I am designing part of a toy which uses a push-button to switch a load
of less than 80mA (at about 5V DC) on and off.  There are two parts of
this system, the part that turns a mechanical motion into an
electrical signal, and the part that uses this signal to latch the
load on and off.  The first part could be a tac (tactile) switch, a
conductive pad being pressed onto PCB contacts, or a spring pushed
against a nickel plate.  The second part could be a flip-flop circuit
made with transistors and such or perhaps a single IC.  A mechanical
toggle switch would accomplish both parts, but might also be
expensive.  I have found many solutions to this problem, but most are
geared toward high-tech or
hobby applications and are therefore too costly.  Being for a cheap
toy, the system needs to cost as little as possible, say less than
$0.40 per unit in quantities of 10,000.  Here are some possibilities:

- Find an integrated circuit that can debounce the switch input and latch the load.
- Find a momentary switch with an electronic latch.
- Find a cheap switch that latches mechanically.

These are just a few possibilities, and lateral solutions are also
welcome as long as they meet the specifications.

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Clarification of Question by tackle-ga on 09 Jun 2004 17:58 PDT

Also, it would be nice if the solution fit in a fairly small space,
say 7mm by 14mm by 14mm.

How about a shallow style slide switch ?

part number    95B008    the cost is less than $0.30 each

and can be seen at  www.alltronics.com/switches.htm  (60% down the page).

Maybe the reason you're looking for a push/on, push/off style is for
safety concerns ?

I don't have a safety concern with that, but the feel and usability of
the switch is somewhat important, as is the ability to actuate it
through an elastomer cover.  I wish a slide switch would work, since
they're so much cheaper.

try this guy out

http://www.mpja.com/productview.asp?product=12496+SW

simple push button switch - rated at 125V, but will probably work fine
for your application.

And, it only costs a quarter.

Heck, just go with these two sites - enough push button and toggle
switches to...can't quite finish that anticipated use of hyperbole.

http://www.mpja.com/listitems.asp?dept=63&main=117

http://www.mpja.com/listitems.asp?dept=62&main=117

Are those $0.25 pushbutton switches push-on/push-off?  It doesn't say,
but it looks to me like a momentary switch.  I see lots of toggle
switches, but they don't have the pushing action and are too
expensive.  All of those push-button switches look like momentaries to
me, but correct me if there's some evidence to the contrary.

Go to http://switches.globalspec.com

You have to register (it's free) and you get access to a bunch of
catalogs.  You can, from there, do a search and find exactly what you
are looking for.

There is a toggle switch listed at $0.49 on that link I sent you
http://....62@main=117.  However, if you buy more than 1000, the proce
drops to $0.40

Good luck.

I've used GlobalSpec before, but I find it's best when you just want
something to fit a specification and price is relatively unimportant,
since you have to request a quote to get the prices of most
components.  It seems even site with predetermined pricing data (like
digikey.com or mouser.com) still don't let you filter or sort by
price, which is a shame.  The switch from MPJA that you mention is a
toggle switch, not a pushbutton switch, but thanks for pointing me to
Alltronics and MPJA, it looks like they have pretty good prices on a
lot of stuff; I'll add them to my list of sites to search.