Article 100 - Definitions Flashcards
A branch circuit that consists of two or more ungrounded circuit conductors with a common neutral conductor. There must be a voltage between the ungrounded conductors and an equal difference of voltage from each ungrounded conductor to the common neutral conducotr.
Branch Circuit, Multiwire
A vertical opening or space in which an elevator is designed to operate
Hoistway
The conductor used to connect the system neutral conductor or the equipment to the grounding electrode system
Grounding Electrode Conductor (GEC)
Requiring human intervention to perform a function
Nonautomatic
Constructed, protected, or treated to prevent rain from interfering with the successful operation of the apparatus under specified test conditions
Rainproof
Equipment enclosed with a means of sealing or locking so live parts can’t be made accessible without opening the enclosure
Sealable Equipment
Breakers that operate on the principle of electromagnetism only and are used for motors
Instantaneous Trip Circuit Breaker
An accommodation with two or more contiguous rooms comprising a compartment, with or without doors between such rooms, that provides living, sleeping, sanitary, and storage facilities
Guest Suite
A complete lighting unit consisting of a light source with the parts designed to position the light source and connect it to the power supply and distribute the light.
Luminaire
The point where the electric utility conductors make contact with premises wiring.
Service Point
Operation at a substantially constant load for an indefinite length of time
Duty, Continuous
An enclosed nonmetallic channel designed for holding communications wires and cables, optical fiber cables, data cables associated with information technology and communications equipment, Class 3, Class 3, and Type PLTC cables, and power-limited fire alarm cables in plenum spaces, risers, and general-purpose applications
Communications Raceway
The organization, office, or individual responsible for approving equipment, materials, an installation, or a procedure
Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ)
A compressor and motor enclosed in the same housing, operating in the refrigerant
Hermetic Refrigerant Motor-Compressor
The greatest difference of voltage (RMS) between an ungrounded conductor and the neutral point of the circuit that’s grounded
Voltage to Ground
Localization of an overcurrent condition to restrict outages to the circuit or equipment affected, accomplished by the choice of overcurrent protective devices
Coordination, Selective (Selective Coordination)
Electronic telecommunications equipment used for the transmission of audio, video, and data, including support equipment such as computers, as well as the conductors that are used solely for the operation of the equipment.
Communications Equipment
An area not normally subjected to dampness or wetness, but which may temporarily be subjected to dampness or wetness, such as a building under construction
Location, Dry
Equipment that controls dc voltage or dc current, or both, and is used to charge a battery or other energy storage device
Charge Controller
A point in the wiring system where electric current is taken to supply a load (utilization equipment)
Outlet
Overhead conductors between the electric utility supply and the service point
Service Drop
An opening in an outlet box where receptacles have been installed
Receptacle Outlet
An accommodation that combines living, sleeping, sanitary, and storage facilities
Guest Room
The earth
Ground
Disconnects such as circuit breaker(s), or switch(es) connected to the load end of service conductors, intended to control and cut off the service supply to the buildings or structure
Service Equipment
That which is built or constructed, other than equipment
Structure
Locations protected from weather and not subject to saturation with water or other liquids
Location, Damp
An electric circuit that controls another circuit by a relay or equivalent device installed in accordance with Article 725
Remote-Control Circuit
Connected to establish electrical continuity and conductivity
Bonded (Bonding)
Surrounded by a case, housing, fence, or walls(s) that prevents accidental contact with energized parts
Enclosed
An electrical power system that’s not connected to the ground (earth) or a conductive body that extends the ground (earth) connection
Ungrounded System
An optical fiber cable containing conductive members such as metallic strength members, metallic vapor barriers, or metallic armor or sheath
Conductive Optical Fiber Cable
A conductor, screw, or strap that connects the circuit equipment grounding conductor to the neutral conductor at service equipment in accordance with 250.24(B)
Bonding Jumper, Main
Electrically connected to a source of voltage
Energized
Constructed so that moisture won’t enter the enclosure under specific test conditions
Watertight
A fitting that’s installed in a conduit or tubing system and provides access to conductors through a removable cover
Conduit Body
An accessory, such as a locknut, intended to perform a mechanical function
Fitting
Breakers that operate on the principle that as the current increases, the time it takes for the devices to open decreases
Inverse Time Circuit Breaker
Breakers that permit the thermal trip setting to be adjusted.
