This was a joint venture between CDI and NETbased on behalf of their customer. Hospital wiring to central alarm and nurses stations are complex installations. Preexisting call stations consisted of a 2-gang box for interactive voice and nurse to station emergency notifications. A second single-gang box contained an emergency pull switch with lanyard to alert the nurses station, trigger emergency lights, etc. The objective was to combine these two units into one within a single 2-gang unit, less then 2/3s the current wall space.
This emergency call contained all the necessary electronics, speaker, microphone and emergency pull switch. The face of the unit had to be wash/spray down water tight to protect the circuitry and wall wiring. The typical toggle switch was replaced with a hall-effect switch with a magnet insert molded into the pull lever. The speaker used a water tight cone and perimeter gasket. An elastomeric keypad provided a water-tight seal around the various buttons. Ultrasonically welded light pipes gave indicated operating states. A wall gasket attached to the front panel accommodated various wall surface textures – providing the final seal.
Processes used in the enclosure:
- Injection molded plastics (front panel and light pipes)
- Insert molded injection molded plastics (Magnet insert molded into the pull switch to trip the hall-effect sensor on the main board)
- TPE (Thermal Plastic Elastomer) injection molded (Perimeter wall gasket)
- Silicone compression molding (Elastomeric keypad)