Glossary of engineering

A

Absolute electrode potential –

Absolute motion –

Absolute pressure –

Absolute zero –

Absorbance –

AC power –

Acceleration – rate at which the velocity of a body changes with time, and the direction in which that change is acting.

Acid –

Acid-base reaction –

Acid strength –

Acoustics –

Activated sludge –

Activated sludge model –

Active transport –

Actuator – a motor that translates control signals into mechanical movement.

Acute angle –

Adenosine triphosphate –

Adhesion –

Adiabatic process –

Adiabatic wall –

Aerobic digestion –

Aerodynamics –

Aerospace engineering –

Afocal system –

Agricultural engineering –

Albedo –

Algae –

Algebra –

Algorithm –

Alkane –

Alkene –

Alkyne –

Alloy –

Alpha particle –

Alternating current –

Alternative hypothesis –

Ammeter – an instrument that is used to measure current.

Amino acid –

Amorphous solid –

Ampere – amp, a unit that describes the rate of flow of electricity (current).

Amphoterism –

Amplifier –

Amplitude –

Anaerobic digestion –

Angular acceleration –

Angular momentum –

Angular velocity –

Anion –

Annealing (metallurgy) –

Annihilation –

Anode –

ANSI – American National Standards Institute.

Antigravity –

Antimatter –

Antineutron –

Antiparticle –

Antiproton –

Applied engineering –

Arc length –

Archimedes' principle –

Area moment of inertia –

Arithmetic mean –

Arithmetic sequence –

Aromatic hydrocarbon –

Arrhenius equation –

Artificial intelligence – the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it.

Assembly language –

Atom –

Atomic mass –

Atomic number –

Atomic packing factor –

Atomic physics –

Atomic structure –

Audio frequency –

Austenitization –

Automation –

Automaton – an early self-operating robot, performing exactly the same actions, over and over.

Autonomous vehicle – a vehicle equipped with an autopilot system, which is capable of driving from one point to another without input from a human operator.

Avogadro's number –

Azimuthal quantum number –

B

Bacteria –

Balance sheet –

Barometer –

Baryon –

Battery – electrochemical cells that transform chemical energy into electricity.

Base –

Baud –

Beam –

Beer–Lambert law –

Belt –

Belt friction –

Bending –

Benefit–cost analysis –

Bending moment –

Bernoulli differential equation –

Bernoulli's equation –

Bernoulli's principle –

Beta particle –

Binomial random variable –

Biocatalysis –

Biochemistry –

Biology –

Biomedical engineering –

Biomimetic –

Bionics –

Biophysics –

Biot number –

Block and tackle –

Body force –

Boiler –

Boiler (power generation) –

Boiling point –

Boiling-point elevation –

Boltzmann constant –

Boson –

Boyle's law –

Bravais lattice –

Brayton cycle –

Break-even analysis –

Brewster's angle –

Brittle –

Bromide –

Brønsted–Lowry acid–base theory –

Brownian motion –

Buckingham π theorem –

Buffer solution –

Bulk modulus –

Buoyancy –

C

Calculus –

Capacitance –

Capacitive reactance –

Capillarity –

Carbonate –

Carnot cycle –

Cartesian coordinates –

Casting –

Cathode –

Cathode ray –

Cell membrane –

Cell nucleus –

Cell theory –

Center of gravity –

Center of mass –

Center of pressure –

Central force motion –

Central limit theorem –

Central processing unit –

Centripetal force –

Centroid –

Centrosome –

Chain reaction –

Change of base rule –

Charles's law –

Chemical bond –

Chemical compound –

Chemical equilibrium –

Chemical kinetics –

Chemical reaction –

Chemistry –

Chloride –

Chloroplast –

Chromate –

Chromosome –

Circle –

Circular motion –

Civil engineering –

Clausius–Clapeyron relation –

Clausius inequality –

Clausius theorem –

Coefficient of performance –

Coefficient of variation –

Coherence –

Cohesion –

Combustion –

Compensation –

Compiler – a computer program that translates a high-level language into machine language.

Compressive strength –

Computational fluid dynamics –

Computer –

Computer-aided design –

Computer-aided engineering –

Computer-aided manufacturing –

Computer engineering –

Computer science –

Concave lens –

Condensed matter physics –

Confidence interval –

Conjugate acid –

Conjugate base –

Continuum mechanics –

Control systems engineering –

Convex lens –

Corrosion –

Cosmic rays –

Coulomb –

Coulomb's law –

Covalent bond –

Crookes tube –

Cryogenics –

Crystallization –

Crystallography –

Curvilinear motion –

Cyclotron –

D

Dalton's law –

Damped vibration –

Darcy–Weisbach equation –

DC motor –

Decibel –

Definite integral –

Deflection –

Deformation (engineering) –

Deformation (mechanics) –

Degrees of freedom – the extent to which a robot can move itself.