Adjustable Trip Circuit Breaker
A distribution point containing overcurrent protection devices and designed to installed in a cabinet
Panelboard
Acceptable to the authority having jurisdiction, usually the electrical inspector
Approved
A device that provides a means to connect intersystem bonding conductors for communications systems (twisted wire, antennas, and coaxial cable) to the grounding electrode system, in accordance with 250.94
Intersystem Bonding Termination
Written consent from the authority having jurisdiction
Special Permission
Equipment or materials which have a label, symbol, or other identifying mark of an FEB indicating the equipment or materials were evaluated and found to comply with requirements as described in an accompanying field evaluation report
Field Labeled (as applied to evaluated products)
A device designed to be opened and closed manually, and which opens automatically on a predetermined overcurrent without damage to itself
Circuit Breaker
A device intended to protect people by de-energizing a circuit when a current imbalance has been detected that exceeds the value established for a “Class A” device
Ground-Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI)
The conductors and equipment for delivering electric energy from the serving utility to the wiring system of the premises served
Service
Underground electric utility conductors from the electric utility supply to the service point
Service Lateral
An enclosure for either surface mounting or flush mounting provided with a frame in which a door can be hung
Cabinet
A power-supply system connected to ground without inserting any resistor impedance device between the system and ground
Grounded System
The greatest effective root-mean-square (RMS) difference of voltage between any two conductors of the circuit
Voltage (of a circuit)
A channel or channels, with their fittings, that support and route communications wires and cables, optical fiber cables, data cables, Class 2 and Class 3, and Type PLTC cables, and power-limited fire alarm cables in plenum, riser, and general-purpose applications
Cable Routing Assembly
Constructed or protected so that exposure to the weather won’t interfere with successful operation
Weatherproof
A factory assembly of one or more optical fibers containing no electrically conducive materials
Nonconductive Optical Fiber Cable
A cable containing optical fibers and current-carrying electrical conductors
Composite Optical Fiber Cable
A switch constructed to be installed in a device box or a box cover
Switch, General-Use Snap
Equipment that utilizes electricity for electronic, electromechanical, chemical, heating, lighting, or similar purposes
Utilization Equipment
Capable of being accidentally touched or approached to an unsafe distance
Exposed (as applied to live parts)
Overhead conductors between the service point and the first point of connection to the service-entrance conductors at the building
Service Conductors, Overhead
The system or circuit conductor that’s intentionally grounded
Grounded Conductor
Operation at loads, and for intervals of time, which may both be subject to wide variation
Duty, Varying
A component of an electrical installation, other than a conductor, intended to carry or control electric energy as its principal function
Device
A load where the maximum current is expected to exist for 3 hours or more continuously, such as store or parking lot lighting
Continuous Load
Supplying an enclosure with a protective gas at a sufficient positive pressure to reduce the concentration of any flammable gas or vapor
Purged and Pressurized (Class I)
A structure that stands alone or is separated from adjoining structures by fire walls
Building
Dust particles that are 500 microns or smaller and present a fire or explosion hazard when dispersed and ignited in air.
Combustible Dust
The conductors between the terminals of service equipment and service drop or overhead service conductors
Service-Entrance Conductors, Overhead System
Not readily accessible to persons unless special means for access are used
Isolated
An unintentional electrical connection between an ungrounded conductor and the metal parts of enclosures, raceways, or equipment
Ground Fault
An interconnection of one or more storage batteries and their chargers. It can also include converters, inverters, and other associated equipment
Battery System
Equipment or materials included in a list published by a testing laboratory acceptable to the AHJ. The listing organization must periodically inspect the production of listed equipment or material to ensure the equipment or material meets appropriate designated standards and is suitable for a specified purpose.
