Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun One that activates, especially a device responsible for actuating a mechanical device, such as one connected to a computer by a sensor link.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun One who or that which actuates or puts in action.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun rare One who actuates, or puts into action.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Something that actuates something else, especially a mechanism that causes a device to be switched on or off
  • noun computing The mechanism that moves the head assembly on a disk drive
  • noun electrical A relay that controls the flow of electricity

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a mechanism that puts something into automatic action

Etymologies

Sorry, no etymologies found.

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Examples

  • BGW: how about the word actuator instead of trigger with respect to Mr. Redneckerson...it carries more of the engineer chic that is so popular with the kids these days.

    BSNYC Summer Recess Announcement (and Friday Fun Quiz!) BikeSnobNYC 2009

  • The motor and 5: 1 gearbox are Swiss made, and the rudder actuator is sensitive to 64-steps, allowing 180-degree turns within a 12-foot-wide room.

    Remote Control Plane Lighter Than a Sheet of Paper | Impact Lab 2007

  • Applying a voltage between the indium-tin-oxide coating and the film can cause it to bend downward, into the groove in the plastic: the film becomes an "actuator" - the moving part in a MEMS.

    PhysOrg.com - latest science and technology news stories PhysOrg Team 2010

  • The ribbed thing in this photo is one end of a Von Weise actuator, which is designed to tilt the dish left and right, to point at different satellites.

    FAZED 2010

  • There's an included pamphlet with a paragraph each devoted to "actuator," "worm gear" and "motor," but I understand dictionaries also contain those words, and are much more efficient at killing bugs to boot.

    Cheap, Chintzy Robots: Part Two 2006

  • There's an included pamphlet with a paragraph each devoted to "actuator," "worm gear" and "motor," but I understand dictionaries also contain those words, and are much more efficient at killing bugs to boot.

    Cheap, Chintzy Robots: Part Two 2006

  • For example: If I'm working on the "actuator" visibility states, I don't want my valve type to change if a person wants to use a different actuator, therefore, I will select every element that is not an actuator.

    All Discussion Groups: Message List - root 2010

  • For example: If I'm working on the "actuator" visibility states, I don't want my valve type to change if a person wants to use a different actuator, therefore, I will select every element that is not an actuator.

    All Discussion Groups: Message List - root 2010

  • For example: If I'm working on the "actuator" visibility states, I don't want my valve type to change if a person wants to use a different actuator, therefore, I will select every element that is not an actuator.

    All Discussion Groups: Message List - root 2010

  • Ultrasonic motors (USM) are a new type actuator which is based on the concept of driving the rotor by a mechanical vibration excited on the stator via piezoelectric effect.

    PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles Yingxiang Liu et al. 2010

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