piston engine
Cylinder-based motor type
A piston engine converts fuel into motion through cylinders containing pistons that move up and down, turning a crankshaft.
This reciprocating design powered most automobiles and aircraft through the 20th century.
The term now often distinguishes traditional engines from turbines, rotaries, or electric motors: The vintage plane still runs on its original piston engine.
- exhaustUse up entirely
- cylinderCircular-based solid form
- crankshaftRotating engine shaft
- head gasketSeal between engine blocks
- connecting rodPiston-to-crankshaft linkage
combustion · camshaft · valve · four stroke · intake · flywheel · fuel · spark plug · turbocharger · tappet · compression ratio · ignition system · air intake · valve timing · gasoline · oil · diesel · rev
- aircraftairplane, airliner, airplanes, plane, biplane
- enginesV8, turbine, outboard motor, electric motor, inline-six
- propulsionjet, rocket, thrusting, jets, rockets
- steam enginesboiler, cylinder, steam boiler, firebox, steam pressure
- aircraft partswing, wings, fuselage, aileron, ailerons
- motorselectric motor, electric motors, DC motor, DC motors, AC motors
piston engineturbine engine
jet engine · gas turbine · turboshaft · turbojet · turbofan
piston engineelectric motor
Converts current to motion
electric engine · fuel cell · hydrogen fuel cell · ion thruster · nuclear reactor