Motors and motor controls
Circling back on the human body analogy, motors are like the muscles of a machine. Without motors, most machines are glorified paperweights. Motors are responsible for propulsion, moving conveyors, positioning machines, drilling holes, and much, much more. So, fundamentally, what is a motor?
What is a motor?
At a high level, a motor is simply an electrical device that converts electricity to circular or linear motion. There are many types of motors, such as the following:
- DC motors
- AC motors
- Servo motors
- Stepper motors
- Linear motors
- Brush/Brushless motors
Automation utilizes a vast majority of motors, and each type of motor will have its specific use cases. In terms of automation, arguably, the two most commonly used motors are steppers and servo motors. Before stepper and servo motors can be explored, it is first important to understand the difference between open and closed-loop control.
