Alt-BEAM Archive
Message #00987
To: "Beam List (E-mail)" beam@corp.sgi.com
From: Ken Warren ken.warren@dsltd.co.uk
Date: Thu, 25 Feb 1999 16:51:12 +0000
Subject: [alt-beam] Re: mercury switches
You could try a ball bearing in a tube with two contacts at the bottom,
may take a bit of experimenting to get it right. This is cheap but can
sometimes be a bit erratic.
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Zulu 35 [SMTP:zulu35@singnet.com.sg]
>Sent: Thursday, February 25, 1999 4:45 PM
>To: Justin; beam@corp.sgi.com
>Subject: Re: mercury switches
>
>oic... great.... now where can i find such a switch,.. or a similar
>one?
>
>----------
>> From: Justin
>> To: beam@corp.sgi.com
>> Subject: Re: mercury switches
>> Date: Friday, February 26, 1999 12:08 AM
>>
>> > hi all... jus a simple question... wat in the world is a mercury
>switch??
>>
>> A tilt switch or angle switch.
>> Mercury conducts, so if you put a drop of it in a tube, and at one end
>> of the tube put two contacts (that are not touching), they become a
>> switch that closes when the tube is held so that the contacts-end is
>> lower than the rest of the tube, mercury rolls down tube and connects
>> the contacts together. Other arrangements of contacts allow for other
>> switching actions.
>>
>> (I've played with great old thing that must have had at least a cubic
>> centimeter of mercury in it, very heavy. It was arranged with three
>> contacts in a row, but spaced far enough apart that the mercury couldn't
>> connect all three at once - so the middle terminal was connected to one
>> or other terminals depnding on the angle.)
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