An electric motor uses electrical energy to produce mechanical energy. Electric energy is the potential energy associated with the conservative Coulomb forces between Charged particles contained within a system, where In Physics, mechanical energy describes the Potential energy and Kinetic energy present in the components of a mechanical system. The reverse process, that of using mechanical energy to produce electrical energy, is accomplished by a generator or dynamo. In Electricity generation, an electrical generator is a device that converts Mechanical energy to Electrical energy, generally using Electromagnetic Traction motors used on locomotives often perform both tasks if the locomotive is equipped with dynamic brakes. See also Electric vehicle, Electric motor A traction motor is a type of Electric motor used to power the driving wheels of a vehicle such as A locomotive is a railway Vehicle that provides the motive power for a Train. Dynamic braking is the use of the electric Traction motors of a Railroad vehicle as generators when slowing the vehicle Electric motors are found in household appliances such as fans, refrigerators, washing machines, pool pumps, floor vacuums, and fan-forced ovens.

Contents 1 History and development 2 Categorization of electric motors 3 DC motors 3.1 Brushed DC motors 3.2 Brushless DC motors 3.3 Coreless DC motors 4 Universal motors 5 AC motors 5.1 Components 6 Torque motors 7 Slip ring 8 Stepper motors 9 Linear motors 10 Doubly-fed electric motor 11 Singly-fed electric motor 12 Nanotube nanomotor 13 Motor standards 14 See also 15 References and further reading 16 External links

History and development

The principle of conversion of electrical energy into mechanical energy by electromagnetic means was demonstrated by the British scientist Michael Faraday in 1821 and consisted of a free-hanging wire dipping into a pool of mercury. Michael Faraday, FRS ( September 22 1791 – August 25 1867) was an English Year 1821 ( MDCCCXXI) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common year Mercury (ˈmɜrkjʊri also called quicksilver or hydrargyrum, is a Chemical element with the symbol Hg ( Latinized hydrargyrum A permanent magnet was placed in the middle of the pool of mercury. A magnet (from Greek grc μαγνήτης λίθος " Magnesian stone" is a material or object that produces a Magnetic field. When a current was passed through the wire, the wire rotated around the magnet, showing that the current gave rise to a circular magnetic field around the wire. Electric current is the flow (movement of Electric charge. The SI unit of electric current is the Ampere. This motor is often demonstrated in school physics classes, but brine (salt water) is sometimes used in place of the toxic mercury. Brine (lat saltus) is Water saturated or nearly saturated with Salt (NaCl This is the simplest form of a class of electric motors called homopolar motors. A homopolar motor has a Magnetic field along the axis of rotation and an electric current that at some point is not parallel to the magnetic field A later refinement is the Barlow's Wheel. Barlow's Wheel is the name given to an early demonstration of a Homopolar motor, designed and built by English mathematician and physicist, These were demonstration devices, unsuited to practical applications due to limited power.

The first electric motor using electromagnets for both stationary and rotating parts was demonstrated by Ányos Jedlik in 1828 Hungary, who later developed a motor powerful enough to propel a vehicle. Ányos Jedlik ( Hungarian Jedlik István Ányos; Slovak Štefan Anián Jedlík) ( January 11, 1800 – December Hungary (Magyarország 'mɔɟɔrorsaːg) officially in English the Republic of Hungary ( Magyar Köztársaság, literally Magyar (Hungarian Republic The first commutator-type direct-current electric motor capable of a practical application was invented by the British scientist William Sturgeon in 1832. A commutator is an electrical Switch that periodically reverses the current direction in an Electric motor or Electrical generator William Sturgeon ( May 22, 1783 - December 4, 1850) was an English physicist and Inventor who made the first Following Sturgeon's work, a commutator-type direct-current electric motor made with the intention of commercial use was built by the American Thomas Davenport and patented in 1837. Thomas Davenport ( 9 July 1802 &ndash 6 July 1851) was a Vermont Blacksmith who lived in Forest Dale a village near the Although several of these motors were built and used to operate equipment such as a printing press, due to the high cost of primary battery power, the motors were commercially unsuccessful and Davenport went bankrupt. In electronics a battery is a combination of two or more Electrochemical cells which store chemical Energy which can be converted into electrical energy Several inventors followed Sturgeon in the development of DC motors but all encountered the same cost issues with primary battery power. No electricity distribution had been developed at the time. Like Sturgeon's motor, there was no practical commercial market for these motors.

