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Electrical Symbols — Switches and Relays

In electrical engineering, a switch is an electrical component that can break an electrical circuit, interrupting the current or diverting it from one conductor to another. The mechanism of a switch may be operated directly by a human operator to control a circuit (for example, a light switch or a keyboard button), may be operated by a moving object such as a door-operated switch, or may be operated by some sensing element for pressure, temperature or flow. A relay is a switch that is operated by electricity. Switches are made to handle a wide range of voltages and currents; very large switches may be used to isolate high-voltage circuits in electrical substations. 26 libraries of the Electrical Engineering Solution of ConceptDraw DIAGRAM make your electrical diagramming simple, efficient, and effective. You can simply and quickly drop the ready-to-use objects from libraries into your document to create the electrical diagram.

Basic Flowchart Symbols and Meaning

Flowcharts are the best for visually representation the business processes and the flow of a custom-order process through various departments within an organization. ConceptDraw DIAGRAM diagramming and vector drawing software extended with Flowcharts solution offers the full set of predesigned basic flowchart symbols which are gathered at two libraries: Flowchart and Flowcharts Rapid Draw. Among them are: process, terminator, decision, data, document, display, manual loop, and many other specific symbols. The meaning for each symbol offered by ConceptDraw gives the presentation about their proposed use in professional Flowcharts for business and technical processes, software algorithms, well-developed structures of web sites, Workflow diagrams, Process flow diagram and correlation in developing on-line instructional projects or business process system. Use of ready flow chart symbols in diagrams is incredibly useful - you need simply drag desired from the libraries to your document and arrange them in required order. There are a few serious alternatives to Visio for Mac, one of them is ConceptDraw DIAGRAM. It is one of the main contender with the most similar features and capabilities.
How to Build a Flowchart
How to Build a Flowchart

Entity Relationship Diagram Symbols

The semantic modeling method nowadays is successfully applied in database structure design. It is effective method of modeling the data structures, which is based on the meaning of these data. As a tool of semantic modeling, there are used different types of Entity-Relationship Diagrams. Entity Relationship Diagram (ERD) is applied to visually and clearly represent a structure of a business database. The main components of ERDs are: entity, relation and attributes. An entity is a class of similar objects in the model, each entity is depicted in the form of rectangle and has the name expressed by a noun. Relation is shown in the form of non-directional line that connects two entities. There are several notation styles used for ERDs: information engineering style, Chen style, Bachman style, Martin Style. The Entity Relationship Diagram symbols used for professional ERD drawing are predesigned by professionals and collected in the libraries of the Entity-Relationship Diagram (ERD) solution for ConceptDraw DIAGRAM software.
The vector stencils library "Switches and relays" contains 58 symbols of electrical contacts, switches, relays, circuit breakers, selectors, connectors, disconnect devices, switching circuits, current regulators, and thermostats for electrical devices.
"In electrical engineering, a switch is an electrical component that can break an electrical circuit, interrupting the current or diverting it from one conductor to another.
The most familiar form of switch is a manually operated electromechanical device with one or more sets of electrical contacts, which are connected to external circuits. Each set of contacts can be in one of two states: either "closed" meaning the contacts are touching and electricity can flow between them, or "open", meaning the contacts are separated and the switch is nonconducting. The mechanism actuating the transition between these two states (open or closed) can be either a "toggle" (flip switch for continuous "on" or "off") or "momentary" (push-for "on" or push-for "off") type.
A switch may be directly manipulated by a human as a control signal to a system, such as a computer keyboard button, or to control power flow in a circuit, such as a light switch. Automatically operated switches can be used to control the motions of machines, for example, to indicate that a garage door has reached its full open position or that a machine tool is in a position to accept another workpiece. Switches may be operated by process variables such as pressure, temperature, flow, current, voltage, and force, acting as sensors in a process and used to automatically control a system. ... A switch that is operated by another electrical circuit is called a relay. Large switches may be remotely operated by a motor drive mechanism. Some switches are used to isolate electric power from a system, providing a visible point of isolation that can be padlocked if necessary to prevent accidental operation of a machine during maintenance, or to prevent electric shock." [Switch. Wikipedia]
"A relay is an electrically operated switch. Many relays use an electromagnet to mechanically operate a switch, but other operating principles are also used, such as solid-state relays. Relays are used where it is necessary to control a circuit by a low-power signal (with complete electrical isolation between control and controlled circuits), or where several circuits must be controlled by one signal. The first relays were used in long distance telegraph circuits as amplifiers: they repeated the signal coming in from one circuit and re-transmitted it on another circuit. Relays were used extensively in telephone exchanges and early computers to perform logical operations.
A type of relay that can handle the high power required to directly control an electric motor or other loads is called a contactor. Solid-state relays control power circuits with no moving parts, instead using a semiconductor device to perform switching. Relays with calibrated operating characteristics and sometimes multiple operating coils are used to protect electrical circuits from overload or faults; in modern electric power systems these functions are performed by digital instruments still called "protective relays"." [Relay. Wikipedia]
The shapes example "Design elements - Switches and relays" was drawn using the ConceptDraw PRO diagramming and vector drawing software extended with the Electrical Engineering solution from the Engineering area of ConceptDraw Solution Park.
Switch and relay symbols
Switch and relay symbols, two way contact, time delay make, open switch, time-delay closing, TDC, time delay make, normally open, time delay break, normally closed, time delay break, closed switch, time-delay opening, TDO, thermostat, temperature switch, temperature sensitive switch, temperature actuated switch, switch disconnector, isolating-switch, stay put, contact without spring return, spring return, make, spring return, break, spring return, shorting selector, make-before-break, shorting, bridging,  contact transfer, selector switch, break-before-make, nonshorting, nonbridging, contact transfer, safety interlock, circuit opening, relay contacts, relay coil, relay, pushbutton, make, circuit closing, mushroom head, push-pull head, pushbutton, break, circuit opening, mushroom head, push-pull head, pushbutton, 2-circuit, circuit opening, break, proximity limit switch, directly actuated, spring returned, normally closed, pressure actuated switch, pilot light, passing make-contact, mercury switch, manual switch, manually operated switch, make contact, liquid level actuated switch, limit switch, directly actuated, spring returned, normally open, limit switch, directly actuated, spring returned, normally closed, limit switch, isolator, inertia switch, gas flow actuated switch, fuse, flow actuated, circuit breaker, change-over contact, break contact, SPST, single-pole, single-throw, switch, SPDT, single-pole, double-throw, switch, DPST, double-pole, single-throw, switch, DPDT, double-pole, double-throw, switch, 4 position, switch, 3 position, three-position, switch, 2 position, switch,

