What is "dashpot"

Cataract \Cat"a*ract\, n. [L. cataracta, catarracles, a waterfall, Gr. ?, ?, fr. ? to break down; in the passive, to fall or rush down (of tumors) to burst; kata` down + ? to break.]

1. A great fall of water over a precipice; a large waterfall.

2. (Surg.) An opacity of the crystalline lens, or of its capsule, which prevents the passage of the rays of light and impairs or destroys the sight.

3. (Mach.) A kind of hydraulic brake for regulating the action of pumping engines and other machines; -- sometimes called dashpot.

dashpot \dash"pot`\, dash-pot \dash-pot\(d[a^]sh"p[o^]t`), n. (Mach.) a mechanical damping device containing a piston that moves in a fluid-filled chamber to serve as a pneumatic or hydraulic cushion for a falling weight, as in the valve gear of a steam engine, to prevent shock.

Note: It consists of a chamber, containing air or a liquid, in which a piston (a), attached to the weight, falls freely until it enters a space (as below the openings, b) from which the air or liquid can escape but slowly (as through cock c), when its fall is gradually checked.

Note: A cataract of an engine is sometimes called a dashpot.

n. A mechanical damping device consisting of a piston that moves through a viscous fluid (usually oil); used, in conjunction with a spring, in shock absorbers