The present disclosure generally relates to a push button switch for use in two wheeled vehicle or three-wheeled vehicle or a multi-terrain vehicle. In particular, the disclosure pertains to a pivotable push button switch that can be used as a horn switch or as a start switch or as a pass switch, etc. in a two wheeled vehicle or three-wheeled vehicle or a multi-terrain vehicle.
Background of the Invention:
Pivotable push button switches are provided in two wheeled vehicles, three-wheeled vehicles and multi-terrain vehicles in the form of horn switches, start switches, pass switches, etc.
A traditional pivotable push button switch (10) is shown in Figure 1 and includes a knob (12) which can be actuated by a user. The knob (12) is partially housed within a housing (14) and upon actuation exhibits a pivotal movement with respect to a pivot axis (16). A coil spring (18) is provided between the housing (14) and the knob (12) to provide a restoring force to the knob (12). The housing (14) is provided with an input terminal (20) and an output terminal (22). A bottom potion of knob (12) includes a moving contact element (24) that is in constant electrical contacting relationship with the output terminal (22). Upon actuation, the moving contact element (24) butts the input terminal (20) thereby providing an electrical path between the input and the output terminals (20 and 22). This type of traditional, pivotable push button switch is disclosed in Japanese Utility Patent No. JPS 59101334 having a publication date of July 9, 1984.
Some of the disadvantages of the pivotable push button switch (10) is shown in Figure 1 include short life-span of the switch, the switches are not self-cleaning, and has high contact resistance. Furthermore, this nature of switch does not provide any haptic feedback such as a click feeling to the user when the switch is being pressed. Also, these types of switches typically tend to have very high bounce and chatter, which is also detrimental.
Apart from the above, Japanese Patent No. JP3662659 discloses a pivotable push button switch that includes a knob which can be actuated by a user. The knob is partially housed within the housing and upon actuation exhibits a pivotal movement with respect to a pivot axis. A spring is provided between the housing and the knob to provide a restoring force to the knob. The housing is provided with an input terminal and an output terminal. A bottom potion of knob includes a moving contact element. In this case, the moving contact element is

NOT in constant electrical contacting relationship with either the input terminal or the output terminal. In this case, a tip of the moving contact element has a U-shaped bottom surface which upon actuation, butts the input and the output terminals thereby providing an electrical path between the input and the output terminals. In this case, the moving contact element in addition to merely butting the input and the output terminals, also slides over the input and the output terminals and thus, can be said to have a self-cleaning construction. However, even this switch does not provide any hepatic feedback such as a click feeling upon pressing of the switch. Furthermore, this switch has very high bounce and chatter, which is detrimental.
Apart from the above, Japanese Patent Publication No. JP 3663366 discloses a pivotable push button switch that has a click ball, a click spring and a click cam profile that co-operate with each other to provide a click feeling to the user (when the switch is actuated). However, this switch does not have a self-cleaning construction, has high contact resistance and tends to have very high bounce and chatter.
Thus, all these prior attempts have been directed towards adding one functionality at a time to the pivotable push button switch. It has been observed that prior art attempts to include components to attain any one of the aforesaid functionality adversely impacts the pivotable push button switch in terms of size, complexity of construction and cost. Thus, there has been no attempt to provide a pivotable push button switch control mechanism disposed on the handlebar which includes devices therein which allow for realization of multiple functionalities and has feasibility to include future functionalities. Furthermore, no attempt has been made in any of the prior arts to address the issue of high bounce and chatter.
Thus, there exists a need to overcome one or more disadvantages as mentioned above in relation to the traditional constructions.
Summary of the Invention:
This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified format that is further described in the detailed description of the invention. This summary is neither intended to identify key or essential inventive concepts of the invention and nor is it intended for determining the scope of the invention.
In accordance with the teachings of the invention, there is provided a pivotable push button switch for use in two wheeled vehicle or three-wheeled vehicle or a multi-terrain vehicle. The