The modern DC motor was invented by accident in 1873, when Zénobe Gramme connected the dynamo he had invented to a second similar unit, driving it as a motor. Zénobe Théophile Gramme ( April 4, 1826 - January 20, 1901) was a Belgian Electrical engineer. In Electricity generation, an electrical generator is a device that converts Mechanical energy to Electrical energy, generally using Electromagnetic The Gramme machine was the first electric motor that was successful in the industry. A Gramme machine, Gramme ring, or Gramme dynamo is a type of dynamo, an Electrical generator which produces Direct current, named

In 1888 Nikola Tesla invented the first practicable AC motor and with it the polyphase power transmission system. There have already been discussions about Tesla's ethnicity on the talk page An AC motor is an Electric motor that is driven by an Alternating current. Tesla continued his work on the AC motor in the years to follow at the Westinghouse company.

Categorization of electric motors

The classic division of electric motors has been that of DC types vs AC types. This is more a de facto convention, rather than a rigid distinction. For example, many classic DC motors run happily on AC power.

The ongoing trend toward electronic control further muddles the distinction, as modern drivers have moved the commutator out of the motor shell. For this new breed of motor, driver circuits are relied upon to generate sinusoidal AC drive currents, or some approximation of. The two best examples are: the brushless DC motor, and the stepping motor, both being polyphase AC motors requiring external electronic control.

There is a clearer distinction between a synchronous motor and asynchronous types. A synchronous electric motor is an AC motor distinguished by a rotor spinning with coils passing magnets at the same rate as the Alternating current In the synchronous types, the rotor rotates in synchrony with the oscillating field or current (eg. permanent magnet motors). In contrast, an asynchronous motor is designed to slip; the most ubiquitous example being the common AC induction motor which must slip in order to generate torque. An induction motor (IM is a type of asynchronous AC motor where power is supplied to the rotating device by means of electromagnetic induction.

DC motors

A DC motor is designed to run on DC electric power. Two examples of pure DC designs are Michael Faraday's homopolar motor (which is uncommon), and the ball bearing motor, which is (so far) a novelty. Michael Faraday, FRS ( September 22 1791 – August 25 1867) was an English A homopolar motor has a Magnetic field along the axis of rotation and an electric current that at some point is not parallel to the magnetic field A ball bearing motor is an unusual Electric motor that consists of two Ball-bearing -type bearings with the inner races mounted on a common conductive shaft and the By far the most common DC motor types are the brushed and brushless types, which use internal and external commutation respectively to create an oscillating AC current from the DC source -- so they are not purely DC machines in a strict sense.

Brushed DC motors

Main article: Brushed DC Electric Motor

The classic DC motor design generates an oscillating current in a wound rotor with a split ring commutator, and either a wound or permanent magnet stator. A brushed DC motor is an internally commutated electric motor designed to be run from a DC power source A commutator is an electrical Switch that periodically reverses the current direction in an Electric motor or Electrical generator A rotor consists of a coil wound around a rotor which is then powered by any type of battery.

Many of the limitations of the classic commutator DC motor are due to the need for brushes to press against the commutator. A commutator is an electrical Switch that periodically reverses the current direction in an Electric motor or Electrical generator This creates friction. Friction is the Force resisting the relative motion of two Surfaces in contact or a surface in contact with a fluid (e At higher speeds, brushes have increasing difficulty in maintaining contact. Brushes may bounce off the irregularities in the commutator surface, creating sparks. This limits the maximum speed of the machine. The current density per unit area of the brushes limits the output of the motor. The imperfect electric contact also causes electrical noise. Electronic noise is an unwanted signal characteristic of all electronic circuits. Brushes eventually wear out and require replacement, and the commutator itself is subject to wear and maintenance. The commutator assembly on a large machine is a costly element, requiring precision assembly of many parts.

Brushless DC motors

Main article: Brushless DC electric motor

Some of the problems of the brushed DC motor are eliminated in the brushless design. The statement Brushless DC electric motor may be misleading and controversial among professionals because it's actually an 3 phase AC motor driven by a DC source In this motor, the mechanical "rotating switch" or commutator/brushgear assembly is replaced by an external electronic switch synchronised to the rotor's position. Brushless motors are typically 85-90% efficient, whereas DC motors with brushgear are typically 75-80% efficient.

