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ABOUT
MICRO SWITCHES
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I
want to have a custom-made lever and terminal. How ?
Simply
draft your design and send to your sales representative.
There are two approaches for new levers or terminals:
- Modify
an existing standard design which is similar to yours.
It takes shorter development lead-time (within 1 or
2 weeks), lower engineering cost. However, it maybe
not suitable for high volume monthly output over 50kpcs/month,
and for some complex designs in which high precision
is requested.
- Make
a set of tools. It involves tooling investment and a
longer development lead-time (3~4 weeks). The development
cost will be around US$1,000 ~ 2,000 for levers, and
around US$2,000 ~ 6,000 for terminals. It depends very
much on the individual design.
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Can
I change the color of the micro-switch housing ?
We
don't recommend customer go in this way which increases
management and inventory cost. However, in case it is
really necessary, it is possible in some cases, but not
all. Some parameters (eg. PTI index) are color-dependented.
The addition of color pigment may change the characteristics
of the micro. We may need to re-submit samples for further
approval in safety agencies like UL/CSA and VDE.
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Can
Toneluck offer operating force options other than the standard
?
Yes.
If you can't find the best operating force design for
your application, please specify your lower and upper
operating force limits. You can have the engineering samples
within 2~4 weeks. However, as we need to guarantee the
other parameters (eg. life endurance), a series of lab
tests are required before mass production is available,
which take another one or two weeks.
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When
we need to consider a 'gold-contact' micro-switch ?
- When
you need to switch a milli-watt low power circuit, eg.
5mA 5VDC.
- When
the micro will be exposed to environment like sulphurous
atmospheres and other acidic gases.
- When
the micro will be operated occasionally, eg. one or
two times every 3 years.
There are two usual 'gold-contact' design approaches for
Toneluck micros:
- A
thin layer of gold is plated over silver/silver-alloy
by electro-plating. The gold layer will be evaporated
in case of switch a high current and the micro-switch
will become a usual 'silver contacts' switch then.
- Instead
of plating a gold layer on top of the silver/silver-alloy
contact, a gold-silver alloy is used as the contact.
The micro can't be used to switch a high power circuit,
otherwise, the contacts will be damaged
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What
is the precaution of using 'gold-contact' micro in my application
?
In
case a gold-contact micro is used, do make sure the switching
current is limited to a few mA and voltage below 20VDC
in order to protect the thin gold layer which will be
evaporated in high current density.
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What
is the delivery lead-time for Toneluck micro-switches ?
The
general lead-time will be 4 weeks after order confirmation.
If customers can provide forecast information, Toneluck
can build up stocks for customers in order to shorten
the delivery lead-time. We can also setup specific logistics
program like VMI program for our customers. Please contact
your sales representative for more details.
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What is PTI ? And what
is the PTI of Toneluck micros ?
PTI
stands for "Proof Tracking Index". It is also
called "Comparative Tracking Index" (CTI). It
is usually indicated in the form like PTI-175, PTI-250.
PTI is an indication of the tracking resistance of a plastic
material. We shall pay attention that adding color pigments
to a plastic material may change the PTI index of the
injected parts.
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