Geneva Wheel Mechanism

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The Geneva wheel mechanism is a type of intermittent motion mechanism that converts continuous rotation into intermittent rotary motion. It was invented by Swiss watchmaker and mechanic, Geneva-born Jacob Bernoulli in the 17th century.The mechanism consists of a rotating circular wheel with equidistant slots and a driven pin or finger that fits into the slots. As the wheel rotates, the pin slides into and out of the slots, causing the wheel to stop and start at regular intervals.The Geneva wheel is commonly used in various mechanical devices, such as indexing tables, machine tooling, and automatic feeding systems. It is also used in some mechanical watches to control the movement of certain functions, such as the date or the moon phase display.