Technology & Engineering

Electrical Engineering

Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It involves designing, developing, testing, and maintaining electrical systems and components, such as power generators, motors, and communication systems. Electrical engineers work in a variety of industries, including telecommunications, aerospace, and manufacturing.

Written by Perlego with AI-assistance

7 Key excerpts on "Electrical Engineering"

  • Book cover image for: Engineering Your Future
    eBook - PDF

    Engineering Your Future

    An Australasian Guide

    • David Dowling, Roger Hadgraft, Anna Carew, Tim McCarthy, Doug Hargreaves, Caroline Baillie(Authors)
    • 2019(Publication Date)
    • Wiley
      (Publisher)
    Electrical Engineering is concerned with the way electrical energy is produced and used in homes, the community and industry. Electrical engineers design and build the systems and machines that generate, transmit, measure, control and use the electrical energy essential to modern life. One specialisation within Electrical Engineering is power generation and distribution engineering, which is concerned with planning, developing, testing, installing, using and maintaining power plants or stations, and dealing with the transmission of that power to where it is needed — cities, towns, railway lines, large businesses and industry. Some power engineers also conduct research on developing alternative power sources that utilise solar and wind energy. Electronics and telecommunications engineering are viewed as clearly defined fields that sit alongside Electrical Engineering. Electronics and telecommunications engineers design devices and systems that use small amounts of electrical energy to analyse, transmit and store information for communications, broadcasting, aviation, defence, robotics, in computers, for medical applications or in meteorology. Transmission of electronic signals forms the basis of communications in the information technology industry, and includes the field of microelectronics and the use of silicon chip technology. These engineers are responsible for technologies like mobile and satellite communications systems, optical fibre technologies and computer systems that allow for real-time communication between people who may be located on opposite sides of the globe. They also contribute to the development of electronics, sensors and Pdf_Folio:9 CHAPTER 1 What is engineering? 9 telemetry (data collection and transmission) systems to support health applications such as the bionic ear, heart pacemakers and life support systems.
  • Book cover image for: The Handy Engineering Answer Book
    • DeLean Tolbert Smith, Aishwary Pawar, Nicole P. Pitterson, Debra-Ann C. Butler(Authors)
    • 2022(Publication Date)

