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The US-based National Electrical Manufacturers Association creates standards that are developed by the manufacturers through a voluntary consensus to provide descriptions of how things should be. NEMA ICS 16-2001 (Motion/Position Control Motors, Controls, and Feedback Devices) describes stepper motors and is the NEMA standard usually referred to when talking about the NEMA standard in the context of RepRap, stepper motors and 3D printers.In section 4.3.1.1 of that standard, NEMA chose to label stepper motors (e.g. "NEMA 17") with the size of their faceplate in tenth of inches. So a "NEMA 17" has a 1.7 inch by 1.7 inch faceplate. By standardizing the stepper motors (the faceplates, flanges and screw holes), you know ahead of time that one NEMA 17 motor will fit into the mounts of another NEMA 17 without having to redesign anything. This makes swapping components easier.The first working RepRap used NEMA 23 Stepper motors for positioning and a different kind of motor for the extruder. As of 2013, most RepRap designs call for NEMA 17 Stepper motors or NEMA 14 Stepper motors for both positioning and extruding.
Hi, I came across some projects that use NEMA 17 or NEMA 23 motors. What does NEMA mean? Is it a some kind of standard to distinguish among motors of different sizes?