for use with materialworlds Pendulum clock simulation
© materialworlds.com 2001
The different parts of this pendulum clock - the pendulum, the escapement wheel and the other gear wheels - are each composed of rigidly bound groups of balls, each able to rotate around a fixed ball (drawn with cross-hatching). The "top" view of the clock shows how the gears mesh together.
The key to how the pendulum clock works lies in the escapement mechanism - the particular arrangement of the two balls at the top of the pendulum and the green escapement wheel below. (The name "escapement" describes the gear teeth periodically escaping the restraint of the time keeping element.)
The motive force driving the clock is provided by the small beige gear wheel (which in a real clock could be driven by weights or a coiled spring). Follow how this force is applied to the smaller of the (ridigly bound) blue gears, and how the outer blue gear then drives the green escapement wheel.
1. How do the pendulum and the escapement wheel affect each other's movements? How is this vital to the working of the clock?
2. What happens when you move the pendulum up, out of engagement with escapement wheel? (Grab the smaller hatched ball of the pendulum to do this. To move the pendulum back down later - either move it down or press
rewind.)3. What happens when you delete the (beige) driving wheel?
(To do this,
pause the simulation, select the wheel with the mouse and press the Delete
key. Press 
play
to restart the simulation.)4. Describe and explain the movement of the blue gear wheels (in normal operation).
5. What makes the purple and large green gear wheels move?
How many times does the blue gear wheel rotate for one revolution of the large green gear wheel?