reciprocating motion
Piston's characteristic action
Reciprocating motion is back-and-forth movement along a straight line—the motion of a piston in a cylinder, a saw blade, or a sewing machine needle.
The term distinguishes this linear alternation from rotary motion.
A reciprocating engine converts this back-and-forth into rotation, while a reciprocating pump uses it to move fluids.
- cylinderCircular-based solid form
- engine blockMain casting of motor
- pistonReciprocating cylinder component
- oscillationRepeated back-and-forth movement
- connecting rodPiston-to-crankshaft linkage
back-and-forth · push and pull · up and down · Stirling engine · pump action · air compressor · crankshaft · sewing machines · jackhammers · inertia · hydraulic systems · valve · flywheel · steam engine · camshaft · reciprocating saw · internal combustion engine · sliding
- reciprocating motionback and forth, oscillation, reciprocating saw, piston, piston pump