actuator, said external actuating lever formed to provide substantially triangularly shaped side walls, the apex of which overlies said mating side edge and said side walls of said cover and said base member and said circular bearings, with said external actuating lever having means for securing the ends of said actuator thereto for pivotal movement about the axis of said circular bearings so as to actuate the switch.

8. A switch as defined by claim 7 wherein said means provided by said base member and said cover that form a sealed closure therebetween, comprises an internal recessed shoulder formed in a portion of the peripheral edge of said base member for providing a seat for corresponding body portions of said cover, and a peripheral lip provided by said cover overlapping corresponding peripheral edges of the open top of said base member.

9. A switch as defined by claim 7 wherein said means provided by said external actuating lever and said actuator connecting the same together comprises substantially rectangularly shaped mounting blocks formed on opposite ends of the actuator and extending beyond said means provided by said cover and said base member through which said actuator rotatably projects, with said mounting blocks adapted to be retained in elongated channels formed in the inner wall surface of the side walls of said external actuating lever that overlaps the corresponding side walls of said cover and said base member.