Power tool

Key takeaways

Power tool belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Power tool to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Power tool from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

A power tool is a tool that is actuated by an additional power source and mechanism other than the solely manual labor used with hand tools. The most common types of power tools use electric motors. Internal combustion engines and compressed air are also commonly used. Tools directly driven by animal power are not generally considered power tools. Power tools can produce large amounts of particulates, including ultrafine particles. Airborne particulate matter is a Group 1 carcinogen.

Uses

Power tools are used in industry, in construction, in renovation, in the garden, for housework tasks such as cooking, cleaning, and around the house for purposes of driving (fasteners), drilling, cutting, shaping, sanding, grinding, routing, polishing, painting, metalworking, woodworking, heating and more. Using hand and power tools to cut plastic materials during construction activities can generate microplastics. Airborne microplastics is a type of particulates. Further studies are needed "on the different types of cutting tools and their associated MP production".

Classification

Power tools are classified as either stationary or portable, where portable means hand-held. Portable power tools have obvious advantages in mobility. Stationary power tools, however, often have advantages in speed and precision. A typical table saw, for instance, not only cuts faster than a regular hand saw, but the cuts are smoother, straighter, and more square than what is normally achievable with a hand-held power saw. Some stationary power tools can produce objects that cannot be made in any other way. Lathes, for example, produce truly round objects. Stationary power tools for metalworking are usually called machine tools. The term machine tool is not usually applied to stationary power tools for woodworking, although such usage is occasionally heard, and in some cases, such as drill presses and bench grinders, exactly the same tool is used for both woodworking and metalworking.

Health impact

While hand-held power tools are helpful, they also produce large amounts of noise, vibrations and particulates including ultrafine particles. Airborne particulate matter is a Group 1 carcinogen. Particulates are the most harmful form (other than ultra-fines) of air pollution as they can penetrate deep into the lungs and brain from blood streams, causing health problems such as heart disease, lung disease, and premature death. There is no safe level of particulates. A 2013 study concluded that "particulate matter air pollution contributes to lung cancer incidence in Europe". Worldwide, exposure to PM2.5 contributed to 4.1 million deaths from heart disease, stroke, lung cancer, chronic lung disease, and respiratory infections in 2016. Overall, ambient particulate matter is one of the leading risk factor for premature death globally. Many construction tasks create dust. High dust levels are caused by one of more the following:

equipment – using high energy tools, such as cut-off saws, grinders, wall chasers and grit blasters produce a lot of dust in a very short time work method – dry sweeping can make a lot of dust when compared to vacuuming or wet brushing work area – the more enclosed a space, the more the dust will build up time – the longer you work the more dust there will be Examples of high dust level tasks include:

using power tools to cut, grind, drill or prepare a surface sanding taped plaster board joints dry sweeping Some industry standards on the size and amount of dust emitted by power tools exist, though it appears that they are not widely known or used globally. Knowing that dust is generated throughout the construction process and can cause serious health hazards, manufacturers are now marketing power tools that are equipped with dust collectors (e.g. HEPA vacuum cleaners) or integrated water delivery system which extract the dust after emission. However, the use of such products is still not common in most places. As of Q1 2024, petrol powered tools are banned in California. Using power tools without hearing protection over a long period of time can put a person at risk for hearing loss. The U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has recommended that a person should not be exposed to noise at or above 85 dB, for the sake of hearing loss prevention. Most power tools, including drills, circular saws, belt sanders, and chainsaws, operate at sound levels above the 85 dB limit, some even reaching over 100 dB. NIOSH strongly recommends wearing hearing protection while using these kinds of power tools.

Angle grinder

History

Early Industrial Revolution-era factories had batteries of power tools driven by belts from overhead shafts. The prime power source was a water wheel or (later) a steam engine. The introduction of the electric motor (and electric distribution networks) in the 1880s made possible the self-powered stationary and portable tools we know today. The global market for power tools is $33 billion (in 2016) and estimated to reach $46 billion in 2025.

Safety Enhancement Prior to the 1930s, power tools were often housed in cast metal housings. The cast metal housings were heavy, contributing to repetitive use injuries, as well as conductive – often shocking the user. As Henry Ford adapted to the manufacturing needs of World War II, he requested that A. H. Peterson, a tool manufacturer, create a lighter electric drill that was more portable for his assembly line workers. At this point, the Hole-Shooter, a drill that weighed 5 lbs. was created by A. H. Peterson. The Peterson Company eventually went bankrupt after a devastating fire and recession, but the company was auctioned off to A. F. Siebert, a former partner in the Peterson Company, in 1924 and became the Milwaukee Electric Tool Company. In the early 1930s, companies started to experiment with housings of thermosetting polymer plastics. In 1956, under the influence of Hans Erich Slany, Robert Bosch GmbH was one of the first companies to introduce a power tool housing made of glass filled nylon.

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Power tool

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Power tool claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Power tool before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Power tool ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Power tool

In research: Power tool appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Power tool in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Power tool is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Metalworking tools, Power tools, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Power tool outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

How to study Power tool in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Power tool means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Power tool out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Power tool in simple terms?

A power tool is a tool that is actuated by an additional power source and mechanism other than the solely manual labor used with hand tools. The most common types of power tools use electric motors.

Why does Power tool matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Power tool?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Power tool.