Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin
Ask HN: HN Could Someone Help Me Identify the Name for a Type of Button?
15 points by sigmaprimus on Dec 15, 2022 | hide | past | favorite | 11 comments
Hi there I would like to buy a button for a project I am working on.

The button I have in mind is a momentary button housed inside a 3 or 4 inch long by 3/4 inch cylinder, with the button at the top and the wires comming out the bottom.

I believe I have seen a similar button in movies where the user is holding down the normally red button as some sort of dead man switch.

This is not my intention. Infact it is quite the opposite. Last year my father passed away after suffering a broken back above his diaphragm, because it was above the diaphragm he was unable to cough and clear his lungs. Sadly the only solution to this problem was a breathing tube and the subsequent binding of his arms to prevent the removal of the tube. As a result he was not able to communicate with us or the nurses. I believe his inability to communicate was the cause of him falling into a psychosis that eventually caused his passing.

I would like this button to use as part of a system I am building that will make use of Assistive Context-Aware Toolkit (ACAT) made by Intel and used by Stephen Hawkins.

I am aware that the environment supports cameras and there are other more useful buttons but my knowledge and finances are limited and I just want to make a very simple tool that will help the next poor soul that finds themselves in a similar situation to my Dad's.

Thanks.



Find a cylindrical momentary switch and mount it in a piece of tube, or a piece of wood that you drilled a small hole through for the wires and a wider, but not through hole in for the switch.

You also might want to look at shops selling adaptive tech such as https://enablingdevices.com, which has, for example https://enablingdevices.com/product/thumb-switch/ or https://enablingdevices.com/product/pinch-switch/


Note that there are normally two main types of momentary push button:

1) the "free" ones, that have no outer protection (and that can be thus activated by - say - a slap with a open hand)

2) the "safe" ones, that have an outer rim that prevents the button to be presssed by anything bigger than the actual button diameter (only finger, pencil , etc. will activate it)

There is a third one, sometimes called "mushroom push button" that is of the "free" type, even easier to activate.

Check this catalog page:

https://www.otto-controls.com/products/electromechanical-swi...

once you have chosen the type you want, you will be able to find a similar one by many different manufacturers/retailers.


Thank You to everyone for replying with suggestions and answers.

Unfortunately no good deed goes unpunished these days.

I visited the hospital to get some feedback on my idea and to possibly get an old nurse call button. I was disappointed with the CMA response I received. The hospital can not provide any equipment that has not been approved and in order to be approved the supplier and product must be listed. They thanked me for my generous offer but were not able to accept anything I brought in due to safety(And I suspect legal reasons)

The suggested I look into making a phone app that patients" loved ones could download and use while visiting...

Thanks again for the responses.


Do you have a picture of what exactly you're going for?

Just looking through digikey filtered by termination style (wire/cable leads) pulls up quite a few promising looking results: https://www.digikey.com/en/products/filter/pushbutton-switch...

It's a bit pricey but maybe this style is what you're describing? https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/switchcraft-inc/9...


What you're looking for is referred to as a "panel mount pushbutton/momentary" switch. The leads can either be solder lugs (which have wires soldered to them) or "PCB mount" meaning it has two pins to mount to a circuit board. The latter is probably more viable for a commercial device, the former is easier for prototyping.

You can find them in a variety of styles with different parameters (usually for things like waterproofing, action force, number of switches, etc).

Here is an example: https://www.amazon.com/Momentary-Button-Panel-Mount-Black/dp...

The keyword to keep in mind is "panel mount."


And source from mouser or digikey rather than amazon. The range is much wider.


Thanks for your vendor recommendations - i've been curious on options for toggle /rocker switches and similar for a while and haven't been aware of suppliers outside dorman/automotive stores. Both mouser and digikey seem to have really great component availability


What you are doing sounds like a very worthwhile thing - not everyone is Stephen Hawking. You should set up a project homepage now if you don't have one, GitHub is free and quick, and put a link here. That way you can present your idea properly and people can contribute ideas.

Monetary switches can be had for next to nothing, you just need a housing (for a one off I would use a plastic pill bottle).

Will look out for your link.


They make handheld push button switches that I believe what you are talking about. Example link below. A lot of people use them for push to talk, if that helps your search.

https://www.amazon.com/Hand-Held-Button-Switch-30-825/dp/B00...


I think what you are after is a momentary push button switch.

So, something like this?: https://www.newark.com/eaton/8411k7/switch-pushbutton-spst-4...


Arcade buttons? https://www.arcadeworlduk.com/categories/Arcade-Buttons/

They can screw into something, maybe cut threads into a tube.




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: