Redundant contact fault-tolerant microswitch

Abstract

The application discloses a redundant contact fault-tolerant microswitch, and relates to the field of microswitches, which comprises an insulating base, a shell, a conductive base frame, a lower static contact, an elastic moving contact and an upper static contact; the insulating base and the shell are assembled to form a closed mounting cavity, the conductive base frame, the upper static contact and the lower static contact are fixed in the mounting cavity in an electrically isolated manner, and the three are respectively provided with conductive pins extending to the outside of the shell or the base and used for being connected to an external detection circuit. Compared with the prior art, the three-contact structure forms a first conduction path in an initial position and forms a second conduction path in a moving position. The two paths are mutually redundant designs.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of microswitches, and in particular to a redundant contact fault-tolerant microswitch. Background Technology

[0002] In the field of electronic devices, microswitches are an essential basic component, playing a crucial role, especially in computer input devices such as mice. Modern mice rely on the precise triggering of microswitches to achieve button click functions (such as left and right buttons). Currently, mouse buttons commonly use microswitches with a single-contact design. This structure typically includes a movable spring; when the button is pressed, the spring deforms and moves downwards to a specific travel position, making contact with a single fixed contact below (or opening its normally closed state), thereby generating an electrical signal. This design is widely used due to its simple structure and controllable cost.

[0003] However, it is precisely this reliance on a single contact point that makes its inherent reliability issues particularly prominent and troublesome in high-frequency applications like mice. The microswitches on mouse buttons are subjected to extremely frequent pressing operations (potentially millions of clicks) during daily use. Under such high usage intensity, the core flaw of the single-contact design is exposed: the success or failure of the entire switching function depends entirely on the working state of this single contact. Because button presses generate physical friction and minute vibrations, the metal surface of the contact is highly susceptible to wear and oxidation over long-term operation, or contamination from environmental factors (such as sweat and dust). More commonly, over time, this contamination or wear leads to increased contact resistance and unstable contact between the contacts. In mouse use, this manifests as the annoying "double-click" malfunction (one click is recognized as two) or "malfunction" (clicks have no effect). This is because when the single contact is in poor condition, it cannot reliably transmit or cut off electrical signals. Once this single point of failure occurs, even if the user's button presses are normal, the microswitch will not be able to output the correct switching signal, causing the mouse buttons to malfunction or even fail completely, seriously affecting the user experience and forcing replacement. Utility Model Content

[0004] The purpose of this application is to overcome at least one deficiency of the prior art and to provide a redundant contact fault-tolerant micro switch.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, this application discloses a redundant contact fault-tolerant micro switch, which includes an insulating base, a housing, a conductive frame, a lower stationary contact, an elastic moving contact, and an upper stationary contact.

[0006] The insulating base and the housing are assembled to form a sealed mounting cavity. The conductive base, upper stationary contact and lower stationary contact are fixed in the mounting cavity in an electrically isolated manner. Each of the three is provided with conductive pins extending to the outside of the housing or base for connecting to an external detection circuit.

[0007] The upper stationary contact is provided with an upper stationary contact point, and the lower stationary contact is provided with a lower stationary contact point.

[0008] An elastic movable contact is installed on the conductive base. One end of the movable contact is fixedly electrically connected to the conductive base, and the other end is a free end that can be elastically deformed. An upper movable contact and a lower movable contact are respectively provided on the upper and lower surfaces of the free end. In the initial position, the upper movable contact and the upper stationary contact maintain stable contact and conduction, forming a normally closed circuit. At the same time, the lower movable contact and the lower stationary contact maintain a preset distance, forming an open circuit.

[0009] The inner wall of the housing is provided with an axial guide groove, and the top of the housing has an opening for the alignment and installation of the actuating component;

[0010] The lower end of the actuating component abuts against the free end of the elastic moving contact, and the upper end extends to the outside of the housing to receive external mechanical force. When the actuating component is driven by external force, it moves along the axial path defined by the guide groove, pushing the free end of the elastic moving contact to generate elastic deformation in the direction of the lower stationary contact. This deformation causes the upper moving contact to separate from the upper stationary contact, and at the same time the lower moving contact moves downward to contact and conduct with the lower stationary contact, thereby realizing the switching of the switch state and outputting a trigger signal.

[0011] Furthermore, the surfaces of the upper moving contact, lower moving contact, upper stationary contact, and lower stationary contact are provided with a metal plating layer to improve conductivity. Preferably, the metal plating layer is one of a gold plating layer, a copper plating layer, or a silver plating layer.

[0012] Compared with existing technologies, the three-contact structure forms a first conduction path in the initial position and a second conduction path in the operating position. The two paths are redundantly designed, so when one contact becomes poorly contacted due to contamination, wear, or oxidation, the other contact can still maintain the basic triggering function of the switch, significantly improving the reliability of the switch under harsh environments or high-frequency operation.

[0013] The beneficial effects listed above are not exhaustive of all advantages. Other potential beneficial effects and detailed technical implementation methods will be further disclosed in the embodiments or other descriptive sections of this application. Attached Figure Description

[0014] A better understanding of various aspects of this disclosure will be achieved by reading the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The positions, dimensions, and extents of the structures shown in the drawings, etc., do not always represent actual positions, dimensions, and extents. In the drawings:

[0015] Figure 1 This is an exploded view of a structural portion of an embodiment disclosed in this application, in which the elastic movable contact is located in the middle of its active stroke.

[0016] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of one embodiment disclosed in this application after removing the housing, with the elastic movable contact in the figure located in the middle of the active stroke. Detailed Implementation

[0017] The present disclosure will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate several embodiments of the present disclosure. However, it should be understood that the present disclosure can be presented in many different ways and is not limited to the embodiments described below; in fact, the embodiments described below are intended to make the disclosure more complete and to fully illustrate the scope of protection of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art. It should also be understood that the embodiments disclosed herein can be combined in various ways to provide further additional embodiments.

[0018] It should be understood that the same reference numerals denote the same elements in all the accompanying drawings. For clarity, the dimensions of certain features may be modified in the drawings.

[0019] It should be understood that the terminology used in this specification is for describing specific embodiments only and is not intended to limit this disclosure. All terms used in this specification (including technical and scientific terms) have the meanings commonly understood by those skilled in the art, unless otherwise defined. For the sake of brevity and / or clarity, techniques, methods, and apparatus known to those skilled in the art may not be discussed in detail; however, where appropriate, such techniques, methods, and apparatus should be considered part of this specification.

[0020] Unless otherwise specified, the singular forms “a,” “the,” and “the” used in this specification include the plural forms. The terms “comprising,” “including,” and “containing” used in this specification indicate the presence of the claimed feature but do not exclude the presence of one or more other features. The term “and / or” used in this specification includes any and all combinations of one or more of the relevant listed items.

[0021] The following is an example of this redundant contact fault-tolerant micro switch:

[0022] See attached document Figure 1 and 2 In this embodiment, the redundant contact fault-tolerant micro switch of this application mainly consists of an insulating base 1, a housing 2, a conductive frame 3, a lower stationary contact 4, an elastic moving contact 5, and an upper stationary contact 6. After the insulating base 1 and the housing 2 are assembled, they form a sealed mounting cavity, providing a stable mounting environment for the internal electrical components and providing insulation protection.

[0023] The conductive base 3, the upper stationary contact 6, and the lower stationary contact 4 are fixed in the mounting cavity in an electrically isolated manner, and each of them is provided with conductive pins 7 extending to the outside of the housing 2 or the insulating base 1. These conductive pins 7 can be connected to an external detection circuit to realize signal transmission and connection.

[0024] The upper stationary contact 6 is provided with an upper stationary contact 601, and the lower stationary contact 4 is provided with a lower stationary contact 401. The two are fixed by corresponding structures to ensure that the contact position is accurate and stable, providing a key contact part for the circuit to be turned on and off.

[0025] A flexible movable contact 5 is mounted on the conductive base 3. One end of the flexible movable contact 5 forms a fixed electrical connection with the conductive base 3, using a reliable connection method such as welding to ensure the stability and conductivity of the electrical connection. The other end of the flexible movable contact 5 is a free end that can elastically deform. An upper movable contact 501 and a lower movable contact 502 are respectively provided on its upper and lower surfaces. The surfaces of the upper movable contact 501, lower movable contact 502, upper stationary contact 601, and lower stationary contact 401 are provided with a metal plating layer to improve conductivity. The preferred metal plating layer is one of gold plating, copper plating, or silver plating. These metal plating layers can effectively reduce contact resistance, improve the conductivity and corrosion resistance of the contacts, and enhance the service life and reliability of the switch.