Listed
An enclosed channel designed for the installation of conductors, cables, or busbars
Raceway
The common point of a 4-wire, three-phase, wye-connected system; the midpoint of a 3-wire, single-phase system; or the midpoint of the single-phase portion of a three-phase, delta-connected system
Neutral Point
Electrical equipment, other than industrial equipment, built in standardized sizes
Appliance
The conductors between the final over-current protection device and the receptacle outlets, lighting outlets, or other outlets as defined in this article
Branch Circuit
An inverter is used in parallel with an electric utility to supply common loads
Interactive Inverter
An area with a sink and permanent provisions for food preparation and cooking
Kitchen
The prospective symmetrical fault current at a nominal voltage to which electrical equipment can be connected without sustaining damage exceeding defined acceptance criteria
Short-Circuit Current Rating
The conductors between the terminals of service equipment and underground service conductors
Service-Entrance Conductors, Underground System
On or attached to the surface of a building, or behind panels designed to allow access
Exposed (as applied to wiring methods)
Visible and not more than 50 feet away from the equipment
In Sight From (Within Sight)
An organization or part of an organization that performs field evaluations of electrical or other equipment
Field Evaluation Body (FEB)
An assembly of parts for the field conversion of utilization equipment
Retrofit Kit
A wiring device at the end of a flexible cord intended to be inserted into a receptacle in order to make an electrical connection
Attachment Plug (Plug Cap), (Plug)
The conductive path(s) that provides a ground-fault current path and connects metal parts of equipment to the system neutral conductor, to the grounding electrode conductor, or both
Grounding Conductor, Equipment (EGC)
A load where the current waveform doesn’t follow the applied sinusoidal voltage waveform
Nonlinear Load
The conductor connected to the neutral point of a system that’s intended to carry current under normal conditions
Neutral Conductor
Not permanently closed in by the building structure or finish and capable of being removed or exposed without damaging the building structure or finish
Accessible (as it applies to wiring methods)
A surface, flush, or freestanding raceway designed to hold conductors and receptacles
Multioutlet Assembly
An enclosure constructed or protected so that exposure to a beating rain won’t result in the entrance of water under specified test conditions
Raintight
A general term including fittings, devices, appliances, luminaires, machinery, and the like as part of, or in connection with, an electrical installation.
Equipment
A space that provides independent living facilities, with space for eating, living, and sleeping, as well as permanent facilities for cooking and sanitiation
Dwelling Unit
Adjustable-speed drives are often referred to as what?
Variable-speed drives or variable-frequency drives (VFD’s)
An outlet for the connection of a lampholder or luminaire
Lighting Outlet
Electrical equipment immersed in a protective liquid
Oil Immersion
Current, in amperes, greater than the rated current of the equipment or conductors resulting from an overload, short circuit, or ground fault
Overcurrent
An electrical source, other than a service, having no direct connection(s) to circuit conductors of any other electrical source other than those established by grounding and bonding connections
Separately Derived System
Recognized as suitable for a specific purpose, function, or environment by listing, labeling, or other means approved by the authority having jurisdiction
Identified Equipment
A building that consists solely of one dwelling unit
Dwelling, One-Family
Connected to ground or to a conductive body that extends the ground connection
Grounded
A device that establishes a conductive connection between conductors or between a conductor and a terminal by the means of mechanical pressure
Connector, Pressure (Solderless)
A building that consists solely of two dwelling units
Dwelling, Two-Family
The highest short-circuit current at rated voltage the device is identified to interrupt under standard test conditions
Interrupting Rating
The ratio of the maximum demand to the total connected load
Demand Factor
A system intended to provide protection of equipment from damaging ground-fault currents by opening all ungrounded conductors of the faulted circuit. This protection is provided at current levels less than those required to protect conductors from damage through the operation of a supply circuit overcurrent device
Ground-Fault Protection of Equipment
An installation underground, in concrete slabs in direct contact with the earth, as well as locations subject to saturation with water, and unprotected locations exposed to weather
Location, Wet
Rendered inaccessible by the structure or finish of the building.
Concealed
A contact device installed at an outlet for the connection of an attachment plug, or for the direct connection of equipment designed to mate with the contact device (SQL receptacle)
Receptacle
Underground conductors between the service point and the first point of connection to the service-entrance conductors in a terminal box, meter, or other enclosure ,inside tor outside the building wall
Service Conductors, Underground
A factory assembly or field assembly of optical fibers having an overall covering
Optical Fiber Cable
A device that opens all of the ungrounded circuit conductors from their power source. This includes devices such as switches, attachment plugs and receptacles, and circuit breakers
Disconnecting Means
The operation of equipment above its current rating, or current in excess of conductor ampacity.
Overload
An enclosure for underground system use sized to allow personnel to reach into it for the purpose of installing or maintaining equipment or wiring. It may have an open or closed bottom.
