Safety switch for automobile instrument panel

Claim 1

A SWITCH ASSEMBLY FOR USE ON A VEHICLE INSTRUMENT PANEEL EMPLOYING A PROTRUDING CONTROL ELEMENT, THE ASSEMBLY COMPRISING, A HOLLOW HOUSING HAVING A FORWARD END ADAPTED TO BE MOUNTED FLUSH WITH THE SURFACE OF AN INSTRUMENT PANEL AND A REARWARD END DISPLACED REARWARDLY THEREFROM, A CONTROL ELEMENT NORMALLY DISPOSED IN A PROTUBERANT RELATION WITH THE FORWARD END OF THE HOUSING AND OPERATIVELY CONNECTED TO CONTROL THE OPERATION OF AN EXTERNAL MECHANISM WHILE MAINTAINING SAID PROTUBERANT RELATION, THE HOLLOW HOUSING BEING ADAPTED TO ACCOMMODATE THE CONTROL ELEMENT IN A POSITION SUBSTANTIALLY WITHIN THE HOUSING, SUPPORT MEANS CONNECTED TO THE CONTROL ELEMENT AND DISPLACEABLY DISPOSED WITHIN THE HOUSING, RETAINING MEANS OPERATIVELY CONNECTED WITH THE SUPPORT MEANS AND THE HOUSING FOR NORMALLY MAINTAINING THE CONTROL ELEMENT IN THE PROTUBERANT RELATION, THE RETAINING MEANS BEING YIELDABLY TO SEPARATE AT LEAST A PORTION THEREOF FROM OPERATIVE CONNECTION WITH THE HOUSING UPON APPLICATION OF A PREDETERMINED LOAD TO THE CONTROL ELEMENT THEREBY TO ALLOW THE CONTROL ELEMENT TO BE DISPLACED AXIALLY INTO THE HOUSING, THE PREDETERMINED LOAD BEING SUBSTANTIALLY GREATER THAN THAT EMPLOYED IN NORMAL OPERATION OF THE SWITCH ASSEMBLY.