Switch suggestion

Question

Hi I'm looking for a inline (sliding switch?)

When it's in the middle, it be in the off state

When it's slid to the right it turns a red led on

When it's slid to the left it turns a green led on

I'm sure this is simple but I cant seem to find a switch that dose what I need

Also it would be great if I could get a simple wiring diagram for what I need.

Answer 1

You are looking for a switch like this one:

http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/MHS12304/450-1569-ND/1202280

It is single pole, double throw (SPDT), which means it has one middle contact that can be moved between two positions, left and right. This switch is also listed as being "on-off-on", which means it has a center position where neither position is connected to the middle contact.

The way you would hook it up to your LEDs is something like this:

Here, the switch is completing the circuit between one of your LEDs and ground, depending on which way you move it.

Answer 2

They're indeed called slide switches and typically look like this one from NKK:

This one has solder lugs, but you'll find many for PCB mount, either straight or at a 90° angle. Digikey has dozens of type in hundreds on stock, though you may find it difficult to locate switches with the LEDs built-in.

A minor disadvantage may be that almost all of these slide switches have a very limited travel, often no more than a few mm.

Connecting the LEDs is a piece of cake:

Answer 3

For one switch (with Red AND Green LEDs), you won't find stock anywhere. If you need 1K/mo , now you can work with the distributor.

I suggest you add the necessary resistors and LEDs to one of these slide switches and if you mean inline AC, then you need a protection diode or another LED back to back for two views of the inline assembly. Use Heat shrink to wrap the assembly in your cable.

http://www.digikey.com/product-search/en/switches/slide/1114211?k=switch%20ac&stock=1

From the above search, if you have not already seen the On-Off-On slide switches with LED's , you will notice you can choose one (1) LED colour ,but only one colour so you may as well custom make your own instead of paying $12 for less than what you want.

http://www.nkkswitches.com/pdf/msilluminated.pdf