Delta robot – a tripod linkage, used to construct fast-acting manipulators with a wide range of movement.

Delta-wye transformer –

Density –

Derivative –

Design engineering –

Dew point –

Differential pulley –

Diffusion –

Dispersion –

Displacement (fluid) –

Displacement (vector) –

Distance –

Doppler effect –

Drag –

Ductility –

Dynamics –

Dyne –

E

Economics –

Elastic modulus –

Elasticity –

Electric charge –

Electric circuit –

Electric current –

Electric displacement field –

Electric generator –

Electric field –

Electric field gradient –

Electric motor –

Electric potential –

Electrical potential energy –

Electric power –

Electrical and electronics engineering –

Electrical conductor –

Electrical insulator –

Electrical network –

Electrical resistance –

Electricity –

Electrodynamics –

Electromagnet –

Electromagnetic field –

Electromagnetic radiation –

Electromechanics –

Electron –

Electronvolt –

Electron pair –

Electronegativity –

Electronics –

Endothermic –

Energy –

Engine –

Engineering –

Engineering economics –

Engineering ethics –

Environmental engineering –

Engineering physics –

Enzyme –

Escape velocity –

Estimator –

Euler-Bernoulli beam equation –

Exothermic –

F

Falling bodies –

Farad –

Faraday –

Farad –

Faraday constant –

Fermat's principle –

Fick's laws of diffusion –

Finite element method –

FIRST, or For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology – is an organization founded by inventor Dean Kamen in 1989 in order to develop ways to inspire students in engineering and technology fields.

Fission –

Fluid –

Fluid dynamics –

Fluid mechanics –

Fluid physics –

Fluid statics –

Flywheel –

Focus –

Foot-pound –

Fracture toughness –

Fraunhofer lines –

Free fall –

Frequency modulation –

Freezing point –

Friction –

Function –

Fundamental frequency –

Fundamental interaction –

Fundamental theorem of calculus –

Fundamentals of Engineering Examination –

Fusion –

G

Galvanic cell –

Gamma rays –

Gas –

Geiger counter –

General relativity –

Geometric mean –

Geometry –

Geophysics –

Geotechnical engineering –

Gluon –

Graham's law of diffusion –

Gravitation –

Gravitational constant –

Gravitational energy –

Gravitational field –

Gravitational potential –

Gravitational wave –

Gravity –

Ground state –

H

Hadron –

Half-life –

Haptic – tactile feedback technology using the operator's sense of touch. Also sometimes applied to robot manipulators with their own touch sensitivity.

Hardness –

Harmonic mean –

Heat –

Heat transfer –

Helmholtz free energy –

Henderson–Hasselbalch equation –

Henry's law –

Hertz –

Hexapod (platform) – a movable platform using six linear actuators. Often used in flight simulators they also have applications as a robotic manipulator.

Hexapod (walker) – a six-legged walking robot, using a simple insect-like locomotion.

Hoist –

Horsepower –

Huygens–Fresnel principle –

Hydraulics – the control of mechanical force and movement, generated by the application of liquid under pressure.

Hydrocarbon –

I

Ice point –

Ideal gas –

Ideal gas constant –

Ideal gas law –

Indefinite integral –

Identity –

Inertia –

Infrasound –

Integral –

Integral transform –

International System of Units –

Interval estimation –

Ion –

Ionic bond –

Ionization –

Impedance – is the measure of the opposition that a circuit presents to the passage of a current when a voltage is applied.

Inclined plane –

Industrial engineering –

Inorganic chemistry –

Isotope –

J

'Joule –

K

Kalman filter – a mathematical technique to estimate the value of a sensor measurement, from a series of intermittent and noisy values.

Kelvin –

Kinematics –

Kirchhoff's circuit laws –

Kirchhoff's equations –

L

Laminar flow –

Laplace transform –

LC circuit –

Le Chatelier's principle –

Lenz's law –

Lepton –

Lever –

L'Hôpital's rule –

Light –

Linear actuator – a form of motor that generates a linear movement directly.