Midway between ordinary DC motors and stepper motors lies the realm of the brushless DC motor. Direct current ( DC) is the unidirectional flow of Electric charge. A stepper motor (or step motor) is a brushless, synchronous Electric The statement Brushless DC electric motor may be misleading and controversial among professionals because it's actually an 3 phase AC motor driven by a DC source Built in a fashion very similar to stepper motors, these often use a permanent magnet external rotor, three phases of driving coils, one or more Hall effect sensors to sense the position of the rotor, and the associated drive electronics. A Hall effect sensor is a Transducer that varies its output Voltage in response to changes in Magnetic field. The coils are activated, one phase after the other, by the drive electronics as cued by the signals from the Hall effect sensors. In effect, they act as three-phase synchronous motors containing their own variable-frequency drive electronics. A variable-frequency drive (VFD is a system for controlling the rotational speed of an Alternating current (AC Electric motor by controlling the frequency of the A specialized class of brushless DC motor controllers utilize EMF feedback through the main phase connections instead of Hall effect sensors to determine position and velocity. These motors are used extensively in electric radio-controlled vehicles. Radio control (often abbreviated to R/C or simply RC) is the use of radio signals to remotely control a device When configured with the magnets on the outside, these are referred to by modelists as outrunner motors.

Brushless DC motors are commonly used where precise speed control is necessary, as in computer disk drives or in video cassette recorders, the spindles within CD, CD-ROM (etc. Disk storage is a general category of a Computer storage mechanisms in which data is recorded on planar round and rotating surfaces ( disks, discs, or PLEASE BEAR IN MIND THAT THIS IS A GENERAL ARTICLE ABOUT VCRs/VIDEOCASSETTE RECORDERS A Compact Disc (also known as a CD) is an Optical disc used to store digital data, originally developed for storing digital audio CD-ROM (an initialism of "Compact Disc Read-Only Memory " is a pre-pressed Compact Disc that contains data accessible to but not writable ) drives, and mechanisms within office products such as fans, laser printers and photocopiers. A mechanical fan is an electrically powered device used to produce an airflow for the purpose of creature comfort (particularly in the heat ventilation, exhaust A laser printer is a common type of Computer printer that rapidly produces high quality text and graphics on plain paper A photocopier (or copier is a machine that makes Paper copies of documents and other visual images quickly and cheaply They have several advantages over conventional motors:

• Compared to AC fans using shaded-pole motors, they are very efficient, running much cooler than the equivalent AC motors. This cool operation leads to much-improved life of the fan's bearings.
• Without a commutator to wear out, the life of a DC brushless motor can be significantly longer compared to a DC motor using brushes and a commutator. A commutator is an electrical Switch that periodically reverses the current direction in an Electric motor or Electrical generator Commutation also tends to cause a great deal of electrical and RF noise; without a commutator or brushes, a brushless motor may be used in electrically sensitive devices like audio equipment or computers.
• The same Hall effect sensors that provide the commutation can also provide a convenient tachometer signal for closed-loop control (servo-controlled) applications. A tachometer is an instrument that measures the rotation speed of a shaft or disk as in a motor or other machine In fans, the tachometer signal can be used to derive a "fan OK" signal.
• The motor can be easily synchronized to an internal or external clock, leading to precise speed control.
• Brushless motors have no chance of sparking, unlike brushed motors, making them better suited to environments with volatile chemicals and fuels.
• Brushless motors are usually used in small equipment such as computers and are generally used to get rid of unwanted heat.
• They are also very quiet motors which is an advantage if being used in equipment that is affected by vibrations.

Modern DC brushless motors range in power from a fraction of a watt to many kilowatts. The watt (symbol W) is the SI derived unit of power, equal to one Joule of energy per Second. Larger brushless motors up to about 100 kW rating are used in electric vehicles. They also find significant use in high-performance electric model aircraft.

