What is a commutator?

Question

What is a commutator? My friends have said something about it but I'm not really understanding it.

Answer 1

Commutator
That part of a dc motor or generator which serves the dual function, in combination with brushes, of providing an electrical connection between the rotating armature winding and the stationary terminals, and of permitting the reversal of the current in the armature windings. For explanation of the necessity of this function See also Commutation.

A commutator (see illustration) is composed of copper bars assembled to form a drumlike cylinder which is concentric with the axis of rotation. Insulation, commonly mica, to provide exceptional mechanical and electrical stability, is placed between commutator bars and between the bars and the shaft. Conducting brushes, commonly carbon, sufficient in size and number to carry the current, are spaced at intervals of 180 electrical degrees about the surface of the commutator and held in contact with the surface of the commutator by spring tension. See also Direct-current generator; Direct-current motor; Electric rotating machinery.

Answer 2

What Is A Commutator

Answer 3

You are speaking about the nearly imponderable. Truly, any discussion of sparking at commutators will needs be a particle physics discussion and quite frankly Nobody all there is to know about THAT. But the simple answers are the old ones. You don't have to understand what is arcing to stop it. Increase the spring tension is likely a one thing an engineer can do ~ this stops or limits bounce and increase contact area. But this wears out parts faster and decreases efficiency if taken to extremes. Decrease the relative speed between the commutator and brush is a like solution ~ to decrease bounce and increase contact. This increases the size of the parts, and increases initial cost of the equipment as well as storage overheads of both parts and machines in use. But it works to lower sparking somewhat. One can increase the number of brushes in some cases. One can increase the size or width of brushes in some cases. In some cases it's the material chosen for the commutator itself that causes problems ~ it can be either to hard or too soft. Brushes likewise can be too hard or too soft ~ and both commutator and brushes can change in hardness whilst in use especially in harsh chemical environs. So in some cases sealing off the brushes does wonders. But in the old days neither of these solutions would help remove the "itch" cause by being near DC generators and motors, especially in the confines of submarines. No, they weren't actually screening for VD in Das Boat. It was the particle accumulation on ones hair ~ as well as burning from X ray emissions. It would drive some men actually nuts. The fix proved quite simple: carbon. Large carbon resistors would absorb and or stop the creation of these particles. By screening out (dampening) the higher frequency waves, the carbon filters stop arcing in the unuseful frequencies of the electromagnetic spectrum. Nobody knows why. There is some question as to what these resistors actually do, and what the particles actually are. And, if you are going into the rare metal casting feild... well here's a hint: NAW, I'm not going to tell ya. It would take all the fun out of getting a turbine not to crack... And the defense departments I've worked for (but not been paid buy ~ selfish buggers) would shoot me again.

Answer 4

A commutator is an electrical switch that periodically reverses the current in an electric motor or electrical generator. Commutators enable motors to run on, and generators to produce, direct current instead of alternating current. More generally, commutators can be used to convert between direct and alternating current.

Answer 5

A commutator is the moving part of a rotary electrical switch in certain types of electric motors and electrical generators that periodically reverses the current direction between the rotor and the external circuit. It consists of a cylinder composed of multiple metal contact segments on the rotating armature of the machine. The commutator is one component of a motor; there are also two or more stationary electrical contacts called "brushes" made of a soft conductor like carbon press against the commutator, making sliding contact with successive segments of the commutator as it rotates. The windings (coils of wire) on the armature are connected to the commutator segments.

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Answer 6

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RE:
What is a commutator?
What is a commutator? My friends have said something about it but I'm not really understanding it.

Answer 7

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It's natural. You remember the old racecars on the little tracks? It's like shorting a battery - any large enough emf over a small enough space will cause an arc. Get rid of it by getting rid of the commutator or reduce it with more poles.

Answer 8

Another place where you see the term 'commutator' is in quantum mechanics or in linear algebra. If A and B are operators, it is possible that AB and BA are different. The difference, AB-BA is called the commutator of A and B, and is written [A,B].

Answer 9

in electrical motors and generators, a commutator is a segmented metallic ring which carries electric current to the rotating component. Stationary "brushes" (usually carbon blocks) rest against the ring and supply electric current. As the commutator rotates, it switches the current from one coil to another in the rotor. In a motor, this maintains the proper relationship between stator and rotor magnetic fields. In a generator, it converts the AC current from the rotor into DC.

Answer 10

It's a word used by people that don't read.