Patent · US Expired

Actuatable switch in sealed housing

US6093900A · kind A · utility

25Cited by

8References

9Claims

0Family size

Assignee

ITT MANUFACTURING ENTERPRISES LLC · US

Inventors

Klaus B. Wisskirchen · Berlin, DE
Hartmut Draeger · Berlin, DE
Klaus Lamm · Berlin, DE

Key dates

Filing date	Aug 12, 1998
Grant date	Jul 25, 2000
Priority date	—
Expiry date	Aug 12, 2018

Classification

Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
CPC primaryH01H2221/084
WIPO fieldElectrical machinery, apparatus, energy
WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

An electrical switch (26) is mounted in a rigid housing in the form of a control handle (10), where the housing has a soft flexible covering (32) with a portion (40) that can be depressed to operate the switch. The housing is in the form of a shell with first and second separately molded shell parts (14,16). The first shell part has a hole (24) in it that is aligned with the switch actuator, and the covering is overmolded onto the first shell, with the portion of the covering lying over the hole in the first shell being thickened at the middle (44) of the hole to indicate the area to be depressed and for more comfortable depression. A peripheral area of the first shell has an upstanding wall (62) with passages (66) therein, and the overmolded flexible covering has connection portions (72) that extend from the main covering portion (46) and through the passages to a peripheral covering portion (74), with the peripheral covering portion lying between the first and second shell parts to seal the gap (70) between them.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.