Momentary Switches

The fundamentals of momentary push button switches.

Push buttons are ultimately categorized into two types. Maintained switches and momentary switches. Momentary push button switches are switches that close a circuit for as long as pressure is maintained on the button itself. These are also known as SPST momentary push button switch, short for “single pole single throw”, meaning they have a single output and they are only connected to a single output. A simple example of a momentary push button switch is a doorbell. You only need to press it once to ring it, and it stops ringing when you take your finger off the button.

A momentary switch for every application.

Momentary push button switches come in a variety of types, including waterproof and automotive push button switches, and are used across many industrial and commercial applications including manufacturing, refining and mining, food distribution and more. Momentary come in all 3 standard push button sizes, 16mm, 22mm and 30mm. Available in IEC and NEMA models, momentary switches can also be either normally open or normally closed. In the case of a normally open push button switch, the circuit remains open during the button’s resting state. For normally closed push button switches, the circuit is closed until the button is pressed.