Patent 7505244 was granted and assigned to Schlumberger on March, 2009 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
A downhole tool includes a device to be activated by electrical energy and a micro-switch that includes conductors and an element between the first and second conductors selected from the group consisting of: a dielectric element capable of being modulated to provide a conductive path in response to receipt of electrical energy; and an element moveable in response to application of an electrical energy. The micro-switch may be formed of microelectromechanical system (MEMS) technology or microelectronics technology.