Armature

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Armature \Ar"ma*ture\, n. [L. armatura, fr. armare to arm: cf.
     F. armature. See {Arm}, v. t., {Armor}.]
     1. Armor; whatever is worn or used for the protection and
        defense of the body, esp. the protective outfit of some
        animals and plants.
        [1913 Webster]


  
     2. (Magnetism) A piece of soft iron used to connect the two
        poles of a magnet, or electro-magnet, in order to complete
        the circuit, or to receive and apply the magnetic force.
        In the ordinary horseshoe magnet, it serves to prevent the
        dissipation of the magnetic force.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     3. (Arch.) Iron bars or framing employed for the
        consolidation of a building, as in sustaining slender
        columns, holding up canopies, etc. --Oxf. Gloss.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     4. (Elec.) That moving part of a dynamo or electric generator
        in which a current is induced by a moving through a
        magnetic field, or, in an electric motor, the part through
        which the applied current moves, thereby generating
        torque. The armature usually consists of a series of coils
        or groups of insulated conductors surrounding a core of
        iron.
        [Webster 1913 Suppl.]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  armature
       n : coil in which voltage is induced by motion through a
           magnetic field