Identifying electronic components is easy if you know how. There are a few different ways to identify an electronic component, and they’re all based on the part number or marking on the device.
Electronic components can be identified by:
Part numbers. This is the most common way to identify an electronic component. You’ll see a number printed on the top or bottom of the part that looks like XXX-XXX or XXXX-XXX-XXX. The first two digits are always numbers, and they represent the manufacturer (in this case XXXXXX). The third digit represents the type of product (in this case 2). The fourth and fifth digits represent features of that product (in this case 5), while the sixth digit represents manufacturing specifications (in this case 0). If there’s more than one manufacturer’s mark on a device, use its part number to determine which manufacturer it belongs to.
Markings. Sometimes there will be markings on an electronic component that tell you what it does without having to open up your device and take a look at it yourself (which can void warranties). For example, if you see “FAN” printed on a fan then it’s safe to assume that it’s a fan; if you see “LAMP” printed on a lamp then it’s safe to assume that it’s a lamp. If you see “SWITCH” printed on a switch, however, then you should probably open up your device and take a look at it yourself because it might not be a switch; instead, it could be an actuator or some other kind of component.