Safety switch in electric pedestrian pallet stackers

On drawbar-guided pedestrian industrial trucks, various different solutions can be used for collision protection (crush protection). The best-known type is a belly button: built into the tiller head, it prevents the operator becoming trapped between the tiller head and an obstacle, e.g. a pallet rack. If the belly button switch is triggered, the vehicle automatically moves a short distance in the opposite direction. The electric industrial truck also has to perform this movement if it is in danger of running over someone’s foot.

What do the snap-action switches in the tiller head do?

S870 and S880 snap-action switches are used in the tiller head buttons. They safely interrupt the safety circuits, ensuring reliable operation of the crush protection system on electric pallet stackers. Triggering the tiller head switch (via the safety belly button) ensures that the operator cannot be trapped between the tiller head and an obstacle.

Why Schaltbau microswitches are used:

Schaltbau snap-action switches with positive opening operation can switch control currents and loads safely and precisely and, what’s more, up to 10 million times. For this reason, they are ideally suited for systems with high safety requirements, such as tiller head switches in pedestrian-operated industrial trucks. In addition, using snap-action switches with positive opening operation means that the complex trigger algorithm (via special software), which would be necessary if conventional switches were used, is not required.