Coreless DC motors

Nothing in the design of any of the motors described above requires that the iron (steel) portions of the rotor actually rotate; torque is exerted only on the windings of the electromagnets. Taking advantage of this fact is the coreless DC motor, a specialized form of a brush or brushless DC motor. Optimized for rapid acceleration, these motors have a rotor that is constructed without any iron core. The rotor can take the form of a winding-filled cylinder inside the stator magnets, a basket surrounding the stator magnets, or a flat pancake (possibly formed on a printed wiring board) running between upper and lower stator magnets. The stator is the stationary part of an Electric generator or Electric motor. A printed circuit board, or PCB, is used to mechanically support and electrically connect Electronic components using conductive pathways or traces The windings are typically stabilized by being impregnated with Electrical epoxy potting systems. In Chemistry, epoxy or polyepoxide is a Thermosetting Epoxide Polymer that cures (polymerizes and crosslinks when mixed with a Filled epoxies that have moderate mixed viscosity and a long gel time. These systems are highlighted by low shrinkage and low exotherm. Typically UL 1446 recognized as a potting compound for use up to 180C (Class H) UL File No. E 210549.

Because the rotor is much lighter in weight (mass) than a conventional rotor formed from copper windings on steel laminations, the rotor can accelerate much more rapidly, often achieving a mechanical time constant under 1 ms. Mass is a fundamental concept in Physics, roughly corresponding to the Intuitive idea of how much Matter there is in an object Copper (ˈkɒpɚ is a Chemical element with the symbol Cu (cuprum and Atomic number 29 Steel is an Alloy consisting mostly of Iron, with a Carbon content between 0 In Physics and Engineering, the time constant usually denoted by the Greek letter \tau, (tau characterizes the Frequency A millisecond (from Milli- and Second; abbreviation ms is one thousandth of a Second. This is especially true if the windings use aluminum rather than the heavier copper. WikipediaNaming But because there is no metal mass in the rotor to act as a heat sink, even small coreless motors must often be cooled by forced air.

These motors were commonly used to drive the capstan(s) of magnetic tape drives and are still widely used in high-performance servo-controlled systems, like radio-controlled vehicles/aircraft, humanoid robotic systems, industrial automation, medical devices, etc. Magnetic tape is a medium for Magnetic recording generally consisting of a thin magnetizable coating on a long and narrow strip of Plastic. See also Robot Robotics is the science and technology of Robots and their design manufacture and application

Universal motors

A variant of the wound field DC motor is the universal motor. The name derives from the fact that it may use AC or DC supply current, although in practice they are nearly always used with AC supplies. The principle is that in a wound field DC motor the current in both the field and the armature (and hence the resultant magnetic fields) will alternate (reverse polarity) at the same time, and hence the mechanical force generated is always in the same direction. In Electrical engineering, an armature is one of the two principal electrical components of an Electromechanical machine--a motor or generator In practice, the motor must be specially designed to cope with the AC current (impedance must be taken into account, as must the pulsating force), and the resultant motor is generally less efficient than an equivalent pure DC motor. Electrical impedance, or simply impedance, describes a measure of opposition to a sinusoidal Alternating current (AC Operating at normal power line frequencies, the maximum output of universal motors is limited and motors exceeding one kilowatt are rare. But universal motors also form the basis of the traditional railway traction motor in electric railways. See also Electric vehicle, Electric motor A traction motor is a type of Electric motor used to power the driving wheels of a vehicle such as Railway electrification supplies electrical energy to railway Locomotives and Multiple units so they can operate without having a Reciprocating In this application, to keep their electrical efficiency high, they were operated from very low frequency AC supplies, with 25 Hz and 16 ²/₃ hertz operation being common. Because they are universal motors, locomotives using this design were also commonly capable of operating from a third rail powered by DC. A third rail is a method of providing Electricity to power a railway through a continuous rigid conductor alongside the railway track or between the rails Direct current ( DC) is the unidirectional flow of Electric charge.

The advantage of the universal motor is that AC supplies may be used on motors which have the typical characteristics of DC motors, specifically high starting torque and very compact design if high running speeds are used. The negative aspect is the maintenance and short life problems caused by the commutator. A commutator is an electrical Switch that periodically reverses the current direction in an Electric motor or Electrical generator As a result such motors are usually used in AC devices such as food mixers and power tools which are used only intermittently. Continuous speed control of a universal motor running on AC is very easily accomplished using a thyristor circuit, while stepped speed control can be accomplished using multiple taps on the field coil. The thyristor is a solid-state Semiconductor device with four layers of alternating N and P-type material Household blenders that advertise many speeds frequently combine a field coil with several taps and a diode that can be inserted in series with the motor (causing the motor to run on half-wave rectified AC). Dioden2jpg|thumb|right|150px|Figure 2 Various semiconductor diodes

