REPORT

ELECTRICITY II

Members Fecha Entrega

Catucuamba Mirian 11 / 30 / 2014
War Kevin
Solis Andrés

Race Course Group Session number

Automotive Engineering 4to 'A'
General Objective:
Learn everything related to a conventional ignition system, and along with it, its
correct functioning of ignition

Specific Objectives:
Analyze the use and functioning of the conventional ignition system
Knowing when it is necessary and how to apply it in the vehicle
Know each of the elements that make up the conventional ignition system

Introduction

This system is the simplest of the coil ignition systems, in it, all requirements are met.
the functions what himself the they ask a these devices.
The ignition system ignites the air-fuel mixture which is compressed inside.
of the cylinder. The ignition system is required to generate enough spark to ignite the
air-fuel mixture and to generate these sparks with the corresponding distribution to the
operating condition of the engine, also that it is extremely durable.

Development of the topic:

CONVENTIONAL IGNITION SYSTEM

 REPORT

The Conventional Ignition System offers good performance for normal demands.
capable of generating up to 20,000 sparks per minute, that is, it can meet the demands of a
4-cylinder engine up to 10,000 RPM. For 6 and 8-cylinder engines, it would cause more problems.
The technical execution of the circuit breaker, subjected to heavy loads by the electric current that passes through
the primary of the coil constitutes a compromise between the switching behavior at low
rotation speed and the bounce of the contacts at high speed. Derivations due to the
water condensation, dirt, combustion residues, etc. decrease the available tension in
very considerable measure.

This system is the simplest of the coil ignition systems, in it, all requirements are met.
the functions that are requested from these devices. It is composed of the following elements
that some of them will be repeated in the next more advanced ignition systems
what we will study later.

PARTS OF THE CONVENTIONAL IGNITION SYSTEM

Ignition coil: Also called a transformer, its function is to accumulate energy.

ignition electrical that is then transmitted in the form of a high voltage pulse to
through the distributor to the spark plugs.
Previous resistance: It is used in some ignition systems (not always). It is placed in
short circuit at the moment of starting to increase the starting voltage.
Ruptor (also called points): closes and opens the primary circuit of the coil.
on, which accumulates electrical energy with the circuit breaker contacts closed that
It transforms into high voltage pulse every time the contacts are opened.
Capacitor: Provides an exact interruption of the primary current of the coil and
it also minimizes the spark jump between the contacts of the breaker that would render it unusable in
little time.
Ignition distributor: Distributes the high voltage of ignition to the spark plugs in a
default order.
Centrifugal advance regulator: Automatically adjusts the ignition timing in
function of engine revolutions.
Vacuum advance controller: Automatically regulates the ignition timing in
engine load function.
Spark plugs: It contains the electrodes where the spark jumps when it receives high voltage.
In addition, the spark plug serves to seal the combustion chamber from the outside.
Spark Plug Wires: They are high voltage cables capable of withstanding high voltages generated.
by the distributor
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OPERATION OF THE CONVENTIONAL IGNITION SYSTEM

Once we turn the ignition key to the contact position, the primary circuit is powered.
Due to the battery voltage, the primary circuit is formed by the primary winding of the coil.
of ignition and the contacts of the breaker that close the circuit to ground. With the contacts of the breaker
closed the electric current flows to ground through the primary winding of the coil.
this form creates a magnetic field in the coil where energy accumulates
turned on. When the contacts of the breaker open, the charging current is diverted to the
capacitor that is connected in parallel with the contacts of the breaker. The capacitor is
load absorbing a part of the electric current until the contacts of the breaker are
sufficiently separated to prevent an electric arc that would cause loss of part of the
tension that was accumulating in the primary winding of the coil. It is thanks to this mode of
to function, perfected by the assembly of the capacitor, that the voltage generated in the circuit
The primary of an ignition system can momentarily reach some hundreds of
volts.
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Due to the fact that the relationship between the number of turns of the primary and secondary winding is
Approximately 100/1 results in voltages between the electrodes of the spark plugs between 10 and 15000.
Volts.
Once we have the high voltage in the secondary of the coil, it is sent to the distributor to
through the high voltage cable that connects the coil and the distributor. Once we have the high
The tension in the distributor passes to the rotor that spins inside it and distributes the high tension to each.
one of the spark plugs.
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OSCILOGRAM GENERATED BY THE IGNITION SYSTEM

In the curve corresponding to the primary current, the oscillations and changes can be seen.
sense of this at the moment of opening the contacts of the breaker. The same oscillations occur
they are produced in the primary voltage. In the curve corresponding to the secondary voltage, they can
observe the maximum value reached by the ignition voltage and its sudden rise
(tension needle), to also drop sharply to the ignition value, in a very short time
time space. The ignition tension is wavy, due to flow variations in the
primary. The duration of the spark implies a break in the time space in which the contacts of
ruptures remain open.

