Pullstring
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A pullstring (pull string, pull-string), pullcord (pull cord, pull-cord), or pullchain (pull-chain, pull chain) is a string, cord, or chain wound on a spring-loaded spindle that engages a mechanism when it is pulled. It is most commonly used in toys and motorized equipment. More generally and commonly, a pullstring can be any type of string, cord, rope, or chain, attached to an object in some way used to pull or mechanically manipulate part of it.
Toys
Perhaps the simplest pullstring toy is the yo-yo (c. 460 BCE). The jumping jack is a more complicated animated puppet paper doll that uses a pullstring to move its arms and legs up and down. Trompos and some spinning tops use a string that is wound around the top and then pulled to make it spin.
More recent toys include
The earliest patent with a pullstring included in it is an 1886 "Toy Bowling-Alley".[1]
Engines
Many motorized
Weapons
Some grenades such as the German Models
Various Booby trap weapons and devices have used cords/cables.
Transport
A train's emergency brake can be a cord or chain that will stop the train when pulled. Some transit buses and trams/trolleys have a pullcord, also known as a bell cord, that a passenger can pull to signal the driver that they are requesting a stop. Many newer vehicles now use buttons to request stops instead. The Jaguar XK120 sports car's doors have no external handles so it uses an interior pullcord instead.
Other
Some types of
Some grandfather clocks have a pullchain to raise the weights in order to wind the clock's gears. A lifejacket has a pullcord used to inflate it.
Variants
A
See also
References
- ^ Toy Bowling-Alley, Thomas Kochka, filed 11 December 1886 (retrieved 31 January 2012 from Google Patents)