Momentary Switches

Momentary Switches – Pendant Style

Pendant Switches – Momentary Contact

CPI’s waterproof pendant switches see usage in environments that require long life under demanding applications in adverse outdoor conditions. These pendant switches are hand activated and come in a standard and a “Light Touch” actuation version. All switches are fully waterproof and come in a variety of casing materials suitable for a wide variety of Military, Industrial or Low temp applications. All switches may be specified with a variety of mechanical and electrical parameters (see below) including normally-open, normally-closed, or SPDT configurations. Our Line of Pendant Switches includes:

• B5 Series– standard actuation
• B7 Series– light-touch actuation
• B9 Series– low-temp Santoprene (ideal for E1 Limit Brackets)
• B2 Series– MIL-grade Neoprene, overmolded

Internal Lever Pendant Switches

Really a specialized type of pendant switch, this switch family was developed to meet the needs of welders. These switches are sealed in Neoprene and feature a larger actuator and a “v-back” for easy mounting on pipes and tubing. K1 Series– MIL-C rated, Neoprene V-Back, for pipe mount

Waterproof Plunger Switches

Our panel mount waterproof plunger switches use any of our B series momentary switch types which are then mounted into an all-stainless steel casing with a thermoplastic mounting bushing and plunger. D1 Series– panel-mount plunger switch.

Momentary Switch Design Parameters

If you have a high performance application that requires use of a momentary switch for a tough outdoor environment with potential extremes of high or low temperature, then you are probably going to need more than just switch waterproofing. CPI’s design team is experienced at trading off the many conflicting design requirements necessary to achieve an overall goal for MTBF, cost, and electrical parameters that meets almost any momentary switch operating specification.

Some of the design considerations for our switches include the following:

• Operating Temperature Range. CPI has engineered our switches to avoid contact “freezing” at operating temperatures down to -20F.
• Contact travel and pre-travel – These critical parameters affect MTBF directly and must be adjusted to achieve the specified cycle lifetime
• Mechanical Endurance – CPI has achieved MTBF of over 1 million cycles rated for high dynamic temperature environments, with careful design of mechanical switch parameters, and new manufacturing techniques for sealing.
• Actuator Style – The actuator used for our momentary switch configurations can be specified: either plunger, lever, roller ball, or hand actuated pendant style switches. All with unique engineering challenges to achieve an overall requirement.
• Circuit type – Normally Open/Closed and current requirements can be specified for any switch we build, including the challenge of designing for high startup loads.
• Mounting & Packaging. CPI provides a wide variety of packaging options with any switch. Each present unique challenges for design and operation.

At CPI our engineering team has made and manufactured custom switches for industrial, aerospace and military environments, for over 40 years. Our partnership with OEM’s goes beyond just design but carries through to the manufacturing and field qualification of our units to achieve all program goals.

Make the Switch to CPI

If your momentary switch application demands high performance, we think you should demand CPI.
Please call us today to speak with our engineering team about your needs.