What Is a Lever Switch?
A Lever Switch is a switch that detects the direction in which the lever is pulled down and outputs a contact.
A Lever Switch consists of a stick part and a contact terminal. The stick part may be tilted in two directions (left and right) or four directions (up, down, left, right). In the former case, smaller switches are often called dip switches. It is the latter that generally comes to mind when people think of Lever Switches.
The stick portion may also be fitted with a rounded plastic tip to make it easier for people to operate.
Uses of Lever Switches
Lever Switches are one of the most common components you will see in the average home.
The most familiar example is the controller of a commercial game console. Recent controllers consist of several push buttons and one or two Lever Switches. The lever switches are operated by reading the direction in which they are depressed and output to the game console.
For industrial use, they are also used to operate cranes.
Principle of Lever Switch
Lever Switches are basically the same mechanism as Pushbutton Switches and Toggle Switches.
Pushbutton switches are designed to short-circuit or open the contact point using the force exerted when the button is pushed by human power. Lever Switches operate in the same way, using the force of a lever being pulled down by human power to short-circuit or open the contacts.
The difference between Lever Switches and Pushbutton Switches is that Lever Switches can be pulled in two or four directions, while Pushbutton Switches can only detect two actions: pushing and pulling. Therefore, Lever Switches have at least two contacts and can be operated in more complex ways than Pushbutton Switches.
Lever Switches also have a contact capacity at the contact point. Therefore, Lever Switches most often handle instrumentation signals of 100V or less.