Universal motors can rotate at relatively high revolutions per minute (rpm). This makes them useful for appliances such as blenders, vacuum cleaners, and hair dryers where high-speed operation is desired. A blender, or liquidiser in British English, is a Kitchen appliance used to mix ingredients or Puree food A vacuum cleaner (in colloquial British English also hoover) is a device that uses an air Pump to create a partial Vacuum to Suck A blowdryer or hairdryer is an Electromechanical device designed to blow cool or hot Air over wet or damp Hair, in order to accelerate the Many vacuum cleaner and weed trimmer motors exceed 10,000 rpm, Dremel and other similar miniature grinders will often exceed 30,000 rpm. Weedeater redirects here for the band see Weedeater (band A string trimmer, also called a line trimmer, Weedeater Dremel is a brand of tools primarily Rotary tools developed by Albert J Motor damage may occur due to overspeed (rpm in excess of design specifications) if the unit is operated with no significant load. On larger motors, sudden loss of load is to be avoided, and the possibility of such an occurrence is incorporated into the motor's protection and control schemes. Often, a small fan blade attached to the armature acts as an artificial load to limit the motor speed to a safe value, as well as provide cooling airflow to the armature and field windings.

With the very low cost of semiconductor rectifiers, some applications that would have previously used a universal motor now use a pure DC motor, sometimes with a permanent magnet field. A semiconductor' is a Solid material that has Electrical conductivity in between a conductor and an insulator; it can vary over that A rectifier is an electrical device that converts Alternating current (AC to Direct current (DC a process known as rectification.

AC motors

Main article: AC motor

In 1882, Nikola Tesla identified the rotating magnetic field principle, and pioneered the use of a rotary field of force to operate machines. An AC motor is an Electric motor that is driven by an Alternating current. There have already been discussions about Tesla's ethnicity on the talk page alternator is an electromechanical device that converts mechanical energy to Alternating current electrical energy He exploited the principle to design a unique two-phase induction motor in 1883. In 1885, Galileo Ferraris independently researched the concept. Galileo Ferraris ( October 30, 1847 – February 7, 1897) was an Italian Physicist and Electrical engineer, noted mostly In 1888, Ferraris published his research in a paper to the Royal Academy of Sciences in Turin.

Introduction of Tesla's motor from 1888 onwards initiated what is sometimes referred to as the Second Industrial Revolution, making possible the efficient generation and long distance distribution of electrical energy using the alternating current transmission system, also of Tesla's invention (1888). The Second Industrial Revolution, typically dated between 1870 and 1914 was a second phase of the Industrial Revolution, involving several developments within the chemical ^[1] Before the invention of the rotating magnetic field, motors operated by continually passing a conductor through a stationary magnetic field (as in homopolar motors). A homopolar motor has a Magnetic field along the axis of rotation and an electric current that at some point is not parallel to the magnetic field

Tesla had suggested that the commutators from a machine could be removed and the device could operate on a rotary field of force. A commutator is an electrical Switch that periodically reverses the current direction in an Electric motor or Electrical generator Professor Poeschel, his teacher, stated that would be akin to building a perpetual motion machine. The term perpetual motion, taken literally refers to movement that goes on forever ^[2] Tesla would later attain U.S. Patent 0,416,194 , Electric Motor (December 1889), which resembles the motor seen in many of Tesla's photos. This classic alternating current electro-magnetic motor was an induction motor.

Michail Osipovich Dolivo-Dobrovolsky later invented a three-phase "cage-rotor" in 1890. Mikhail Osipovich Dolivo-Dobrovolsky ( Михаил Осипович Доливо-Добровольский; Michail von Dolivo-Dobrowolsky or Michail Ossipowitch This type of motor is now used for the vast majority of commercial applications.

Components

A typical AC motor consists of two parts:

1. An outside stationary stator having coils supplied with AC current to produce a rotating magnetic field, and;
2. An inside rotor attached to the output shaft that is given a torque by the rotating field.