    Electrical Engineering

    BASICS
    What is Electrical Engineering?
    Electrical Engineering is the engineering division that deals with electricity technologies. It is concerned with the research, design, and implementation of electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism machinery, devices, and systems. A wide variety of components, instruments, and devices are used by electrical engineers from tiny microchips to gigantic power station machines.
    What is the difference between Electrical Engineering and electronic engineering?
    Electrical Engineering deals with the production and delivery of electricity to a particular location or equipment on a broad scale. Electrical engineers handle the design, development, testing, and supervision of electrical equipment production, particularly the manufacturing of electric motors, radars, and navigation systems. However, electronic engineers develop the internal circuits of cell phones, audiovisual devices, televisions, spacecraft, and radars.
    DID YOU KNOW?
    What types of problems do electrical engineers solve?
    Electrical engineers design and construct new and innovative electrical devices. They are responsible for fixing issues and monitoring equipment. They also apply the principles of electricity, electromagnetism, and electronics to data-processing and energy-transmission systems on large- and small-scale systems. Thus, electrical engineers have the responsibility of generating, transmitting, and distributing electric power.
  • Book cover image for: The basics of engineering
    • Lokesh Pandey(Author)
    • 2023(Publication Date)
    • Arcler Press
      (Publisher)
    Making it a career constantly on the cutting edge, they help to design and manufacture electrical products of all shapes and sizes. Mechanical engineers in the electrical field frequently work with computers, due to the job’s complexities. While working in the electrical field. on the contrary from a mechanical engineer’s normal duties, they will generally focus on generation of power and supply. 7.4. Electrical Engineering A professional engineering discipline that deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism is called Electrical Engineering (EE) (sometimes referred to as electrical and electronic engineering). In the late nineteenth century, the field first became an identifiable occupation with the commercialization of the electrical power supply and electric telegraph. Sub-disciplines including those that deal with power, optoelectronics, digital electronics, analog electronics, computer science, artificial intelligence (AI), control systems, electronics, signal processing and telecommunications are the fields that covers a range of sub-disciplines. The term EE may or may not encompass electronic engineering. Where a distinction is made, electronic engineering deals with the study of small- scale electronic systems including computers and integrated circuits (ICs) The Basics of Engineering 206 whereas EE is considered to deal with the problems associated with large- scale electrical systems such as power transmission and motor control. Another way of looking at the distinction is that while electronics engineers are concerned with using electricity to transmit information, electrical engineers are usually concerned with using electricity to transmit energy (Figure 7.9). Figure 7.9. An electrical engineer at work. Source: Image by Pixabay. The largest engineering discipline is electrical and electronic engineering.
  • Book cover image for: Introduction to Engineering Library
    • Paul H. Wright(Author)
    • 2012(Publication Date)
    • Wiley
      (Publisher)
    Communications systems. 4. Instrumentation and measurement. 5. Automatic controls. 6. Computers. Electrical engineers are responsible for the generation, transmission, and distribution of electric power. They locate hydroelectric, steam, diesel engine, and nuclear power plants, and specify the engines, generators, and auxiliary equipment for these plants. These engineers have contributed to the develop- ment of electric-generating stations in the United States that have a capacity of about 700 million kilowatts and generate over 3 trillion kilowatt-hours of power annually. 2.3 Electrical Engineering 25 One of the most vibrant specialties in Electrical Engineering is the field of electronics. Generally speaking, this field deals with the emission, behavior, and effects of electrons. Electronics engineers design efficient circuits using a variety of electric elements that can produce, amplify, detect, or rectify electri- cal signals. Electronics has applications in communications, power, transportation, medicine, and many other fields. With the advent of transistors, semiconductor diodes, integrated circuits, and lasers, electronic technology has changed dra- matically in recent years. These and other advances provide even greater oppor- tunities for rewarding work for electrical engineers in the field of electronics. Electrical engineers have made and continue to make significant contribu- tions to the field of communications. They use their knowledge of wave prop- agation, electromagnetic theory, and electronic principles to design radio, telephone, television, and satellite communication systems. Approximately 7 percent of electrical engineers work in the communications specialty. Another small but important specialty area in Electrical Engineering is instrumentation and measurement. Engineers in this specialty are concerned with the use of electronics to make measurements needed for research, devel- opment, and operation.
  • Book cover image for: Electromagnetic Foundations of Electrical Engineering
    • J. A. Brandão Faria(Author)
    • 2008(Publication Date)
    • Wiley
      (Publisher)
    This means lifelong learning. Despite a university education, the skills and knowledge acquired there by practitioners may be insufficient for a professional career spanning several decades. What is more, corporate policies regarding employment quite often impose very rapid and dramatic changes on the tasks assigned to employees, who in many cases have to retrain for a new line of work. Electrical Engineering technology is evolving at a very rapid pace in almost all of its branches and, therefore, it is virtually impossible for anyone to be able to stay on top of all of its novel developments (which, they too, will soon become obsolete). The only thing that really remains stable and imperishable is the foundations of Electrical Engineering. These foundations can provide practitioners with a refreshing of the key concepts and theories underlying their professional activities, or even open doors to a new start in a different area. Such readers will find in the book not only the necessary electromagnetic basics, but also a vast collection of useful illustrative application examples and problems that will help them solidify their knowledge. A key feature of this book, which I believe can attract their attention and interest, is a project portfolio that precedes the presentation of the theory. It includes a series of elaborated projects (focusing on engineering problems) that tie together the multiple topics dealt with throughout the book. If, after reading the project portfolio, practitioners feel unsure about how to solve the proposed projects, then they will have a strong additional reason to acquire this book. For Students The material presented in the book is built on a substrate of knowledge already provided by the basic sciences of mathematics and physics. Students are supposed to be acquainted with certain topics, such as linear algebra, differential equations, integral calculus, vector analysis and complex functions.
  • Book cover image for: Fundamentals of Electrical Engineering
    • Charles A. Gross, Thaddeus A. Roppel(Authors)
    • 2012(Publication Date)
    • CRC Press
      (Publisher)
    In contemporary academic parlance, “EE” has been largely replaced by “ECE” (electrical and computer engineering), but this is mainly for commer-cial reasons . Academic areas of specialization tend to become territorial, and EE’s want to stake out computers as being on their turf . One can argue that the electronic computer is an extremely important, if not the most important, product of EE . Still, it easily fits within the scope of classical EE, and doesn’t really warrant a name change of the discipline, at least not on intellectual grounds . Also, the term “wireless” has come into common usage, referring mainly to broadband communication . Again, wireless issues have tradition-ally been included in classical EE . Bear in mind that when the authors use the term “EE,” it is inclusive of all things electromagnetic . Starting in the latter half of the nineteenth century, practitioners of engi-neering began to recognize the need to organize themselves as a formal pro-fession . One definition of a profession is an occupation requiring specialized education in a field that necessitates a measure of public trust . Actually, this need was recognized much earlier, resulting in trade organizations, or guilds, requiring some certification of competency for participants . It is important that those entering engineering be somewhat familiar with its professional attributes . Fundamentals of Electrical Engineering 10 1.2 Engineering as a Profession Since most engineering activities impact directly on public safety and well-being, and require skills and knowledge well beyond the abilities of laypeople, there is a clear need to restrict its practice to individuals with the necessary competencies and accountabilities . To deal with the situation, it was decided to form professional engineering societies .
  • Book cover image for: How to Find Out About Engineering
    eBook - PDF

