Otsekontakt

Otsekontakt is a term found in several Slavic-language technical vocabularies, formed from roots meaning “open” and “contact.” The exact meaning of otsekontakt varies by language and context, but it is commonly used in electronics, electrical engineering, and automation to refer to a contact that opens or interrupts a circuit, or to a normally open contact in a switch, relay, or safety device.

In typical usage, otsekontakt denotes a contact that is nonconductive in its resting state and becomes conductive only when the device is actuated or when the circuit changes state. This idea parallels the English notion of a normally open (NO) contact. Because terminology is not fully standardized across languages, otsekontakt should be interpreted in light of the specific language, manufacturer, or technical document in which it appears.

In practice, otsekontakt appears in circuit diagrams, relay contact sets, and limit-switch assemblies to indicate the action of a contact during operation. It may be presented together with symbols for NO (normally open) and NC (normally closed) contacts, or described in textual form within equipment manuals and schematics.

Other uses may include general references to open contacts in connectors or interlocks, though the precise meaning depends on the linguistic and technical domain. See also electrical contact, relay, switch, normally open contact.