Torque motors

A torque motor is a specialized form of induction motor which is capable of operating indefinitely at stall (with the rotor blocked from turning) without damage. An induction motor (IM is a type of asynchronous AC motor where power is supplied to the rotating device by means of electromagnetic induction. A stall is the slowing or stopping of a process and in the case of an Engine, refers to a sudden stopping of the engine turning usually brought about accidentally The rotor is the non-stationary part of a rotary Electric motor or Alternator, which rotates because the wires and magnetic field of the motor are arranged so In this mode, the motor will apply a steady torque to the load (hence the name). A torque (τ in Physics, also called a moment (of force is a pseudo- vector that measures the tendency of a force to rotate an object about A common application of a torque motor would be the supply- and take-up reel motors in a tape drive. A reel is an object around which lengths of another material (usually long and flexible are wound for storage A tape drive, which is also known as a streamer, is a data storage device that reads and writes data stored on a magnetic tape. In this application, driven from a low voltage, the characteristics of these motors allow a relatively-constant light tension to be applied to the tape whether or not the capstan is feeding tape past the tape heads. Capstans are rotating spindles used to move recording tape through the mechanism of a Tape recorder. Driven from a higher voltage, (and so delivering a higher torque), the torque motors can also achieve fast-forward and rewind operation without requiring any additional mechanics such as gears or clutches. This is the page for mechanical Gears For other uses see Gear (disambiguation For the gear-like device used to drive a roller chain see Sprocket A clutch is a mechanism for transmitting rotation which can be engaged and disengaged In the computer world, torque motors are used with force feedback steering wheels.

Slip ring

The slip ring or wound rotor motor is an induction machine where the rotor comprises a set of coils that are terminated in slip rings to which external impedances can be connected. A slip ring (in Electrical engineering terms is a method of making an electrical connection through a rotating assembly The stator is the same as is used with a standard squirrel cage motor.

By changing the impedance connected to the rotor circuit, the speed/current and speed/torque curves can be altered.

The slip ring motor is used primarily to start a high inertia load or a load that requires a very high starting torque across the full speed range. By correctly selecting the resistors used in the secondary resistance or slip ring starter, the motor is able to produce maximum torque at a relatively low current from zero speed to full speed. A secondary use of the slip ring motor is to provide a means of speed control. Because the torque curve of the motor is effectively modified by the resistance connected to the rotor circuit, the speed of the motor can be altered. Increasing the value of resistance on the rotor circuit will move the speed of maximum torque down. If the resistance connected to the rotor is increased beyond the point where the maximum torque occurs at zero speed, the torque will be further reduced.

When used with a load that has a torque curve that increases with speed, the motor will operate at the speed where the torque developed by the motor is equal to the load torque. Reducing the load will cause the motor to speed up, and increasing the load will cause the motor to slow down until the load and motor torque are equal. Operated in this manner, the slip losses are dissipated in the secondary resistors and can be very significant. The speed regulation is also very poor.

Stepper motors

Main article: Stepper motor

Closely related in design to three-phase AC synchronous motors are stepper motors, where an internal rotor containing permanent magnets or a large iron core with salient poles is controlled by a set of external magnets that are switched electronically. A stepper motor (or step motor) is a brushless, synchronous Electric A stepper motor (or step motor) is a brushless, synchronous Electric A stepper motor may also be thought of as a cross between a DC electric motor and a solenoid. A solenoid is a three-dimensional Coil. In Physics, the term solenoid refers to a loop of wire often wrapped around a Metallic core which As each coil is energized in turn, the rotor aligns itself with the magnetic field produced by the energized field winding. Unlike a synchronous motor, in its application, the motor may not rotate continuously; instead, it "steps" from one position to the next as field windings are energized and de-energized in sequence. Depending on the sequence, the rotor may turn forwards or backwards.

Simple stepper motor drivers entirely energize or entirely de-energize the field windings, leading the rotor to "cog" to a limited number of positions; more sophisticated drivers can proportionally control the power to the field windings, allowing the rotors to position between the cog points and thereby rotate extremely smoothly. Computer controlled stepper motors are one of the most versatile forms of positioning systems, particularly when part of a digital servo-controlled system. A servomechanism, or servo is an automatic device which uses error-sensing Feedback to correct the performance of a mechanism

Stepper motors can be rotated to a specific angle with ease, and hence stepper motors are used in pre-gigabyte era computer disk drives, where the precision they offered was adequate for the correct positioning of the read/write head of a hard disk drive. As drive density increased, the precision limitations of stepper motors made them obsolete for hard drives, thus newer hard disk drives use read/write head control systems based on voice coils. A voice coil (consisting of a Bobbin, Collar and Winding) is the Coil of Wire attached to the apex of the cone of a Loudspeaker

Stepper motors were upscaled to be used in electric vehicles under the term SRM (switched reluctance machine).

