| Soon, as analog sensing technology developed, our customers were quick to realize the need for smaller and smaller devices. There were, however, limited by the size of the stamped contacts used. Sliding contacts need multiple, independent fingers to function reliably, and the slots between these fingers cannot consistently be cut narrower than .004" wide. The resulting size envelope means that stamped multi-fingers contact could not be used for ultra-small applications. Micro Contacts solved this dilemma by creating the multi-wire brush. Shown here, the wire brush uses (typically) .003" diameter precious metal wires cut and welded parallel to each other in various formed and aligned configurations. The wire brush can be made much smaller than the stamped contact and offers numerous advantages. Since there are many tiny fingers replacing a few larger ones, there is much better mapping of the contact surface and greatly reduced chance of loosing contact through lifting fingers. The result is consistently lower contact resistance variation at an affordable price. Micro Contacts was the first to produce this revolutionary product and remains today the only source in the western hemisphere. |
