gyroscope

American  

[jahy-ruh-skohp] / ˈdʒaɪ rəˌskoʊp /

noun

1. an apparatus consisting of a rotating wheel so mounted that its axis can turn freely in certain or all directions, and capable of maintaining the same absolute direction in space in spite of movements of the mountings and surrounding parts: used to maintain equilibrium, determine direction, etc.

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gyroscope British  

/ ˌdʒaɪrəˈskɒpɪk, ˈdʒaɪrəˌskəʊp /

noun

1. Sometimes shortened to: gyro.  a device containing a disc rotating on an axis that can turn freely in any direction so that the disc resists the action of an applied couple and tends to maintain the same orientation in space irrespective of the movement of the surrounding structure

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gyroscope Scientific  

/ jī′rə-skōp′ /

1. An instrument consisting of a heavy disk or wheel spun rapidly about an axis like a top. The angular momentum of the disk causes it to resist changes in the direction of its axis of rotation, due to the principle of conservation of angular momentum. Because of the gyroscope's tendency to remain oriented in one direction, it is used as a stabilizing device in missiles, as well as in the navigation and piloting systems of airplanes, ships, rockets, and other vehicles.

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Other Word Forms

• gyroscopic
  adjective
• gyroscopically
  adverb
• gyroscopics
  noun

Etymology

Origin of gyroscope

First recorded in 1855–60; borrowed from the French word gyroscope, a combination of gyro- ( Greek gŷros meaning “ring, circle”) + -scope ( New Latin -scopium, from Greek skopeîn meaning “to look at”). It was coined by French physicist Léon Foucault in 1852, and so named because the purpose of a gyroscope is to show the rotation of the earth through the observation of a wheel on its axis.

Explanation

A gyroscope is a mechanical tool that can figure out the speed and direction of anything that it’s attached to, and you can find gyroscope technology in compasses, airplanes, video games, and cell phones. A gyroscope is a circular disk with a pole through the middle, surrounded by three rings that can each rotate whatever direction they please. No matter how you spin the rings, the disc stays flat. In the 1850s, a French physicist used a gyroscope to explain how the Earth rotates on its axis. For his clever experiment, he got to name the gyroscope, choosing a combination of Greek words that literally translates to “circle watcher.”

Example Sentences

All six electronic toys — Resistance, Gyroscope, Playing track, Wind sensor, Writing track, and Tilt Switch — come with their own user manuals.

From The Verge • Jan. 16, 2018

Her programming career included stints at Sperry Gyroscope and its successor Sperry Rand, and Sylvania Electric before she joined IBM in 1961.

From New York Times • Jun. 4, 2017

After working for a time for Sperry Gyroscope Co. in Great Neck, on Long Island, he moved to California, where he worked in the technology industry for a decade.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 12, 2016

Others tackled the issue of how to respond: Elmer Sperry of the Sperry Gyroscope Company proposed sending a beacon to Mars using 150 to 200 of his company's searchlights.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 10, 2010

Dawson asked Forrestal if he had any preferences for Reginald E. Gillmor, president of Sperry Gyroscope, or Julius Ochs Adler, noted publisher and former military aide to Secretary Stimson, as possibilities for chairman.

From Integration of the Armed Forces, 1940-1965 by MacGregor, Morris J.