Linear motors

Main article: Linear motor

A linear motor is essentially an electric motor that has been "unrolled" so that, instead of producing a torque (rotation), it produces a linear force along its length by setting up a traveling electromagnetic field. A linear motor or linear induction motor is essentially a multi-phase Alternating current (AC Electric motor that has had its Stator "unrolled" A linear motor or linear induction motor is essentially a multi-phase Alternating current (AC Electric motor that has had its Stator "unrolled" A torque (τ in Physics, also called a moment (of force is a pseudo- vector that measures the tendency of a force to rotate an object about

Linear motors are most commonly induction motors or stepper motors. You can find a linear motor in a maglev (Transrapid) train, where the train "flies" over the ground, and in many roller-coasters where the rapid motion of the motorless railcar is controlled by the rail. MAGLEV, or magnetic levitation, is a system of transportation that suspends guides and (usually propels vehicles predominantly trains using magnetic forces Transrapid is a German high-speed monorail train using magnetic levitation.

Doubly-fed electric motor

Doubly-fed electric motors have two independent multiphase windings that actively participate in the energy conversion process with at least one of the winding sets electronically controlled for variable speed operation. Doubly-fed electric machines (ie Electric motors or Electric generators belong to a category of electric machines that incorporate two multiphase Two is the most active multiphase winding sets possible without duplicating singly-fed or doubly-fed categories in the same package. As a result, doubly-fed electric motors are machines with an effective constant torque speed range that is twice synchronous speed for a given frequency of excitation. This is twice the constant torque speed range as singly-fed electric machines, which have only one active winding set. Singly-fed electric machines (ie Electric motors or Electric generators belong to a category of electric machines that incorporate one multiphase winding set which

A doubly-fed motor allows for a smaller electronic converter but the cost of the rotor winding and slip rings may offset the saving in the power electronics components. Difficulties with controlling speed near synchronous speed limit applications. ^[3]

Singly-fed electric motor

Singly-fed electric machines incorporate a single multiphase winding set that is connected to a power supply. Singly-fed electric machines (ie Electric motors or Electric generators belong to a category of electric machines that incorporate one multiphase winding set which Singly-fed electric machines may be either induction or synchronous. The active winding set can be electronically controlled. Induction machines develop starting torque at zero speed and can operate as standalone machines. Synchronous machines must have auxiliary means for startup, such as a starting induction squirrel-cage winding or an electronic controller. Singly-fed electric machines have an effective constant torque speed range up to synchronous speed for a given excitation frequency.

The induction (asynchronous) motors (i. e. , squirrel cage rotor or wound rotor), synchronous motors (i. e. , field-excited, permanent magnet or brushless DC motors, reluctance motors, etc. ), which are discussed on the this page, are examples of singly-fed motors. By far, singly-fed motors are the predominantly installed type of motors.

Nanotube nanomotor

Main article: Nanomotor

Researchers at University of California, Berkeley, recently developed rotational bearings based upon multiwall carbon nanotubes. A nanomotor is a molecular device capable of converting energy into movement The University of California Berkeley (also referred to as Cal, Berkeley and UC Berkeley) is a major research university located in Berkeley By attaching a gold plate (with dimensions of the order of 100nm) to the outer shell of a suspended multiwall carbon nanotube (like nested carbon cylinders), they are able to electrostatically rotate the outer shell relative to the inner core. These bearings are very robust; devices have been oscillated thousands of times with no indication of wear. These nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS) are the next step in miniaturization that may find their way into commercial aspects in the future.

See also:

• Molecular motors
• Electrostatic motor

Motor standards

The following are major design and manufacturing standards covering electric motors:

• International Electrotechnical Commission: IEC 60034 Rotating Electrical Machines
• National Electrical Manufacturers Association (USA): NEMA MG 1 Motors and Generators

See also

References and further reading

Citations

General references

External links

• How motors work at HowStuffWorks
• Electricity museum: early motors
• Video demonstration [2] of an original 1887 domestic-use electric motor.
• Brand-independent electric motor selection site
• Electric Motors and Generators, explanations with animations from the University of New South Wales.
• The Numbers Game: A Primer on Single-Phase A.C. Electric Motor Horsepower Ratings, Kevin S. Brady.

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