Switching devices are mechanical, electrical, pneumatic or hydraulic devices that open or close an electrical circuit. They can be as simple as a bedside lamp switch or as complex as heavy-duty industrial starters. They are also used in data switching and found in common appliances.
A switching device is any mechanical, electrical, pneumatic or hydraulic device designed to open or close an electrical circuit. However, this is a generic description and the term switching devices can properly be applied to a number of devices and applications that fall outside these limits. When applied to electrical circuits, the term switching device typically refers to any device that makes or breaks an electrical circuit. These devices can be as diverse in their operation and appearance as a simple switch on a bedside lamp to a circuit breaker in captive air weighing several tons. However, they all perform the same basic function.
Electrical switching devices all consist of groups of contacts that open and close when the device is triggered. There are one set of contacts for each line, phase, or part of the circuit that they are designed to switch. For example, a simple circuit breaker in a home distribution panel will have a single set of internal contacts similar to a bedside lamp switch. The earth leakage unit in the same board would normally have two, one for the live line and one for the neutral line.
The small low voltage relays that are commonly used in the automotive industry to turn on driving lights, turn signals and fog lights are classic examples of multi-contact switching devices as they typically have between six and eight sets of contacts. Larger, heavy-duty examples are common in industrial applications where they are used as starters for electric motors and other heavy, high-current drain equipment.
These devices are operated in a variety of ways, the simplest of which are manual switches such as a household light switch. Others are remotely operated using an electromagnetic coil to activate the switch. Pneumatic or hydraulic switches are also quite common and use compressed air or oil pressure to open or close the switch.
Switching devices are also common in the IT field, and while the basic principle still holds true, their function is very different from their high voltage electrical counterparts. Data switching is the process of channeling several data sources to a single output point or of identifying and routing data signals between points. These processes differ from the electrical varieties in that the actual switching is done at the electronic component level and not with heavy mechanical switches.
Switching devices are found in many different common appliances. It’s extremely unlikely that anyone will go a day without using at least one without giving it a second thought.
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