pantograph
Americannoun
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Also pantagraph an instrument for the mechanical copying of plans, diagrams, etc., on any desired scale.
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Electricity. a device usually consisting of two parallel, hinged, double-diamond frames, for transferring current from an overhead wire to a vehicle, as a trolley car or electric locomotive.
noun
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an instrument consisting of pivoted levers for copying drawings, maps, etc, to any desired scale
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a sliding type of current collector, esp a diamond-shaped frame mounted on a train roof in contact with an overhead wire
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a device consisting of a parallelogram of jointed rods used to suspend a studio lamp so that its height can be adjusted
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of pantograph
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
As the pantograph makes and breaks contact with the line, he says, it produces sparks and electromagnetic bursts that can “drown the entire spectrum of faint radio signals the telescope is devoted to study.”
From Science Magazine ● Mar. 7, 2023
Mr. Schmieder was part of a test of a third alternative: a system that feeds electricity to trucks as they drive, using wires strung above the roadway and a pantograph mounted on the cab.
From New York Times ● Aug. 3, 2021
The pantograph is designed to skim the wires that run above the line, collecting electricity that powers the train.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 29, 2019
The incident just before 11 a.m. resulted from failure of a pantograph, an apparatus that extends upward from the roof, drawing power from the overhead wire into the train.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 20, 2017
Watt combined his straight-line linkage with a pantograph, one link becoming a member of the pantograph.
From Kinematics of Mechanisms from the Time of Watt by Eugene S. Ferguson
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