Linear algebra –

Linear elasticity –

Liquid –

Logarithm –

Logarithmic identities –

Lumped element model –

M

Mach number –

Machine –

Machine code –

Machine element –

Machine learning –

Maclaurin series –

Magnetic field –

Magnetism –

Manufacturing engineering –

Mass balance –

Mass density –

Mass moment of inertia –

Mass number –

Mass spectrometry –

Material properties –

Materials science –

Mathematical optimization –

Mathematical physics –

Mathematics –

Matrix –

Matter –

Maxwell's equations –

Mean –

Measures of central tendency –

Mechanical advantage –

Mechanical engineering –

Mechanical filter –

Mechanical wave –

Mechanics –

Mechanism –

Median –

Melting –

Melting point –

Meson –

Metal alloy –

Metallic bond –

Mid-range –

Midhinge –

Mining engineering –

Miller indices –

Mobile robot –

Mode –

Modulus of elasticity –

Molality –

Molar concentration –

Molar absorptivity –

Molar mass –

Molarity –

Molding –

Molecule –

Molecular physics –

Moment of inertia –

Multibody system –

Multidisciplinary design optimization –

Muon –

N

Nanoengineering –

Nanotechnology –

Navier–Stokes equations –

Neutrino –

Newtonian fluid –

nth root –

Nuclear binding energy –

Nuclear engineering –

Nuclear physics –

Nuclear potential energy –

Nuclear power –

O

Ohm –

Ohm's law –

Optics –

Organic chemistry –

Osmosis –

P

Parallel circuit –

Parity (mathematics) –

Parity (physics) –

Paraffin –

Particle accelerator –

Particle displacement –

Particle physics –

Pascal's Law –

Pendulum –

Petroleum engineering –

pH –

Phase (matter) –

Phase (waves) –

Phase equilibrium –

Photon –

Physical chemistry –

Physical quantity –

Physics –

Planck constant –

Plasma physics –

Plasticity –

Pneumatics – the control of mechanical force and movement, generated by the application of compressed gas.

Point estimation –

Polyphase system –

Power (electric) –

Power (physics) –

Power factor –

Pressure –

Probability –

Probability distribution –

Probability theory –

Psi particle –

Pulley –

Q

Quantum electrodynamics –

Quantum field theory –

Quantum mechanics –

Quantum physics –

Quark –

R

Regelation –

Relative density –

Relative velocity –

Reliability engineering –

Resistivity –

Reynolds number –

Rheology –

Rigid body –

Robonaut – a development project conducted by NASA to create humanoid robots capable of using space tools and working in similar environments to suited astronauts.

Robotics –

Root-mean-square –

Root-mean-square speed –

Rotational energy –

Rotational speed –

S

Sanitary engineering –

Saturation (chemistry) –

Saturated compound –

Scalar (mathematics) –

Scalar (physics) –

Scalar multiplication –

Screw –

Series circuit –

Servo – a motor that moves to and maintains a set position under command, rather than continuously moving.

Servomechanism – an automatic device that uses error-sensing negative feedback to correct the performance of a mechanism.

Shadow matter –

Shear strength –

Shear stress –

Shortwave radiation –

SI units –

Signal processing –

Simple machine –

Siphon –

Solid mechanics –

Solid-state physics –

Solid solution strengthening –

Solubility –

Sound –

Special relativity –

Specific heat –

Specific gravity –

Specific volume –

Specific weight –

Spontaneous combustion –

State of matter –

Statics –

Statistics –

Stefan–Boltzmann law –

Stewart platform – a movable platform using six linear actuators, hence also known as a Hexapod.

Stiffness –

Stoichiometry –

Strain –

Strain hardening –

Strength of materials –

Stress –

Stress-strain analysis –

Stress-strain curve –

Structural analysis –

Structural load –

Sublimation –

Subsumption architecture – a robot architecture that uses a modular, bottom-up design beginning with the least complex behavioral tasks.

Surface tension –

Superconductor –

Superhard material –

Surgical robot – a remote manipulator used for keyhole surgery

T

Technical standard –

Temperature –

Tensile force –

Tensile modulus –

Tensile strength –

Tensile testing –

Tension member –

Thermal conduction –

Thermal equilibrium –

Thermal radiation –

Thermodynamics –

Theory of relativity –

Thévenin's theorem –

Three-phase –

Torque –

Torsional vibration –

Toughness –

Trajectory –

Transducer –

Trigonometric functions –

Trigonometry –

Trimean –

Triple point –

Trouton's rule –

Truncated mean –

Truss –

Turbine –

Turbomachinery –

Turbulence –

U

Ultimate tensile strength –

Uncertainty principle –

Unicode –

Unit vector –

Unsaturated compound –

Utility frequency –

V

Vacuole –

Vacuum –

Valence –

Valence band –

Valence bond theory –

Valence electron –

Valence shell –

Valve –

van der Waals equation –

van der Waals force –

van 't Hoff equation –

van 't Hoff factor –

Variable capacitor –

Variable resistor –

Vector space –

Venturi effect –

Vibration –

Viscoelasticity –

Viscosity –

Volt-ampere –

Volt-ampere reactive –

Volta potential –

Voltage –

Volumetric flow rate –

von Mises yield criterion –

W

Watt –

Wave –

Wavelength –

Wedge –

Weighted mean –

Wet-bulb temperature –

Wheel and axle –

Winsorized mean –

X

X-coordinate –

Y

Y-coordinate –

Yield –

Young's modulus –

Z

Zero Defects –

Zeroth law of thermodynamics –