pivotable push button switch is in the form of a pivotable push button switch that can be used as a horn switch or as a start switch or as a pass switch, etc. in a two wheeled vehicle or three-wheeled vehicle or a multi-terrain vehicle. The pivotable push button switch comprises a housing (102) comprising an axis defining member (104). The pivotable push button switch further comprises a knob member (106) located partly within the housing (102). In an embodiment of the invention, the knob member (106) is adapted receive an actuating force and exhibit pivotal movement with respect to the axis defining member (104). The pivotable push button switch further comprises a carrier member (108) located within the housing (102). In an embodiment of the invention, the carrier member (108) is adapted to co-operate with the knob member (106) and exhibit sliding movement along a first direction within the housing (102). The pivotable push button switch further comprises a set of fixed contact terminal (110) provided on a first side wall (112) of the housing (102). The pivotable push button switch further comprises a moving contact terminal (114) located on a first side (116) of the carrier member (108). In an embodiment of the invention, the moving contact terminal (114) is adapted to exhibit a sliding movement within the housing (102) and establish an electrical path between the set of fixed contact terminals (110) in response to the carrier member (108) exhibiting sliding movement along the first direction within the housing (102).
To further clarify advantages and features of the present invention, a more particular description of the invention will be rendered by reference to specific embodiments thereof, which is illustrated in the appended figures. It is appreciated that these figures depict only typical embodiments of the invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope. The invention will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail with the accompanying figures.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES:
These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better
understood when the following detailed description is read with reference to the
accompanying figures in which like characters represent like parts throughout the figures,
wherein:
Figure 1 illustrates sectional view of a conventional pivotable push button switch; and
Figure 2 illustrates an exploded view of the pivotable push button switch in accordance with
an embodiment of the present invention.

Further, skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and may not have been necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the flow charts illustrate the method in terms of the most prominent steps involved to help to improve understanding of aspects of the present invention. Furthermore, in terms of the construction of the device, one or more components of the device may have been represented in the figures by conventional symbols, and the figures may show only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to obscure the figures with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having benefit of the description herein.
Detailed Description:
For the purpose of promoting an understanding of the principles of the invention, reference will now be made to the embodiment illustrated in the figures and specific language will be used to describe the same. It will nevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of the invention is thereby intended, such alterations and further modifications in the illustrated system, and such further applications of the principles of the invention as illustrated therein being contemplated as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the invention relates.
It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory of the invention and are not intended to be restrictive thereof.
Reference throughout this specification to "an aspect", "another aspect" or similar language means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, appearances of the phrase "in an embodiment", "in another embodiment" and similar language throughout this specification may, but do not necessarily, all refer to the same embodiment.
The terms "comprises", "comprising", or any other variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process or method that comprises a list of steps does not include only those steps but may include other steps not expressly listed or inherent to such process or method. Similarly, one or more devices or sub-systems or elements or structures or components proceeded by "comprises... a" does not, without more constraints, preclude the

existence of other devices or other sub-systems or other elements or other structures or other components or additional devices or additional sub-systems or additional elements or additional structures or additional components.
Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. The system, methods, and examples provided herein are illustrative only and not intended to be limiting.
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying figures.
Now referring to Figure 2, there is provided an exploded view of the pivotable push button switch (100) in accordance with the teachings of the present invention. The pivotable push button switch (100) is specifically constructed for use in two wheeled vehicle or three-wheeled vehicle or a multi-terrain vehicle. The pivotable push button switch can be used as a horn switch or as a start switch or as a pass switch, etc. in a two wheeled vehicle or three-wheeled vehicle or a multi-terrain vehicle. The pivotable push button switch comprises a housing (102) comprising an axis defining member (104). The pivotable push button switch further comprises a knob member (106) located partly within the housing (102). In an embodiment of the invention, the knob member (106) is adapted receive an actuating force and exhibit pivotal movement with respect to the axis defining member (104). The pivotable push button switch further comprises a carrier member (108) located within the housing (102). In an embodiment of the invention, the carrier member (108) is adapted to co-operate with the knob member (106) and exhibit sliding movement along a first direction within the housing (102). The pivotable push button switch further comprises a set of fixed contact terminal (110) provided on a first side wall (112) of the housing (102). The pivotable push button switch further comprises a moving contact terminal (114) located on a first side (116) of the carrier member (108). In an embodiment of the invention, the moving contact terminal (114) is adapted to exhibit a sliding movement within the housing (102) and establish an electrical path between the set of fixed contact terminals (110) in response to the carrier member (108) exhibiting sliding movement along the first direction within the housing (102).
In an embodiment of the invention, the pivotable push button switch (100) comprises a first resilient member (118) for applying a restoring force along a second direction which is

