Patent ID: 7750768

Claim:
An electrical switching device, comprising: a plurality of magnetic microswitches organized in a matrix on a substrate, each magnetic microswitch including a mobile element driven between two positions and mounted onto one surface of the substrate, the electrical switch device including a network of crossed conducting lines, the magnetic microswitches being positioned near to intersections formed by the conducting lines, wherein the mobile element is configured to be held in a stable manner in each of its two positions under the sole effect of a permanent magnetic field generated for all the microswitches, the mobile element of each microswitch is formed of a ferromagnetic membrane that has two torsion arms anchored onto the substrate and the two torsion arms are completely enclosed within the perimeter of the mobile element, an interior end of a first torsion arm of the two torsion arms connects to a first anchoring pad located at an interior portion of the membrane, an interior end of a second torsion arm of the two torsion arms connects to a second anchoring pad located at an interior portion of the membrane, and exterior ends of the first and second torsion arms connect to exterior portions of the membrane, and the passage of an electrical control current, in a given direction, through two conducting lines, commands the change in position of the mobile element of the magnetic microswitch situated at the intersection of the two conducting lines.