    How to Find Out About Engineering

    The Commonwealth and International Library: Libraries and Technical Information Division

    • S. A. J. Parsons, G. Chandler(Authors)
    • 2013(Publication Date)
    • Pergamon
      (Publisher)
    CH A P T E R 1 1 ELECTRICAL, ELECTRONIC, TELECOMMUNICA-TIONS, AND COMPUTER ENGINEERING D e w e y C l a s s e s : 6 2 1 . 3 , 6 2 1 . 3 8 , 6 2 1 . 3 8 1 95 THE use of electrical energy for telegraphic communication, followed by the introduction of the dynamo for energy conversion and the development of the incandescent lamp, were the main factors which led to the formation of the electricity industry. The latter began to assume importance in the 1880s. The steam-turbine invented by Sir Charles Parsons paved the way for large-scale electrical generation in Britain. Electric traction was adopted for tramways, and London's underground railway was electrified. The manufacture of electric cables and submarine telegraph cables assumed considerable importance. Telephonic communi-cation grew, and the national system was taken over by the Post Office. Wireless telegraphy was introduced at the beginning of the century following Marconi's successful experiments. Radio and television followed. The development of international telecommunications has been followed by world satellite communication due very largely to progress made in the United States. Technological developments in the telecommunication and other fields has been possible as the result of the formation and growth of the electronics industry. The sixties of this century have been referred to as the 'Electronic Age'. The radio valve was invented by Ambrose Fleming in 1904. Commercially produced transistors were made available in 1960. Some eight years later integrated circuits were introduced. Radar and navigational aids are now commonplace. The application of electronics has become a basic requirement in almost every aspect of science and 147 148 HOW TO FIND OUT ABOUT ENGINEERING technology, and its importance is growing. The Central Electricity Generating Board was the first public utility to use nuclear energy for generating electricity on a commercial basis.
Index pages curate the most relevant extracts from our library of academic textbooks. They’ve been created using an in-house natural language model (NLM), each adding context and meaning to key research topics.