Mechanical toys
A mechanical toy can be moved with a clock mechanism (as a wind-up toy ), with a small electric motor , or with a flywheel drive . It is a toy that uses a certain mechanism to store energy and moves by itself when activated. In a wind-up toy, it is usually a spiral spring ( spring mechanism motor ), sometimes a rubber band ( rubber motor ). The spring is "wound" like a clockwork by turning a winding key to tension it. Then it expires and sets the toy in motion. A well-known and popular example is the wind-up mouse, a toy for cats . In battery toys, the mechanics are set in motion by a small motor. The rotational energy stored in a rotating flywheel serves as a drive for a flywheel drive. A further developed ("higher") form of these mechanical toys are animatronics .
A wide variety of wind-up toys (e.g. cars , locomotives , dolls and animals) have been known in Europe since the late 15th century and were first manufactured in France and Germany . Today, however, they have gone out of fashion with the increasing use of electric motors for propulsion. For this reason, wind-up toys are often collectible today . However, mechanical toys are still being made.
literature
- Sharon M. Scott: Toys and American Culture: An Encyclopedia. Greenwood, Santa Barbara 2009, ISBN 978-0-313-34798-6 , page 340.
- Peter N. Stearns: Encyclopedia of European social history from 1350 to 2000, Volume 5 . Scribner, Detroit 2001, ISBN 0-684-80581-2 , pp. 523-526.