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Build A Simple Motor Activity

This document provides instructions for building a simple electric motor using copper wire, a magnet, battery, rubber band, and paperclips. It explains that the motor works through electromagnetic interactions, where the flow of electrons in the copper wire coil creates a magnetic field that interacts with the magnetic field from the permanent magnet, causing the coil to rotate and convert electrical energy to mechanical energy. It encourages testing how simple changes affect the motor's rotation.

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Angelica Calamba Calica
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© © All Rights Reserved
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156 views4 pages

Build A Simple Motor Activity

This document provides instructions for building a simple electric motor using copper wire, a magnet, battery, rubber band, and paperclips. It explains that the motor works through electromagnetic interactions, where the flow of electrons in the copper wire coil creates a magnetic field that interacts with the magnetic field from the permanent magnet, causing the coil to rotate and convert electrical energy to mechanical energy. It encourages testing how simple changes affect the motor's rotation.

Uploaded by

Angelica Calamba Calica
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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BUILDING A SIMPLE MOTOR

When you think of a motor, you may immediately


think of a car, but you actually encounter motors
in your home every day. If you put on clean
clothes that were washed in the washing
machine, ate food from the fridge, or used a
computer, you used an electric motor.
Energy comes in many forms. Electric energy can be converted
into useful work or mechanical energy by machines calledlectric
motors. Electric motors work due to electromagnetic
interactions: when two magnetic fields push or pull each other
to create motor rotation—one field created by a permanent
magnet and one field caused by electrons flowing through a wire,
creating a magnetic field around the wire.

In this STEM activity, you will make


your own simple electric motor.

MATERIALS
• 1 strand insulated copper wire with ends exposed about 1 inch
—the “electromagnet”
• 1 black permanent marker
• 1 small disc magnet—the “permanent magnet”
• 1 D-cell battery
• 1 large rubber band
• 2 large paper clips
1 Make loops with copper wire.
Starting in the center of the insulated copper wire, wrap
both ends around the permanent marker to make 4.5-inch
loops. Carefully slide the marker out of the wire loops.
2 Make a bundle with the wire.
Wrap each end of the insulated copper wire around the
wire loop, extending in a straight line on each side of
the bundle to form the axle. This is called the “armature”.
3 Insulate one side of the wire.
Hold the wire bundle you have made so that it would be flat against a wall
rather than a table (see FIGURE 1 below). Color the bare end of the wire
that faces you with permanent marker. Leave the bottom side of the wire
bare.
4 Form the loops.
Carefully bend one end of the
paperclip around the Tootsie
Pop stick to form a small
loop. Repeat with the second FIGURE 1
paperclip.
5 Assemble the motor (PART 1).
Wrap the rubber band around the length of the D-cell battery. Insert the
paperclips on each end of the battery so that one paperclip is touching
each terminal. They should be held in place securely by the rubber band
with the small loops at the top.
6 Assemble the motor (PART 2).
Set the magnet on top of the battery, in the center. Position the copper wire
armature in the paperclip loops with the shiny side of the wire touching the
loops. Make sure the armature does not touch the magnet.
7 Watch your motor in action!
FYI: The more secure your paperclips are to the battery terminals and the
straighter and more level the wire bundle ends are, the faster your motor
will run. If your motor does not start immediately, try helping it by spinning
the armature.
DID YOU KNOW...

You used technology to assist you in building a simple


electric motor.

You used math to determine the supplies needed.

You used engineering skills to construct the motor.

You used science to create an electric


current that flowed from the battery through
your circuit to the wire coil, creating an
electromagentic interaction. The magnet in
your motor attracted one side of the coil
and repelled the other, changing electrical
energy to mechanical energy. With a big enough electric
motor, the spinning can be used to power something, like turn a
wheel.
As a follow-up activity, study how simple changes affect the
motor’s rotation. Make predictions, test them, and record your
results.
THE MOTOR EFFECT
Magnetism. Magnetism is a force that exerts a push or pull.
Magnets have two poles: a north and a south pole. Like poles
repel. Opposite poles attact.

Electromagentism. Electromagnetism describes the


relationship between electricity and magnetism. It is also used
to describe how a magnetic field is created by the flowing of
electric current. When an electrical current flows through a
wire, it generates a magnetic field. This is an important concept
in electricity. The magnetic field can be increased by coiling
the wire, which allows more current to flow through a smaller
distance and increases the magnetic field.

The motor effect. Today, you built a simple electric motor


using a coil of wire that was free to rotate between two opposite
magnetic poles. When an electric current flowed through the
coil, the coil experienced a force and moved. This is called the
motor effect.

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