Handhole Enclosure
The connection between the neutral conductor and the supply-side bonding jumper or equipment grounding conductor, or both, at a separately derived system transformer or separately derived system generator
Bonding Jumper, System
A device intended to de-energize the circuit when it detects the current waveform characteristic unique to an arcing fault
Arc-Fault Circuit Interrupter (AFCI)
An arrangement of incandescent lamps, electric-discharge lighting, or other electrically powered light sources to outline or call attention to certain features such as the shape of a building or the decoration of a window
Outline Lighting
A value assigned for conveniently designating voltage classes, such as 120/240V, 120/208V, or 277/480V
Voltage, Nominal
Equipment used for creation and manipulation of data, voice, and video, but not communications equipment
Information Technology Equipment
A conductor that ensures electrical conductivity between metal parts of the electrical installation
Bonding Conductor or Jumper
A fixed, stationary, or portable self-contained, electrically operated and/or electrically illuminated piece of equipment with words or symbols designed to convey information or attract attention
Electric Sign
The conductors from the service point to the service disconnect
Service Conductors
Supplying an enclosure with a protective gas with or without continuous flow at sufficient pressure to prevent the entrance of a flammable gas or vapor, a combustivbe dust, or an ignitible fiber
Purged and Pressurized (Class I or II)
A building or portion of a building where self-propelled vehicles can be kept
Garage
Equipment enclosed in a manner that excludes dust and doesn’t permit arcs, sparks, or heat inside the enclosure to ignite accumulations or suspensions of a specified dust on, or in, the vicinity of the enclosure
Dust-Ignitionproof
A nonmetallic raceway placed within a larger raceway
Innerduct
A non-habitable room or space intended primarily for the storage of garments and apparel
Clothes Closet
A branch circuit that only supplies one load
Branch Circuit, Invidual
A system comprised of multiple electric power sources, such as photovoltaic, wind, micro-hydro generators, engine-driven generators, and others, but not the electric utility power system
Hybrid System
The circuit of a control apparatus or system that carries the electric signals directing the performance of the controller but doesn’t carry the main power current
Control Circuit
The maximum current, in amperes, a conductor can carry continuously, under the conditions of use without exceeding its temperature rating
Ampacity
Systems of illumination utilizing fluorescent lamps, high-intensity discharge (HID) lamps, or neon tubing.
Electric-Discharge Lighting
The interior and exterior wiring, including power lightning, control, and signal circuits, and all associated hardware, fittings, and wiring devices. This includes both permanently and temporarily installed wiring from the service point to the outlets, or where there’s no service point, wiring from and including the electric power source, such as a generator, transformer, or PV system to the outlets
Premises Wiring
A building that contains three or more dwelling units
Dwelling, Multifamily
Functioning without the necessity of human intervention
Automatic
A piece of equipment that provides a way to adjust the speed of an electric motor
Adjustable Speed Drive
Capable of being reached quickly for operation, renewal or inspections without requiring those to whom ready access is requisite to take actions such as the use tools (other than keys), to climb over or under, remove obstacles, or resort to portable ladders, and so forth
Accessible, Readily
A system that supplies power independently of an electrical production and distribution network
Stand-Alone System
A circuit that energizes signaling equipment
Signaling Circuit
An area that includes a basin as well as one or more of the following: a toilet, urinal, tub, shower, bidet, or similar plumbing fixture
Bathroom
The combination of all components and subsystems that convert solar energy into electric energy for utilization loads
Photovoltaic (PV) System
This is a manufactured assembly designed to support and energize luminaires that can be readily repositioned on the track, and whose length may be altered by the addition or subtraction of sections of track
Lighting Track
A device intended to provide limited overcurrent protection for specific applications and utilization equipment, such as luminaires and appliances. This limited overcurrent protection is in addition to the required overcurrent protection provided in the branch circuit by the branch circuit overcurrent protection device
Overcurrent Protection Device, Supplementary
Equipment capable of withstanding an explosion that may occur within it, and of preventing the ignition of gas or vapor surrounding the enclosure by sparks, flashes, or an explosion within, and that operates at such an external temperature that surrounding flammable atmosphere won’t be ignited by its heat.
Explosionproof Equipment
A combination of an adjustable speed drive, its associated motor(s), and any other equipment associated with the two
Adjustable Speed Drive System
Equipment or materials that have a label, symbol, or other identifying mark in the form of a sticker, decal, printed label, or with the identifying mark molded or stamped into the product by a testing laboratory acceptable to the AHJ.
Labeled
Enclosures constructed so that dust won’t enter under specific test conditions
Dusttight
A protective device intended to limit transient voltage by diverting or limiting surge current and preventing the continued flow of current while remaining capable of repeating these function
Surge Protection Device (SPD)
A device that controls the electric power delivered to electrical equipment in some predetermined manner
Controller
A person who has the skill and knowledge related to the construction and operation of electrical equipment and its installation. This person must have received safety training to recognize and avoid the hazards involved with electrical systems
Qualified Person
An intentionally constructed low-impedance conductive path designed to carry fault current from the point of a ground fault to the source for the purpose of opening the circuit overcurrent protective device
Effective Ground-Fault Current Path
The conductors between the service equipment, a separately derived system, or other power supply and the final branch-circuit overcurrent protection device
Feeder
