NEMA motors are electric motors that fit the standards set by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA). In order for a fractional horsepower motor to also be considered a NEMA motor, it must meet the strict manufacturing standards in several different areas including frame size, material choice and motor dimensions.
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The Motor and Generator section of the Industrial Automation Standards guide as documented by NEMA clearly establishes the various dimensions that fractional horsepower motor manufacturers must meet to merit the label of a NEMA motor. Standardization of fractional horsepower motors (FHP Motors) is important not only to ensure product quality across the market, but also to provide measurements that the consumer is aware of and can count on to receive. NEMA motors are most commonly utilized in the industrial manufacturing industry for equipment such as pumps, hoists, conveyors and compressors, but can also be used in diverse industries including: transportation, in clutch and brake drive systems for cars, vans, motorcycles and a range of other automobile accessories; food and beverage, for processing and packaging machinery; medical, for imaging and other technological equipment; and residential, in lawn and gardening tools and household appliances such as washing machines, fans and refrigerators.
The small motors consist of the same basic components as that of a basic electric fractional horsepower motor, which are an enclosure, rotor, axle, wound armature (also known as a coil) and a magnetic field. As a result, this means NEMA motors must also meet the standards of a fractional horsepower motor, which means that it must produce smaller than one horsepower, which translates to 746 watts or joules per second, or have a frame size of 42, 48 or 56. The electric motor can still be classified as a fractional horsepower motor even if the horsepower exceeds one horsepower; however, horsepower is the most traditional form of identifying a fractional horsepower motor from a standard electric motor. 1/2 horsepower and 1/4 horsepower motors are common examples of widely used FHP motors. NEMA motors can operate using either alternating current (AC) or direct current (DC), and they can also be brushed, meaning they use components known as brushes to help conduct the electrical currents, or they can brushless, meaning that they must have external power supply to transfer the current. In NEMA motors, the magnetic field provides rotational motion to the motor by reacting with the electrical current as it flows through specific points of the motor. The rotational movement is then provided to the desired outside equipment.
