Switching on/off is controlled by the up and down motion of the teacup tray. When wound up, it is ready to walk. When the tray attached to the arms is pushed down, the stopper gets unlocked. In the photo, you see the stopper along the left side-plate. It's a simple and fine switch. It has a mechanism to switch off when you pick up the teacup. When you put a teacup on the tray, the wooden shaft turns under its weight so as to push down the stopper. The end of the stopper catches the pawl of the escape wheel, so as to stop all movement. The up and down motion of the arms resulting from the weight of the tea cup corresponds to the on / off switch.