motor, electric, machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. When an electric current is passed through a wire loop that is in a magnetic field, the loop will rotate and the rotating motion is transmitted to a shaft, providing useful mechanical work. The traditional electric motor consists of a conducting loop that is mounted on a rotatable shaft. Current fed in by carbon blocks, called brushes, enters the loop through two slip rings. The magnetic field around the loop, supplied by an iron core field magnet, causes the loop to turn when current is flowing through it. In an alternating current (AC) motor, the current flowing in the loop is synchronized to reverse direction at the moment when the plane of the loop is perpendicular to the magnetic field and there is no magnetic force exerted on the loop. Because the momentum of the loop carries it around until the current is again supplied, continuous motion results. In alternating current induction motors the current passing through the loop does not come from an external source but is induced as the loop passes through the magnetic field. In a direct current (DC) motor, a device known as a split ring commutator switches the direction of the current each half rotation to maintain the same direction of motion of the shaft. In any motor the stationary parts constitute the stator, and the assembly carrying the loops is called the rotor, or armature. As it is easy to control the speed of direct-current motors by varying the field or armature voltage, these are used where speed control is necessary. The speed of AC induction motors is set roughly by the motor construction and the frequency of the current; a mechanical transmission must therefore be used to change speed. In addition, each different design fits only one application. However, AC induction motors are cheaper and simpler than DC motors. To obtain greater flexibility, the rotor circuit can be connected to various external control circuits. Most home appliances with small motors have a universal motor that runs on either DC or AC. Where the expense is warranted, the speed of AC motors is controlled by employing special equipment that varies the power-line frequency, which in the United States is 60 hertz (Hz), or 60 cycles per second. Brushless DC motors are constructed in a reverse fashion from the traditional form. The rotor contains a permanent magnet and the stator has the conducting coil of wire. By the elimination of brushes, these motors offer reduced maintainance, no spark hazard, and better speed control. They are widely used in computer disk drives, tape recorders, CD drives, and other electronic devices. Synchronous motors turn at a speed exactly proportional to the frequency. The very largest motors are synchronous motors with DC passing through the rotor.

Sport practiced in a variety of forms on roads, tracks, or closed circuits. It includes Grand Prix racing, speedway racing (including the Indianapolis 500), stock-car racing, sports-car racing, drag racing, midget-car racing, and karting, as well as hill climbs and rally driving. The International Motor Sports Hall of Fame is located in Talladega, Ala., U.S. There is no central governing body for automobile racing in the U.S. as there is in most other countries.

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Hotel designed for persons traveling by automobile, with convenient parking space provided (the name blends the words “motor hotel”). Originally usually consisting of a series of separate or attached roadside cabins, motels serve commercial and business travelers and persons attending conventions and business meetings as well as vacationers and tourists. By 1950 the automobile was the principal mode of travel in the U.S., and motels were built near large highways, just as hotels had been built near railroad stations.

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Motor may refer to:

• Engine
• Motor car or automobile
• Motor vehicle
• Motorcycle, a term used by police officers to refer to their official duty motorcycles
• Motor system, the physiological system that is responsible for physical movement
• Motor neuron, neurons that originate in the spinal cord and synapse with muscle fibers
• Motor skill, the ability of an organism to use the motor system effectively
• The Motors, a British music group
• Motor language, extinct language of Siberia.

See also

• AC motor, a machine using AC (alternating current) electricity
• Electric motor, a machine that converts electricity into a mechanical motion
• Electrostatic motor
• Molecular motors, the essential agents of movement in living organisms
• Pneumatic motor, a machine that converts the energy of compressed air into mechanical motion
• Hydraulic motor, a machine that converts the energy of pressurized liquid flow into mechanical motion
• Nanomotor
• Synthetic molecular motors or nanomotors
• Actuator
• Heat engine, a machine that converts heat into mechanical motion
• Transducer
• Timeline of motor and engine technology