RE: Thermoswitch revisited(Attn. Steve Toughill)

[Darren Leung - HLO <DLeung@mail.dec.com>]

...
Darren "Can't we all just geta" Leung wrote:
  I think the word you're looking for is either "semantics", "wording", or
even "word choice". :) But now that you brought it up...
...
change, not some aging that is builtin to the sensor. But in yet another bout of
anality(is that a word?), I think you would be even closer to correct if you
were to say "effective operating temp" instead of just "operating temp". The
sensors operating temp hasn't changed. It will still turn on when it senses the
correct temp, its just that it won't sense the correct temp until the temp is
well past that point. If the crud were an internal condition, and the
thermoswitch was sensing the correct temperature, but due to crud, not turning
on until later, that would be when using "operating temperature" alone would be
correct.
...

Okay, Brad, do you have a name that I should poke some fun at?  Or maybe my "internal operating temperature" is just a little high?  Or perhaps my "builtin to," personal flame-thermoswitch is kicking in too early?  "Anality?"  What gives?  Just disagree and leave it at that.  Personal attacks held behind smileys are so easy...

Anyway, if anyone else cares to belabor the specifics any more, maybe we should all think about real technical details like the manufactured tolerances of the switch.  How closely does one switch turn on relative to another switch?  I don't think that one hundred Bosch switches' thermosensitive parts are going to turn on at precisely the same temperature, no matter how good the specs (hey, they're auto parts, not $500 research-grade thermocouples).  By the same token, none of them will be totally accurate.  So why bother specifying an 'effective' operating temp? 
The thermoswitch doesn't sense a "correct" temperature.  Its material composition reacts to all temperatures; the mechanical design and construction of the switch, along with the external effects like corrosion and calcium deposits, is what determines EXACTLY when it switches.  Try sticking a piece of Scotch tape on your house thermostat's thermosensitive strip for an uncomfortable, albeit lengthy, surprise.  A little bit of alteration in either the bimetal microstructure OR the macro-construction goes a long way.  Re-calibrate your dial; your "effective" operating temp has changed, but what's the difference?  It is now simply the operating temp of the device.

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