Product category:
Electrical and Electronic Subassemblies
News Release from: Velleman Switch | Subject: ClickTouch technology
Edited by the Engineeringtalk Editorial
Team on 09 July 2002
Reliability is key to membrane for
wheelchair
When Dutch manufacturer Ligtvoet Products specified a membrane switch to operate its electric wheelchairs and scooters, reliability was the key priority.
When Dutch manufacturer Ligtvoet Products specified a membrane switch to operate its electric wheelchairs and scooters, reliability was the key priority With cost and ease-of-use also important factors, Ligtvoet Products chose Velleman Switch's ClickTouch technology
Ligtvoet Products is one of Europe's leading manufacturers of electric wheelchairs and scooters, delivering products to a network of over 100 dealers across the Netherlands, while also exporting its products to customers in Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Norway and Denmark.
Dealers and their customers expect Ligtvoet's products to be delivered on time (standard within five days of the order being received), to be reliable, and competitively priced.
Like wise, Ligtvoet Products demand a similar level of service from the companies they rely on, the manufacturers and suppliers that provide the components used in the production of both their standard, and special, range of wheelchairs and scooters.
When Ligtvoet Products required membrane switches for use in the scanning remote control system and table steering controllers featured in their range of special wheelchairs designed to meet the end users specific needs, the main considerations were quality, ease of use, and price.
It was also important that the supplier chosen could produce the switches in low quantities, as Ligtvoet's specially designed wheelchairs are not manufactured in the same high volume as their standard range.
Whoever supplied the switches needed to offer a wide range of configurations and sizes of switch to facilitate Ligtvoet in adapting its products to best suit the end user.
After careful consideration and taking all the requirements into account, Ligtvoet chose Velleman Switch as its supplier.
A leading manufacturer of custom-built and standard electronic interface devices, Velleman Switch has years of experience designing systems to meet customers' precise needs, whether they are functional, ergonomic or aesthetic.
Offering the ultimate in tactile response, Ligtvoet chose to use Velleman Switch's patented ClickTouch technology and in particular the new 35mm switch.
Ideal for use in applications where ease of use is essential such as emergency stop switches, public information systems and equipment for the disabled, the 35mm switches are almost twice as large as that achieved by competing technologies and are produced without affecting the dynamic abilities of the switch dome or circuitry.
In addition, Velleman's switches are available with a wide range of options suitable for bespoke applications including EMC and RFI shielding, SMD LED integration and transport shielded window areas.
Walter van Leewen, Research and Development Manager at Ligtvoet Products BV says, "We required a supplier that demonstrated consistently high quality together with a manufacturing and production process designed for low quantities.
After trying many other suppliers of man machine interfaces, we came to the conclusion that Velleman Switch was our ideal partner for this product".
Unlike competing tactile switches that can suffer from fatigue, dome displacement or collapse under extended use, Velleman's ClickTouch membrane technology offers an exceptional degree of tactile response and uses high temperature formed polyester domes that give a guaranteed switch life in excess of six million cycles.
"Ligtvoet gave us some pretty tough specifications but above all they wanted reliability, as such, we were worked extremely closely with Ligtvoet during the development and production process to ensure that every requirement was met as efficiently and effectively as possible", says Gerry Harling, Business Consultant at Velleman Switch.
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