Safety Switch Engaging Procedures

While machines aid people in laborious tasks, and while a firearm may protect them from danger, these devices need safety mechanisms to protect the user and others as well. This is why many such items possess safety switches.

Identification

• The method or practice of engaging a safety switch will depend on the equipment in which it is installed and controls. Some examples of equipment that contain these switches include lawn mowers, industrial machinery and firearms.

Features

• On a firearm, the safety switch may be specific to the firearm but usually entails sliding it up, down or in to the secure position. On a lawnmower, the safety switch is often linked to the seating assembly. When the sensor beneath the seat no longer feels a minimum weight present, it will kill the engine so that the blades in the cutting deck cease spinning.

Considerations

• Always consult owner or operating manuals to ascertain whether such a switch is present and how to use it. This is an essential precaution with any piece of complex machinery and certainly with weaponry.