power source providing electric traction in a straight line, rather than rotary, as in a conventional motor; it is useful in such applications as high-speed ground transportation. In one form designed for rail vehicles, a continuous stationary conductor is fastened to the roadbed and a double stator is suspended between the wheels in the centre of the vehicle, straddling the stationary conductor. Electric energy is generated on the vehicle or is picked up by trolley from a power line paralleling the track. This energy is fed to the double stator to produce traction in a linear direction.

Linear motors may be used to actuate belt conveyors, shuttles in textile looms, and other devices requiring a linear motion. An electromagnetic pump is a linear motor in which the solid conductor is replaced by a conducting fluid such as a liquid metal. The force on the conducting fluid produces the pumping action.