commutator (redirected from Commutator bracket)

commutator, device used in an electric generator to convert the alternating current produced in the generator into direct current before the current is sent into an external circuit; it is basically a rotary switching device synchronized with the frequency of the alternating current. Commutators are also used in electric motors to switch currents in order to maintain magnetic polarities necessary to keep the shafts of the motors turning.

---

commutator

1. a device used to reverse the direction of flow of an electric current

2. the segmented metal cylinder or disc mounted on the armature shaft of an electric motor, generator, etc., used to make electrical contact with the rotating coils and ensure unidirectional current flow

---

commutator [′käm·yə‚tād·ər]

(electromagnetism)

That part of a direct-current 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 reversal of the current in the armature windings.

(mathematics)

The commutator ofaandbis the elementcof a group such thatbac=ab.

(quantum mechanics)

The commutator ofaandbis [a,b] =ab-ba.