Push Button Switches – An electric switch is any device used in a circuit to disrupt the movement of electrons. In essence, switches are binary devices: they are either entirely on (“closed”) or completely off (“open”). There are several different types of switches, and in this blog, we will be discussing some of these types before you buy push button switch. 

While it may seem unusual in this book series to address this basic electrical subject at such a late stage, I do so because the chapters that follow discuss an older area of digital technology focused on mechanical switch contacts rather than solid-state gate circuits, and the undertaking requires a detailed understanding of switch types electronic products

The simplest type of switch is called a contact block, where the motion of an actuating mechanism brings two electrical conductors into contact with each other. Other switches are more complex, containing electronic circuits which, depending on the physical stimuli (such as light or magnetic field), are capable of switching on or off. In any event, the final output of any switch is (at least) a pair of wire-connection terminals that are either connected to each other by the internal communication mechanism of the switch (‘closed’) or not connected to each other (‘closed’) (“open”)..

Two-position devices powered with a button that is pushed and released are push button switches. Most push-button switches have an internal spring mechanism for momentary operation that returns the button to its “out,” or “unpressed,” position. With every push of the button, those push-button switches will latch on or off alternately. When the button is pulled back out, other push-button switches will remain in their “in,” or “pressed,” position. For quick push-pull operation, this last form of push-button switch usually has a mushroom-shaped button.