DISTRIBUTOR

It is the most complex element and performs the most functions within an ignition system.
the distributor distributes the high tension ignition impulse among the different spark plugs, following
a order determined (order of on) y in the instant I need.
Functions:

Open and close the circuit that feeds the primary winding through the switch.
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coil.
Distribute the high voltage generated in the secondary winding of the coil to each
one of the spark plugs through the rotor and the distributor cap.
Advance or delay the ignition timing based on the number of revolutions and the load
of the engine, this is achieved with the centrifugal advance system and the advance system by
empty respectively.
The rotational movement of the distributor shaft is transmitted through the shaft of
motor leads. The distributor has a coupling to the camshaft that prevents in the
mayor of the cases the erroneous positioning.
The distributor has an insulating material cover on its top where they are
A central terminal and as many lateral terminals as there are cylinders in the engine.
On the axis that moves the breaker cam, the rotor or distributor finger is mounted, made of
insulating material similar to that of the cover. A sheet is placed on the top of the rotor.
metallic surface against which the charcoal pushed by a spring is applied, both housed in
the inner face of the central terminal of the cover. The distance between the edge of the rotor plate
The lateral contacts are from 0.25 to 0.50 mm. Both the rotor and the distributor cap,
only one mounting position is allowed, so that there is always a perfect
synchronism between the position in So spin del rotor y the lever.
Except for the ignition breaker, all the parts of the distributor are
virtually maintenance-free.

Both the inner and outer surface of the distributor cap is impregnated with a varnish.
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special that condenses moisture preventing electrical current leakage as well as

repel dust to prevent dirt adhesion that can also cause deviations of
current.

The electrical interconnection between the distributor cap and the coil, as well as the output for the
different spark plugs are made through special high-voltage cables, generally formed
by a rayon thread impregnated with charcoal, surrounded by a plastic insulator of a
considerable thickness. The resistance of these cables is adequate to suppress the parasites that
They affect the radio equipment installed in vehicles.
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CONVENTIONAL IGNITION WITH ELECTRONIC ASSISTANCE

With the evolution of electronics and its components, this problem was solved. The utilization
as a switch, allows for the control of much higher electric currents than those
admitted by the breaker, coils for electric currents can be used in its winding
Primary of more than 10 A. A power transistor can have its base current controlled.
through the breaker so that the main current flowing to the coil does not pass through the
contacts of the circuit breaker if by the transistor (T) as seen in the diagram below. The current
Electrical current from the battery enters the control unit or ignition module, where it passes through
through the transistor whose base is negatively polarized when the contacts (R) are closed
guided by the lever. In this case, the distributor is the same as the one used in the ignition.
conventional, but the current flowing through the breaker contacts is now insignificant. With
the sum of the Zener diode (DZ) and the set of resistors (R1, R2, and R3) can be controlled
perfectly the base current and proceed to the protection of the transistor (T). When the
the contacts of the breaker (R) open, guided by the movement of the cam, the negative polarization of
the base of the transistor disappears and then the transistor gets blocked cutting off the current
electricity that passes through the coil. The current interruption in the primary winding of the coil is
much faster than in conventional ignition so that induction occurs in
much higher conditions of effectiveness.
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ELEMENT OF A CONVENTIONAL IGNITION SYSTEM WITH ELECTRONIC ASSISTANCE

Switchboard
Higher power coil
Additional resistances

Operation
The voltage supply to the primary of the coil is carried out through a pair of resistors.
additional ones usually connected in series. When starting, the resistor is bridged
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left through terminal No. 4, to the starter motor. This allows for greater availability.
power supply through the additional resistance in the ignition coil. This
compensates for the disadvantage arising from the startup process and the voltage drop in the battery
(due to the high electric current consumption required by the starter motor). The resistors
Previous ones are used to limit the primary current in low resistance ignition coils and
quick charging. This prevents, especially at low revolutions, an overload on the coil.
ignition is turned on and protects the ignition switch contact. The additional resistors and a
the quick charge ignition coil allows for the optimization of ignition throughout the
engine revolution margin.

The transistor and the components surrounding it (diodes, resistors, etc.) are enclosed in a box.
made of aluminum equipped with cooling fins, thus dissipating the heat to which they are very sensitive
the transistors. For this reason, the position of this box should be as far from the motor as possible
on the assembly on the vehicle.

Electronic ignition systems have significant advantages compared to

to conventional lights:
The circuit breakers currently used, despite the quality of their materials (the contacts
they are made of tungsten), they only support currents of up to 5 A, otherwise their life will be shortened.
quickly useful life, while transistors are capable of working with currents
of up to 15 A, without operational issues throughout their useful life, so the periods
the maintenance of these ignition systems is considerably extended.
Due to the fact that transistors can operate with high currents, coils are used.
ignition with primary winding of few turns (low impedance coils). With
the reduction of the number of turns and the resulting decrease in self-induction is
achieve the maximum value of the primary current in a significantly short time
smaller, when the contacts of the breaker close, due to the opposition presented by the coil
(self-induction) to establish the primary current is significantly lower. The formation
the magnetic field is much faster, storing the maximum energy in a short
time span, which is not possible to obtain in elevated regimes in the systems of
conventional ignitions, due to the short time that the contacts of the breaker remain
closed.
In the ignition with electronic assistance, the breaker (points) is only used for
switch the base current of the transistor (300 to 500 mA), causing the classic "sparkling"
What occurs in conventional ignitions does not happen here and is not needed.
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use the capacitor, whose function of rapid cut-off of the primary current is no longer
necessary, because this function is performed by the transistor.

Conclusions:

The conventional ignition, being the simplest of the ignition systems of a

The car had several failures since most of its components were mechanical.
The conventional ignition system with electronic assistance was a great improvement because
this was about preventing energy loss in the system and leveraging it in a better way
In ignition with electronic assistance, the switch only serves to toggle the
base current of the transistor that is between 300 to 500 mA.

Bibliography:

-Arias Paz M, Automobile Manual, Dossat Publishing, Madrid 2014, Edition 55

-Martínez, H. G. (2005). Practical Manual of the Automobile (diesel and gasoline engines).
-Jesús A. Álvarez Flórez, I. C. (2005). Motores Alternativos de Combustión Interna. UPC.