accumulator

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Variant: secondary cell; storage battery

A type of voltaic cell or battery that can be recharged by passing a current through it from an external d.c. supply. The charging current, which is passed in the opposite direction to that in which the cell supplies current, reverses the chemical reactions in the cell. The common types are the lead-acid accumulator and the nickel-iron and nickel-cadmium accumulators. See also sodium-sulphur cell.

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A hardware register used to hold the results or partial results of arithmetic and logical operations.

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1. Archaic term for a register. On-line use of it as a synonym for register is a fairly reliable indication that the user has been around for quite a while and/or that the architecture under discussion is quite old. The term in full is almost never used of microprocessor registers, for example, though symbolic names for arithmetic registers beginning in ‘A’ derive from historical use of the term accumulator (and not, actually, from ‘arithmetic’). Confusingly, though, an ‘A’ register name prefix may also stand for address, as for example on the Motorola 680x0 family.

2. A register being used for arithmetic or logic (as opposed to addressing or a loop index), especially one being used to accumulate a sum or count of many items. This use is in context of a particular routine or stretch of code. “The FOOBAZ routine uses A3 as an accumulator.”

3. One's in-basket (esp. among old-timers who might use sense 1). “You want this reviewed? Sure, just put it in the accumulator.” (See stack.)

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1. In a refrigeration system, a storage chamber for low-side liquid refrigerant; also called a surge drum or surge header.
2. In a refrigerant circuit, a vessel whose volume is used to reduce pulsation.

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i. A reservoir that supplies fluid under pressure, when desired. In a typical hydraulic system, it consists of a steel cylinder closed at one end and connected to the pressure line at the other, as well as a floating piston. The piston separates hydraulic fluid from compressed nitrogen/air. Hydraulic fluid under pressure can be stored in the system. The accumulator reduces the pump’s peak demands, dampens the pressure ripple, and acts as a reserve of fluid and an emergency power source.



Accumulators.
ii. A device sometimes incorporated into the fuel system of a gas turbine engine to store and release fuel under pressure as an aid in starting. Also called a collector.



iii. A device for storing fuel in a fuel tank for inverted flying.



iv. In pneumatic and oxygen systems, the reservoir where compressed air or oxygen is stored.
v. An electrical storage battery that can be recharged.

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For a list of words related to accumulator, see:

• Electricity and Electronics - accumulator: storage cell or battery of storage cells
• Hardware and Peripherals - accumulator: special purpose register of CPU that stores numeric data for arithmetic or logical operations

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - akkumulator, bilbatteri

Nederlands (Dutch)
oplaadbare elektrische cel, soort gok (winst steeds weer inzetten), accumulator (computer), verzamelaar

Français (French)
n. - (Élec) accumulateur, accus

Deutsch (German)
n. - Akkumulator, Kraftspeicher

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (ηλεκτρ.) (ηλεκτρικός) συσσωρευτής, μπαταρία, αποταμιευτής, αποθησαυριστής

Italiano (Italian)
accumulatore, totalizzatore

Português (Portuguese)
n. - acumulador (m) (Eletr.)

Русский (Russian)
аккумулятор, ставка на бегах и пр.

Español (Spanish)
n. - acumulador

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - ackumulator

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
聚财者, 积聚者, 蓄电池

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 聚財者, 積聚者, 蓄電池

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 축재자, 축열기, 완충장치, 축전지

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 蓄積者, 蓄財家, 蓄電池, 累算機

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) مراكم, بطاريه مختزنه‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮מצבר, אוגר, צובר‬

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