Electric Switch

ELECTRIC SWITCH

Our country faces a shortage of electricity. So wastage of electricity means you are depriving someone else of electricity. Your electricity bill goes up. So, we must use electricity  very carefully and only when it is needed. We must use the electricity as long as we need it in our house hold activities.

Can you remember what you did last year to turn the current on or off?

This time, we shall use a switch to turn the current on or off. You may have used different kinds of switches to turn your household electric appliances on or off. Switches help us to start or stop the appliances safely and easily.

ACTIVITY 4

Make your own switch

Let us make a switch of our circuits. Take 10 cm long iron strip. Bend it twice as shown in figure. Now drive a nail into the bend of the wooden block. Nail one end of the strip to the other end of the wooden block so that its free end rests just above the first nail without touching it. Your switch is ready.

Would you like to test your switch? To do so, first set up the circuit as shown in the figure.

How would you use the switch to open or close the circuit.

If the bulb in your circuit glows when the metal strip of your switch is pressed on the nail and turns off when it is not, then your switch is working. The switch you made is a simple one. You may have seen many different types of switches on switchboards and appliances at your home and school. The switches are designed according to their usage, convenience and safety. But all of them work on the same principle. Switch is a mechanical component that consists of two or more terminals that are internally connected to a metal strip. Commonly used switches are listed below: