Engine (such as pneumatic motors), springs (clockwork motors) and elastic bands. Historic military siege engines included large catapults, trebuchets, and (to some extent) battering rams were powered by potential energy. A pneumatic motor is a machine that converts potential energy in the form of compressed air into mechanical work. Pneumatic motors generally convert the compressed air to mechanical work though either linear or rotary motion. Linear motion can come from either a diaphragm or piston actuator, while rotary motion is supplied by either a vane type air motor or piston air motor. Pneumatic motors have found widespread success in the hand-held
Electric potential energy time-invariant electric fields. The electric potential energy of a system of point charges is defined as the work required assembling this system of charges by bringing them close together, as in the system from an infinite distance. ^\mathbf{r} q\mathbf{E}(\mathbf{r'}) \cdot \mathrm{d} \mathbf{r'}</math>, The electrostatic potential energy can also be defined from the electric potential as follows: The SI unit of electric potential energy is the joule (named after the English physicist James Prescott Joule). In the CGS system the erg is the unit of energy, being equal to 10 J. Also electronvolts may be used, 1 eV = 1.602×10 J.