Engine and motor 2

[jerry1423]

Is there a specific technical definition to what is an engine and what is a motor?

I have always that of an engine as being internal combustion, and a motor as being electrical.
It seems like more people are referring to an engine as a motor, especially when speaking about what provides power to a car or a motorcycle.

 

[MiketheEngineer]

I agree with you - anything that has internal combustion should be called an engine... jet engine, car engine, even a steam engine.

But anything electrical should be called a motor - IMHO.....

As an engineer - I don't think I want to be called a motoreer...

 

[SincoTC]

Have a look at a prevous discussion here:

http://www.eng-tips.com/viewthread.cfm?qid=206484

Trevor Clarke. (R & D) Scientific Instruments.Somerset. UK

SW2007x64 SP3.0 Pentium P4 3.6Ghz, 4Gb Ram ATI FireGL V7100 Driver: 8.323.0.0
SW2007x32 SP4.0 Pentium P4 3.6Ghz, 2Gb Ram NVIDIA Quadro FX 500 Driver: 6.14.10.7756

 

[jerry1423]

Thanks for that wonderful link!

 

[spciesla]

Anyone have an enginecycle or enginehome?

 

[jerry1423]

.... or watched a presidential enginecade.

The link posted above to a similar forum really covered this topic well, check it out if you haven't done that yet.

 

[GregLocock]

Steam engines are /external/ combustion.





Cheers

Greg Locock

SIGlease see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[gaufridus]

Where would a search engine fit in?

 

[btrueblood]

...liquid fueled rocket engines, but solid-propellant rocket motors, don't ask me why...

 

[SincoTC]

Don't ask Nasa either!

http://www.grc.nasa.gov/

http://WWW/K-12/airplane/srockth.html

However, I think that if major manufacturers of Solid Rocket Motors like Hercules Powder, Morton Thiokol, Alliant Techsystems and others around the world, choose to call them Motors, then we have to go along with it. Likewise, with Rocketdyne, Aerojet General, Pratt and Whitney, Rolls-Royce and others, who all call their liquid powered devices Engines. Perhaps we should ask them why!

I've always relied on the general principle that "Motors" are usually fairly simple devises with few or even no moving parts, whereas, "Engines" are complex devices with many intricate parts and supporting sub assemblies.



Trevor Clarke. (R & D) Scientific Instruments.Somerset. UK

SW2007x64 SP3.0 Pentium P4 3.6Ghz, 4Gb Ram ATI FireGL V7100 Driver: 8.323.0.0
SW2007x32 SP4.0 Pentium P4 3.6Ghz, 2Gb Ram NVIDIA Quadro FX 500 Driver: 6.14.10.7756

 

[romke]

as a non-native english speaker i find the difference between engine (combustion engine) and motor (electric, hydraulic, air)is only made in the english language, where the american way of saying things differs somewhat from the english way. in other languages (french, german, dutch) there is only one word for both engine and motor. from my student days i remember that the word engine was linked to some form of combustion (internal/external) and therefore comprises gasoline, diesel, stirling, rotary and steam engines, whereas strangely enough gasturbines were excluded. the word motor on the other hand was reserved for something electrical, and to a lesser extend hydraulic or air operated. in practice both words are used for the same apparatus to some extend, eg motor oil/engine oil where again engine oil seems "english" and motor oil "american" to me. as i see it now, the words are used differently in the US and the UK and on both sides of the ocean you will find people that do not use the "correct" words, adding something extra to the already foggy situation

 

[zdas04]

It is clear from the above and the link referenced above that the sea is really murky.

To me anything externally powered (electrical motor, hydraulic motor, steam turbine, etc.) is a "motor".

Anything internally powered (IC engine, gas turbine, rocket) is an "engine".

I don't plan to fall on my sword over this, but in my personal written and spoken usage I stick to the above break down and have for decades.

David

 

[Artisi]

A little off-topic in the real sense as whether it is a motor or an engine - however, for me I guess I am a little more specific in normal usage, I usually say "diesel engine" / "steam engine" / "electric motor" / "hydraulic motor" unless it is perfectly clear as to what I am refering to. This has come about from the industries in which I have worked where it was easier to be specific first time round rather than having to clarify what you were talking about.

 

[kchan711]

Unfortunately, there is no difference. We'll always be able to make an argument for one or the other. A boat motor or a car engine; both are ICEs but with different applications. Simply said, you just go with the lingo of the industry. If someone tries to correct you on the "engine or motor" language, simply ask them to explain the difference. That should be pretty funny to listen to.

Kyle Chandler

http://www.chiefengineering.net

 

[djack77494]

I think that Internal Combustion devices are always refered to as engines (in the English language). Electrical drives seem to always be motors. The semantics problem arises with devices that fit in neither catagory. I have always thought of any fluid powered device, such as steam and hydraulic and pneumatic, to be more properly called "engines". I see that is not universally accepted, but (for what it's worth) I still favor that definition.

 

[waross]

And a Honda Civic has a device with four cylinders that is called an engine, whereas Honda uses a very similar device to build a large four cycle outboard motor.

Bill
--------------------
"Why not the best?"
Jimmy Carter

 

[Gimmyx]

This is a very interesting issue. Me too, I'm not a native English speaker ven if I live and work in English speaking countries. I agree with the fact that the word "motor" is sery often used in definition like "hydraulic motor" whose valves are, in fact, very often called motor valves as it can be seen using the following web site url:

http://www.cbfhydraulic.com/products-motor-valves-c-6_42.html