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Electrostatic motor
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

An electrostatic motor or capacitor motor is a type of electric motor based on

the attraction and repulsion of electric charge.

An alternative type of electrostatic motor is the spacecraft electrostatic ion drive

thruster where forces and motion are created by electrostatically accelerating
ions.

Contents
1 Overview
2 Nanotube nanomotor
3 Electrostatic ion drive
4 Patents
5 See also
6 External articles and further reading

Overview
An electrostatic motor is based on the attraction and repulsion of electric charge.
Usually, electrostatic motors are the dual of conventional coil-based motors. They
typically require a high voltage power supply, although very small motors employ
lower voltages. Conventional electric motors instead employ magnetic attraction
and repulsion, and require high current at low voltages. In the 1740s and 1750s,
the rst electrostatic motors were developed by Andrew Gordon and by Benjamin
Franklin. Today the electrostatic motor nds frequent use in micro-mechanical
(MEMS) systems where their drive voltages are below 100 volts, and where
moving, charged plates are far easier to fabricate than coils and iron cores.

Also, the molecular machinery which runs living cells is often based on linear and
rotary electrostatic motors.

Nanotube nanomotor
Main article: Nanotube nanomotor

Researchers at University of California, Berkeley, recently developed rotational

bearings based upon multiwall carbon nanotubes. By attaching a gold plate (with

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Electrostatic motor - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrostatic_motor

dimensions of the order of 100 nm) 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 and
may nd their way into commercial applications in the future.

Electrostatic ion drive

See also: Electrostatic ion thrusters

Electric motors, in general, produce motion when powered by electric currents.

The common type of spacecraft ion drive uses electrostatic forces to accelerate
ions to generate forces to create motion, and thus can be considered as
unconventional electric motors.

Gridded electrostatic ion thrusters commonly utilize xenon gas. This gas has no
charge and is ionized by bombarding it with energetic electrons. These electrons
can be provided from a hot cathode lament and accelerated in the electrical eld
of the cathode fall to the anode (Kaufman type ion thruster). Alternatively, the
electrons can be accelerated by the oscillating electric eld induced by an
alternating magnetic eld of a coil, which results in a self-sustaining discharge
and omits any cathode (radiofrequency ion thruster).

Patents
The prime classications of electrostatic motors by the USPTO are:

Class 310 ELECTRICAL GENERATOR OR MOTOR STRUCTURE

300 NON-DYNAMOELECTRIC
308 Charge accumulating
309 Electrostatic
U.S. Patent 633,829 (https://www.google.com/patents/US633829) -- J.
Gallegos -- "Static electric Machine"
U.S. Patent 735,621 (https://www.google.com/patents/US735621) -- E.
Thomson -- "Electrostatic motor"
U.S. Patent 993,561 (https://www.google.com/patents/US993561) --
Harold B. Smith -- "Apparatus for transforming electrical energy into
mechanical energy"
U.S. Patent 1,693,806 (https://www.google.com/patents/US1693806) --
W. G. Cady -- "Electromechanical System"
U.S. Patent 1,974,483 (https://www.google.com/patents/US1974483)
- T. T. Brown -- "Electrostatic motor" (1934-09-25)
U.S. Patent 3,433,981 (https://www.google.com/patents/US3433981) --

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Electrostatic motor - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrostatic_motor

B. Bollee -- "Electrostatic Motor" (ed. Electrostatics from Atmospheric

Electricity)
U.S. Patent 3,436,630 (https://www.google.com/patents/US3436630) --
B. Bollee -- "Electrostatic Motor"
U.S. Patent 5,552,654 (https://www.google.com/patents/US5552654) --
MITSUBISHI CHEM CORP -- "Electrostatic actuator"
U.S. Patent 5,965,968 (https://www.google.com/patents/US5965968) --
Robert, et al. -- "Electrostatic Motor"

See also
Electrostatic generator
Molecular motors
Nanomotor

External articles and further reading

de Queiroz, Antonio Carlos M., "An Electrostatic Linear Motor
(http://www.coe.ufrj.br/~acmq/elmotor.html)". 24 January 2002.
William J. Beaty, "Simple Electrostatic Motor (http://www.eskimo.com/~billb
/emotor/emotor.html)".
"ElectrostaticMotor (http://users.tm.net/lapointe/Electrostatic_Motor.html)".
tm.net.
Fast and Flexible Electrostatic Motors at Univ. Tokyo"[1] (http://www.aml.t.u-
tokyo.ac.jp/movies/research/demed.mpg)".
Heavy Lifting Electrostatic Motors at Univ. Tokyo"[2] (http://www.aml.t.u-
tokyo.ac.jp/movies/es_motor/demed.mov)".
E. Sarajlic et al., MEMS electrostatic micromotors [3]
(http://christophe.yamahata.fr/?page=project_details&ID=53&lng=en)

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Categories: Electrostatic motors Electrostatics Electric motors

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