Manual operator for a pushbutton control device

Claim 1

A control device including a reciprocally movable pushbutton extending through a front face thereof, said pushbutton normally having an extended deactivating position and being depressable to assume an activating position, said control device further including a manual operator for selectively engaging and depressing said pushbutton wherein said manual operator comprises: a cover including a front and a rear, said rear being mounted over said front face of said control device, said front including a predetermined shaped bottom surface terminating at one side at a sidewall and defining a protected space thereabove and surrounding a hole through the cover rear receiving said pushbutton, said side wall extending to a predetermined height above the activating position of said pushbutton and terminating at a stop surface extending away from said pushbutton at said predetermined height adjacent said bottom surface; and an actuator having a shape complementary to said bottom surface so as to be receivable within said protected space surrounding said pushbutton, said actuator including first and second ends, said first end being rotationally and pivotally connected to said cover so that said second end has free-swinging lateral movement over said bottom surface and pivotal movement toward and away from said bottom surface when moving between arcuately displaced operating and nonoperating positions, said nonoperating position of said actuator concurrently extending over said stop surface and covering said protected space when said pushbutton is in the normally extended position, and said operating position of said actuator being laterally spaced from said stop surface and pivotally extending into said protected space in a depressing engaged relationship with said pushbutton to effect the activating position thereof, whereby said actuator covers said pushbutton in depressed engagement when in said operating position and further covers said pushbutton in a protecting relationship when in said nonoperating position.