Geneva mechanism

noun

A mechanism that translates a continuous rotation into an intermittent rotary motion, using an intermittent gear where the drive wheel has a pin that reaches into a slot of the driven wheel and thereby advances it by one step, and having a raised circular blocking disc that locks the driven wheel in position between steps.

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Meanings

nounGeneva mechanism (plural Geneva mechanisms)

plural Geneva mechanisms

  1. engineeringA mechanism that translates a continuous rotation into an intermittent rotary motion, using an intermittent gear where the drive wheel has a pin that reaches into a slot of the driven wheel and thereby advances it by one step, and having a raised circular blocking disc that locks the driven wheel in position between steps.

Origin

So called from Geneva in Switzerland, an important center of watchmaking.

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Cite this entry
APA

Geneva mechanism. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Geneva%20mechanism

MLA

“Geneva mechanism.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Geneva%20mechanism. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Geneva mechanism,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Geneva%20mechanism.

Source: Geneva mechanism on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.