[0026] In the initial position, the elastic moving contact 5, under its own elastic action, keeps the upper moving contact 501 and the upper stationary contact 601 in stable contact and conduction, thereby forming a normally closed circuit and realizing the normal closing and conduction functions of the circuit; at the same time, the lower moving contact 502 and the lower stationary contact 401 maintain a preset distance, forming an open circuit state. At this time, no current flows between the lower stationary contact 4 and the elastic moving contact 5, and it is in the disconnected state.

[0027] In this embodiment, the inner wall of the housing 2 is provided with an axial guide groove, which guides the movement path of the actuating component 8, ensuring that it moves along a predetermined axial direction and avoiding deviation or shaking. An opening is provided at the top of the housing 2 for the actuating component 8 to be installed, facilitating its assembly and fixation. The lower end of the actuating component 8 abuts against the free end of the elastic movable contact piece 5, and the two fit tightly together to ensure effective force transmission. The upper end of the actuating component 8 extends to the outside of the housing 2 to receive external mechanical forces. When an external mechanical force is applied to the upper end of the actuating component 8, such as by pressing or pushing, the actuating component 8 moves along the axial path defined by the guide groove. At this time, the actuating component 8 pushes the free end of the elastic moving contact 5 to the direction of the lower stationary contact 4 to produce elastic deformation. As the elastic moving contact 5 deforms, the upper moving contact 501 and the upper stationary contact 601 gradually separate and disconnect, so that the normally closed circuit is broken. At the same time, the lower moving contact 502 moves down to contact and conduct with the lower stationary contact 401, thereby realizing the switching of the switch state and outputting a trigger signal, completing the circuit transition from one state to another to meet different circuit control requirements.

[0028] Those skilled in the art should understand that the above description and embodiments are merely examples and do not constitute a limitation on the scope of protection of this application. Any simple modifications and equivalent transformations based on the technical solutions of this application should be included within the scope of protection of this application. For example, in other implementation scenarios, the shape, size, material, etc. of each component can be adapted according to actual needs, but as long as its principle and technical features are the same as or similar to those of this application, they should be considered to fall within the scope of protection of this application.

Claims

1. A redundant contact fault-tolerant micro switch, characterized in that, Includes an insulating base, housing, conductive frame, lower stationary contact, elastic moving contact piece, and upper stationary contact; The insulating base and the housing are assembled to form a sealed mounting cavity. The conductive base, upper stationary contact and lower stationary contact are fixed in the mounting cavity in an electrically isolated manner. Each of the three is provided with conductive pins extending to the outside of the housing or base for connecting to an external detection circuit. The upper stationary contact is provided with an upper stationary contact point, and the lower stationary contact is provided with a lower stationary contact point; An elastic movable contact is installed on the conductive base. One end of the movable contact is fixedly electrically connected to the conductive base, and the other end is a free end that can be elastically deformed. An upper movable contact and a lower movable contact are respectively provided on the upper and lower surfaces of the free end. In the initial position, the upper movable contact and the upper stationary contact maintain stable contact and conduction, forming a normally closed circuit. At the same time, the lower movable contact and the lower stationary contact maintain a preset distance, forming an open circuit. An opening is provided at the top of the housing for the alignment and installation of the actuating components; The lower end of the actuating component abuts against the free end of the elastic moving contact piece, and the upper end extends to the outside of the housing to receive external mechanical force. When the actuating component is driven by an external force, it pushes the free end of the elastic moving contact piece to generate elastic deformation in the direction of the downward stationary contact.

2. The redundant contact fault-tolerant micro switch as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The inner wall of the housing is provided with an axial guide groove.

3. The redundant contact fault-tolerant micro switch as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The surfaces of the upper moving contact, lower moving contact, upper stationary contact, and lower stationary contact are provided with a metal plating layer to improve conductivity; the metal plating layer is one of gold plating, copper plating, or silver plating.

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