Joystick operated multiple position switch

Claim 1

A multiposition switch comprising: a surface; a plurality of contact regions on the surface each formed by a pair of first and second adjacent contacts of an electrical switch, one of which being a resilient member, said contacts being spaced apart and electrically insulated one from the other with said resilient member having an indented surface thereon which is spaced apart from the contact regions, and an electrical conductor in electrical contact with a common point for each of the electrical switches formed by the respective contact regions; said plurality of conductive regions each being located within a separate hollow formed concentrically in the resilient material and thereby spaced apart from the surface, with the conductive region formed in a protrusion within each hollow; a joy stick mounted in swiveling relation to the surface and having a manipulating rod and a plurality of urging members disposed radially outward from the longitudinal axis of the manipulating rod at generally the swivelingly mounted end of the joy stick, and corresponding in number and position to the number and position of the respective contact regions; said joy stick, upon being actuated to depress the resilient member, moving at least one of the urging members towards the stationary contact regions, with the urging member aligned with a conductive region bringing this conductive region into contact with an aligned stationary contact region; and the resilient member forming a donut shape about the swivelingly mounted end of the joy stick, with a hub of rigid material located at the center of the donut shaped resilient member and having formed thereon a swivel mounting surface for the swiveling mounting of the joy stick, said hub forming the electrical conductor in the resilient member.