MODELING A GENEVA DRIVE

November - December 2015

As an exercise in modeling dynamic systems, I examined the Geneva wheel mechanism used in timepieces and other mechanical systems to create intermittent motion. The primary interaction in such a system occurs when pegs on the drive wheel interface with slots in the driven wheel, transfering their rotation. I focused on this interaction in a frictionless system, giving the drive wheel an initial velocity and modeling the motion of both the driven and driving wheels as a result.