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Electromechanics

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"Electro-mechanical" redirects here. For the use of electromechanics in arcade games, seeElectro-mechanical game.

Electromechanics[1][2][3][4]combines processes and procedures drawn fromelectrical engineeringandmechanical engineering.Electromechanics focuses on the interaction of electrical and mechanical systems as a whole and how the two systems interact with each other. This process is especially prominent in systems such as those of DC or AC rotating electrical machines which can be designed and operated to generate power from a mechanical process (generator) or used to power a mechanical effect (motor). Electrical engineering in this context also encompasseselectronics engineering.

A relay is a common electro-mechanical device.

Electromechanical devices are ones which have both electrical and mechanical processes. Strictly speaking, a manually operated switch is an electromechanical component due to the mechanical movement causing an electrical output. Though this is true, the term is usually understood to refer to devices which involve an electrical signal to create mechanical movement, or vice versa mechanical movement to create an electric signal. Often involving electromagnetic principles such as inrelays,which allow avoltageor current to control another, usually isolated circuit voltage or current by mechanically switching sets of contacts, andsolenoids,by which a voltage can actuate a moving linkage as in solenoid valves.

Before the development of modern electronics, electromechanical devices were widely used in complicated subsystems of parts, includingelectric typewriters,teleprinters,clocks,initialtelevisionsystems, and the very early electromechanicaldigital computers.Solid-state electronicshave replaced electromechanics in many applications.

History

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The first electric motor was invented in 1822 byMichael Faraday.The motor was developed only a year afterHans Christian Ørsteddiscovered that the flow of electric current creates a proportional magnetic field.[5]This early motor was simply a wire partially submerged into a glass of mercury with a magnet at the bottom. When the wire was connected to a battery a magnetic field was created and this interaction with the magnetic field given off by the magnet caused the wire to spin.

Ten years later the first electric generator was invented, again by Michael Faraday. This generator consisted of a magnet passing through a coil of wire and inducing current that was measured by a galvanometer. Faraday's research and experiments into electricity are the basis of most of modern electromechanical principles known today.[6]

Interest in electromechanics surged with the research into long distance communication. TheIndustrial Revolution's rapid increase in production gave rise to a demand for intracontinental communication, allowing electromechanics to make its way into public service.Relaysoriginated withtelegraphyas electromechanical devices were used toregeneratetelegraph signals. TheStrowger switch,thePanel switch,and similar devices were widely used in early automatedtelephone exchanges.Crossbar switcheswere first widely installed in the middle 20th century inSweden,theUnited States,Canada,andGreat Britain,and these quickly spread to the rest of the world.

Electromechanical systems saw a massive leap in progress from 1910-1945 as the world was put into global war twice.World War Isaw a burst of new electromechanics as spotlights and radios were used by all countries.[7]ByWorld War II,countries had developed and centralized their military around the versatility and power of electromechanics. One example of these still used today is thealternator,which was created to power military equipment in the 1950s and later repurposed for automobiles in the 1960s. Post-war America greatly benefited from the military's development of electromechanics as household work was quickly replaced by electromechanical systems such as microwaves, refrigerators, and washing machines. Theelectromechanical televisionsystems of the late 19th century were less successful.

Electric typewritersdeveloped, up to the 1980s, as "power-assisted typewriters". They contained a single electrical component, the motor. Where the keystroke had previously moved a typebar directly, now it engaged mechanical linkages that directed mechanical power from the motor into the typebar. This was also true of the later IBMSelectric.AtBell Labs,in the 1946, the BellModel Vcomputer was developed. It was an electromechanical relay-based device; cycles took seconds. In 1968 electromechanical systems were still under serious consideration for an aircraftflight control computer,until a device based onlarge scale integrationelectronics was adopted in theCentral Air Data Computer.

Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS)

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Main article:Microelectromechanical systems
See also:Nanoelectromechanical systems

Microelectromechanical systems(MEMS) have roots in thesilicon revolution,which can be traced back to two importantsiliconsemiconductorinventions from 1959: themonolithic integrated circuit(IC) chip byRobert NoyceatFairchild Semiconductor,and themetal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistor(MOSFET) invented at Bell Labs between 1955 and 1960, after Frosch and Derick discovered and used surface passivation by silicon dioxide to create the first planar transistors, the first in which drain and source were adjacent at the same surface.[8][9][10][11][12]MOSFET scaling,the miniaturisation of MOSFETs on IC chips, led to the miniaturisation ofelectronics(as predicted byMoore's lawandDennard scaling). This laid the foundations for the miniaturisation of mechanical systems, with the development of micromachining technology based on siliconsemiconductor devices,as engineers began realizing that silicon chips and MOSFETs could interact and communicate with the surroundings and process things such aschemicals,motionsandlight.One of the first siliconpressure sensorswas isotropically micromachined byHoneywellin 1962.[13]

An early example of a MEMS device is the resonant-gate transistor, an adaptation of the MOSFET, developed byHarvey C. Nathansonin 1965.[14]During the 1970s to early 1980s, a number of MOSFETmicrosensorswere developed for measuringphysical,chemical,biologicalandenvironmentalparameters.[15]In the early 21st century, there has been research onnanoelectromechanical systems(NEMS).

Modern practice

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Today, electromechanical processes are mainly used by power companies. All fuel based generators convert mechanical movement to electrical power. Some renewable energies such aswindandhydroelectricare powered by mechanical systems that also convert movement to electricity.

In the last thirty years of the 20th century, equipment which would generally have used electromechanical devices became less expensive. This equipment became cheaper because it used more reliably integratedmicrocontrollercircuits containing ultimately a few million transistors, and aprogramto carry out the same task through logic. With electromechanical components there were only moving parts, such as mechanicalelectric actuators.This more reliable logic has replaced most electromechanical devices, because any point in a system which must rely on mechanical movement for proper operation will inevitably have mechanical wear and eventually fail. Properly designed electronic circuits without moving parts will continue to operate correctly almost indefinitely and are used in most simple feedback control systems. Circuits without moving parts appear in a large number of items fromtraffic lightstowashing machines.

Another electromechanical device ispiezoelectric devices,but they do not use electromagnetic principles. Piezoelectric devices can create sound or vibration from an electrical signal or create an electrical signal from sound or mechanical vibration.

To become an electromechanical engineer, typical college courses involve mathematics, engineering, computer science, designing of machines, and other automotive classes that help gain skill in troubleshooting and analyzing issues with machines. To be an electromechanical engineer a bachelor's degree is required, usually in electrical, mechanical, or electromechanical engineering. As of April 2018, only two universities,Michigan Technological UniversityandWentworth Institute of Technology,offer the major of electromechanical engineering[citation needed].To enter the electromechanical field as an entry-level technician, an associative degree is all that is required.

As of 2016, approximately 13,800 people work as electro-mechanical technicians in the US. The job outlook for 2016 to 2026 for technicians is 4% growth which is about an employment change of 500 positions. This outlook is slower than average.[16]