UML Class Diagram Generalization Example UML Diagrams

This sample was created in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM diagramming and vector drawing software using the UML Class Diagram library of the Rapid UML Solution from the Software Development area of ConceptDraw Solution Park. This sample describes the use of the classes, the generalization associations between them, the multiplicity of associations and constraints. Provided UML diagram is one of the examples set that are part of Rapid UML solution.

Star Network Topology

Star is a basic computer network topology in which all nodes (computers and peripheral devices) of the network are connected to the central hub or switch with a point-to-point connection, forming a physical network segment. Such network segment can function separately or as a part of complex network topology. The switch is a server, the peripherals are the clients. The large workload and functions of network management are entrusted on the central computer, all information exchange goes through it, so it must to be obligatory the most powerful. The star network topology is a simple topology for design and implementation. Its advantages are high performance, flexible administration capabilities, simplicity of adding additional nodes and search of faults, the fact that a failure of one workstation doesn't affect the work of entire network. But the failure of central hub will result the failure of whole network or network segment - it's the main disadvantage. Use the ConceptDraw DIAGRAM with Computer and Networks solution to designing Star Network Topology Diagrams fast and easy.
Create Network Topology Diagram
Create Network Topology Diagram

Ring Network Topology

The Ring Network Topology Diagram examples was created using ConceptDraw DIAGRAM software with Computer and Networks solution.

Electrical Symbols, Electrical Diagram Symbols

When drawing Electrical Schematics, Electrical Circuit Diagrams, Power Systems Diagrams, Circuit and Wiring Diagrams, Digital and Analog Logic Schemes, you will obligatory need the electrical symbols and pictograms to represent various electrical and electronic devices, such as resistors, wires, transistors, inductors, batteries, switches, lamps, readouts, amplifiers, repeaters, relays, transmission paths, semiconductors, generators, and many more. Today these symbols are internationally standardized, so the diagrams designed using them are recognizable and comprehensible by specialists from different countries. Electrical Engineering Solution included to ConceptDraw Solution Park provides 26 libraries with 926 commonly used electrical schematic and electrical engineering symbols making the reality the easy drawing of Electrical diagrams, schematics and blueprints. Now you need only a few minutes to create great-looking Electrical diagram, simply choose required electrical design elements from the libraries, drag them on the needed places at the document and connect in a suitable way.

Local area network (LAN). Computer and Network Examples

Local Area Network (LAN) is a network which consists of computers and peripheral devices connected each other and to the local domain server, and covers a little territory or small number of buildings, such as home, school, laboratory, office, etc. LAN serves for few hundreds of users. It includes many cables and wires, and demands to design previously a Network diagram. All local area network devices can use the shared printers and disk storage. ConceptDraw DIAGRAM is a perfect network diagramming software with examples of LAN Diagrams, templates and predesigned vector objects. ConceptDraw DIAGRAM is the ideal choice for network engineers and network designers who need to draw fast and easy Local Area Network Diagrams, for IT specialists, developers and other IT professionals which need to visualize the communication schemes of LAN and visually document the LAN's physical structure and arrangement in houses, offices and other buildings. Ready-to-use vector objects from Computer Network Diagrams solution will help you design LAN diagrams in minutes.
How to Draw a Computer Network
How to Draw a Computer Network

Pyramid Diagram and Pyramid Chart

Pyramid Diagram, Triangle Chart or Triangular Diagram is a convenient and useful type of diagrams, which lets represent the data hierarchical structure and to illustrate the foundation-based relationships between the hierarchy levels. Pyramid Diagrams are used to visualize effectively the hierarchical, as well as proportional and foundation-based relationships, the process steps, the interconnections of organizational layers or topics. ConceptDraw DIAGRAM software enhanced with Pyramid Diagrams solution from Marketing area of ConceptDraw Solution Park is a powerful business charting software, that includes all required tools for designing the multilevel Pyramid Diagrams as quickly as possible. The build-in vector stencils and templates are the great aid for designers, a variety of examples and samples is a good base and source of inspiration. Use attractive and vivid 2D and 3D Pyramid Diagrams and Triangle Charts designed in ConceptDraw DIAGRAM to illustrate your documents, presentations, infographics, articles, reports, websites, etc.