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Formal Definition

An item specifically designed to be used in the transfer of electrical energy to or from another conducting surface. Either the brush or the surface is continually moving during the transfer of energy. The brush is usually composed in part of some form of the element carbon. Includes: (1) a single brush either with or without an attached shunt (flexible wire lead) and/or a helical or flat type pressure spring; (2) a split brush composed of two or more pieces (wafers), which are used in place of one brush usually connected together by individual shunts to a common terminal; (3) paired brushes composed of two identical or non-identical brushes connected together by a common shunt either with or without pressure springs or connected by individual shunts to a common terminal, or with pressure springs and connected to a common bar, bracket or the like either with or without individual shunts; (4) multiple brushes composed of more than two identical or non-identical brushes without pressure springs connected by individual shunts to a common terminal, or with pressure springs and connected to a common bar, bracket or the like by individual shunts. Does not include moving contacts which make and slide past stationary contacts, but are stationary while the circuit is conducting, such as the sliding contacts on a rheostat or the stationary contact on a synchro. Excludes: contact, electrical; and contact assembly, electrical.