See also

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References

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Citations
  1. ^Course in Electro-mechanics,for Students in Electrical Engineering, 1st Term of 3d Year, Columbia University, Adapted from Prof. F.E. Nipher's "Electricity and Magnetism". By Fitzhugh Townsend. 1901.
  2. ^Szolc, T.; Konowrocki, Robert; Michajłow, M.; Pregowska, A. (2014). "An investigation of the dynamic electromechanical coupling effects in machine drive systems driven by asynchronous motors".Mechanical Systems and Signal Processing.49(1–2). Mechanical Systems and Signal Processing, Vol.49, pp.118-134: 118–134.Bibcode:2014MSSP...49..118S.doi:10.1016/j.ymssp.2014.04.004.
  3. ^The Elements of Electricity,"Part V.Electro-Mechanics[permanent dead link‍]."By Wirt Robinson. John Wiley & sons, Incorporated, 1922.
  4. ^Konowrocki, Robert; Szolc, T.; Pochanke, A.; Pregowska, A. (2016). "An influence of the stepping motor control and friction models on precise positioning of the complex mechanical system".Mechanical Systems and Signal Processing.70–71. Mechanical Systems and Signal Processing, Vol.70-71, pp.397-413: 397–413.Bibcode:2016MSSP...70..397K.doi:10.1016/j.ymssp.2015.09.030.ISSN0888-3270.
  5. ^"Michael Faraday's electric magnetic rotation apparatus (motor)".Retrieved2018-04-14.
  6. ^"Michael Faraday's generator".Retrieved2018-04-14.
  7. ^"WWI: Technology and the weapons of war | NCpedia".www.ncpedia.org.Retrieved2018-04-22.
  8. ^US2802760A,Lincoln, Derick & Frosch, Carl J., "Oxidation of semiconductive surfaces for controlled diffusion", issued 1957-08-13
  9. ^Frosch, C. J.; Derick, L (1957)."Surface Protection and Selective Masking during Diffusion in Silicon".Journal of the Electrochemical Society.104(9): 547.doi:10.1149/1.2428650.
  10. ^Lojek, Bo (2007).History of Semiconductor Engineering.Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg. p. 321.ISBN978-3-540-34258-8.
  11. ^Ligenza, J.R.; Spitzer, W.G. (1960)."The mechanisms for silicon oxidation in steam and oxygen".Journal of Physics and Chemistry of Solids.14:131–136.doi:10.1016/0022-3697(60)90219-5.
  12. ^Lojek, Bo (2007).History of Semiconductor Engineering.Springer Science & Business Media.p. 120.ISBN9783540342588.
  13. ^Rai-Choudhury, P. (2000).MEMS and MOEMS Technology and Applications.SPIE Press.pp. ix, 3.ISBN9780819437167.
  14. ^Nathanson HC, Wickstrom RA (1965). "A Resonant-Gate Silicon Surface Transistor with High-Q Band-Pass Properties".Appl. Phys. Lett.7(4): 84–86.Bibcode:1965ApPhL...7...84N.doi:10.1063/1.1754323.
  15. ^Bergveld, Piet(October 1985)."The impact of MOSFET-based sensors"(PDF).Sensors and Actuators.8(2): 109–127.Bibcode:1985SeAc....8..109B.doi:10.1016/0250-6874(85)87009-8.ISSN0250-6874.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2021-04-26.Retrieved2019-10-19.
  16. ^Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Electro-mechanical Technicians, on the Internet athttp://www.bls.gov/ooh/architecture-and-engineering/electro-mechanical-technicians.htm(visited April 13, 2018).
Sources
  • Davim, J. Paulo, editor (2011)Mechatronics,John Wiley & SonsISBN978-1-84821-308-1.
  • Furlani, Edward P. (August 15, 2001).Permanent Magnet and Electromechanical Devices: Materials, Analysis and Applications.Academic Press Series in Electromagnetism. San Diego:Academic Press.ISBN978-0-12-269951-1.OCLC47726317.
  • Krause, Paul C.; Wasynczuk, Oleg (1989).Electromechanical Motion Devices.McGraw-Hill Series in Electrical and Computer Engineering. New York:McGraw-Hill.ISBN978-0-07-035494-4.OCLC18224514.
  • Szolc T., Konowrocki R., Michajlow M., Pregowska A., An Investigation of the Dynamic Electromechanical Coupling Effects in Machine Drive Systems Driven by Asynchronous Motors, Mechanical Systems and Signal Processing,ISSN0888-3270,Vol.49, pp. 118–134, 2014
  • "WWI: Technology and the weapons of war | NCpedia".www.ncpedia.org.Retrieved 2018-04-22.

Further reading

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  • A first course in electromechanics. By Hugh Hildreth Skilling. Wiley, 1960.
  • Electromechanics: a first course in electromechanical energy conversion, Volume 1. By Hugh Hildreth Skilling. R. E. Krieger Pub. Co., Jan 1, 1979.
  • Electromechanics and electrical machinery. By J. F. Lindsay, M. H. Rashid. Prentice-Hall, 1986.
  • Electromechanical motion devices. By Hi-Dong Chai. Prentice Hall PTR, 1998.
  • Mechatronics: Electromechanics and Contromechanics. By Denny K. Miu. Springer London, Limited, 2011.
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