opposite to the first direction. By way of a non-limiting example, the first resilient member (118) may be disposed between a bottom wall (120) of the housing (102) and the carrier member (108).
In an embodiment of the invention, the pivotable push button switch (100) comprises a ball member (122) disposed on a second side (124) of the carrier member (108). In an embodiment of the invention, the housing (102) comprises an aperture (126) adapted to co-operate with the ball member (122) disposed on the carrier member (108). In particular, the aperture (126) is provided on a second side wall (128) of the housing (102) and is adapted to co-operate with the ball member (122) disposed on the second side (124) of the carrier member (108).
In an embodiment of the invention, the pivotable push button switch (100) comprises a second resilient member (130) disposed between the ball member (122) and the moving contact terminal (114) for applying an pressure on both of the ball member (122) and the moving contact terminal (114).
In an embodiment of the invention, the carrier member (108) includes a channel (132) between the first side wall (116) and the second side wall (124). In an embodiment of the invention, the channel (132) is adapted to accommodate the second resilient member (130).
Advantages of the invention:
Without wanting to the restricted to any particular theory or hypothesis, it has been observed that a pivotable push button switch constructed in accordance with the embodiments described above provides one or more of the following advantages:
• The pivotable push button switch is a self-cleaning type;
• The pivotable push button switch negligible or no bounce and chatter;
• The pivotable push button switch also incorporates mechanism for providing the hepatic feedback or the click feeling during operation;
• The number of components used for construction of the pivotable push button switch is less. In fact, no other pivotable push button switch is able to attain all the aforesaid functions and still be constructed using comparable number of components;
• In addition to the number of components being less, the pivotable push button switch can be assembled in an assembly line very easily and very less amount of time period;

• Since the number of components is less, the size of the pivotable push button switch is comparable to the traditional pivotable push button switches; and
• It is envisaged that factors such as less number of parts, the manufacturing process being simpler, the manufacturing process requiring less amount of time, etc. would contribute to making the pivotable push button switch more cost effective.
While specific language has been used to describe the disclosure, any limitations arising on account of the same are not intended. As would be apparent to a person in the art, various working modifications may be made to the method in order to implement the inventive concept as taught herein. The figures and the foregoing description give examples of embodiments. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that one or more of the described elements may well be combined into a single functional element. Alternatively, certain elements may be split into multiple functional elements. Elements from one embodiment may be added to another embodiment. For example, orders of processes described herein may be changed and are not limited to the manner described herein. The scope of embodiments is by no means limited by these specific examples. Numerous variations, whether explicitly given in the specification or not, such as differences in structure, dimension, and use of material, are possible. The scope of embodiments is at least as broad as given by the following claims.

WE CLAIM:

1.A pivotable push button switch (100), comprising:
a housing (102) comprising an axis defining member (104);
a knob member (106) located partly within the housing (102), the knob member (106)
being adapted receive an actuating force and exhibit pivotal movement with respect to
the axis defining member (104);
a carrier member (108) located within the housing (102), the carrier member (108)
being adapted to co-operate with the knob member (106) and exhibit sliding
movement along a first direction within the housing (102);
a set of fixed contact terminal (110) provided on a first side wall (112) of the housing
(102); and
a moving contact terminal (114) located on a first side (116) of the carrier member
(108), the moving contact terminal (114) being adapted to exhibit a sliding movement
within the housing (102) and establish an electrical path between the set of fixed
contact terminals (110) in response to the carrier member (108) exhibiting sliding
movement along the first direction within the housing (102).
2. The pivotable push button switch as claimed in claim 1, comprising a first resilient member (118) for applying a restoring force along a second direction which is opposite to the first direction.
3. The pivotable push button switch as claimed in claim 2, wherein the first resilient member (118) is disposed between a bottom wall (120) of the housing (102) and the carrier member (108).
4. The pivotable push button switch as claimed in claim 1, comprising a ball member (122) disposed on a second side (124) of the carrier member (108).
5. The pivotable push button switch as claimed in claim 4, wherein the housing (102) comprises an aperture (126) adapted to co-operate with the ball member (122) disposed on the second side (124) of the carrier member (108).
6. The pivotable push button switch as claimed in claim 5, wherein the aperture (126) is provided on a second side wall (128) of the housing (102).

7. The pivotable push button switch as claimed in claim 1, comprising a second resilient member (130) disposed between the ball member (122) and the moving contact terminal (114) for applying an pressure on both of the ball member (122) and the moving contact terminal (114).
8. The pivotable push button switch as claimed in claim 7, wherein the carrier member (108) includes a channel (132) between the first side wall (116) and the second side wall (124), the channel (132) being adapted to accommodate the second resilient member (130).