Plunger-actuated Rotary Indexing Mechanism

thingiverse

## What it does: When the center cylinder is fully extended, then fully retracted (or vise versa depending on which side you consider the "front"), the post will also rotate to the next position. By default, there are 4 positions, so each cycle will cause it to rotate 90 degrees. This converts reciprocating motion into indexed rotary motion. ## What is it: This is basically the same mechanism used in a retractable pen, but in 2 parts rather than 3. I have seen this called a "cam", however, I do not think that is technically accurate (either for this or for the pen mechanism), since this converts linear motion to rotary motion, but a "cam" converts rotary motion to linear. I called this a "plunger-actuated rotary indexing mechanism" after consulting with ChatGPT. I don't know what the "correct" name for it is. ## For what purpose: How you use this is up to you. I don't have a set use for it, but I know that it has been used for pressing capacitive buttons in sequence. It can likely be adapted to most use cases that require indexed rotation.