Module 1

Automotive Electrical
and Electronics System
Introduction
• In the past, electrical systems were basically stand-alone.
• For example, the ignition system was only responsible for supplying the voltage needed to
fire the spark plugs. Ignition timing was controlled by vacuum and mechanical advance
systems.
• Today, most manufactures network their electrical systems together through computers.
This means that information gathered by one system can be used by another. The result
may be that a faulty component may cause several symptoms.
• The wiper system can interact with the headlight system to turn on the headlights
whenever the wipers are turned on. The wipers can interact with the vehicle speed sensor
to provide for speed-sensitive wiper operation. The speed sensor may provide information
to the antilock brake module. The antilock brake module can then share this information
with the transmission control module, and the instrument cluster can receive vehicle
speed information to operate the speedometer.
• If the vehicle speed sensor should fail, this could result in no antilock brake operation and
a warning light turned on in the dash. But it could also result in the speedometer not
functioning, the transmission not shifting, and the wipers not operating properly.
• Automobile electrical system includes starting system, charging system, ignition system
and lighting system.
Starting System
The starting system is a combination of mechanical and electrical parts that work together
to start the engine. The starting system is designed to change the electrical energy, which is
being supplied by the battery, into mechanical energy. For this conversion to be
accomplished, a starter or cranking motor is used. The basic starting system includes the
following components:
Battery.
Cable and wires
Ignition switch.
Starter solenoid or relay.
Starter motor.
Starter drive and flywheel ring gear.
Starting safety switch.
Batteries
• A good supply of electric power is
necessary for modern vehicles.
• The engines require a large current to
operate the starter motor and many
other systems are electrically powered.
All modern cars use a 12 V system.
• Most vehicle batteries are of
conventional design, using lead plates
in a dilute sulphuric acid electrolyte.
This feature leads to the common
description of ‘lead-acid’ batteries. The
output from a lead-acid battery is
direct current.
• A vehicle 12 V battery is made up from six cells.
• Each lead-acid cell has a nominal voltage of 2.1 V, which gives a value of 12.6 V for a fully
charged battery under no-load conditions.
• The six cells are connected in series, internally in the battery, with lead bars. The cells are
formed in the battery case and are separate from each other.
• Each cell has a set of enclosed positive and negative plates kept apart by porous
separators.
• The separators prevent contact of the plates, which would give an internal short-circuit
and affect the chemical reaction in the battery cell.
• The active materials are lead peroxide for the positive plate and spongy lead for the
negative plate.
• When a battery is in a charged state the positive plates of lead peroxide () are reddish
brown in color, and the negative plates of spongy lead () are grey in color. When the
battery is discharging, a chemical reaction with the electrolyte changes both plates to
lead sulphate ( ).
• Sulphuric acid consists of hydrogen, sulphur and
oxygen. These chemicals separate during the charge
and discharge process and attach to the cell plate
active material or return to the electrolyte.
• During discharge, the sulphate () combines with the
lead to form lead sulphate (). The oxygen in the
positive plate is released to the electrolyte and
combines with the hydrogen that is left, to form
water ().
• During charging, the reverse process occurs with the
sulphate (), leaving the cell plates to reform with the
hydrogen in the electrolyte to produce sulphuric acid
(). Oxygen in the electrolyte is released to reform with
the positive cell plate material as lead peroxide ().
Ignition Switch
• The ignition switch is the power distribution point for most of the vehicle’s primary electrical
systems. The ignition switch is spring loaded in the start position. This momentary contact
automatically moves the contacts to the RUN position when the driver releases the key.
• The neutral safety switch is used on vehicles that are equipped with automatic
transmissions. It opens the starter control circuit when the transmission shift selector is in
any position except PARK or NEUTRAL.
• The normally open neutral safety switch is connected in series into the starting system control
circuit and is usually operated by the shift lever. When in the PARK or NEUTRAL position, the
switch is closed, allowing current to flow to the starter circuit. If the transmission is in a gear
position, the switch is opened and current cannot flow to the starter circuit.
Starting system
• The engine starting system consists of a
heavy-duty motor, with a drive pinion
that engages with a gear on the engine
flywheel, and an electrical control circuit
to operate the motor.
• The starter motor power output must be
able to start a cold engine at sufficient
speed.
• A 2 litre petrol engine will have a starter
motor of about 1 kW, which will spin the
engine at about 150 rpm. A similarly sized
diesel engine will require double the power
and possibly twice the cranking speed to
start.
• The main components of the starter motor are the magnetic fields, armature, drive
pinion and solenoid. The circuit consists of a battery supply, earth cables and the
starter switch.
• The starter motor is a direct current electromagnetic unit that usually has two pairs of
magnetic pole shoes arranged at opposite positions inside the motor casing. The
magnetic pole shoes can be strong permanent magnets or electromagnets using a
winding.
• A starter motor requires strong magnetic force to produce the speed and torque to
crank an engine at sufficient speed for starting. For this, the armature is made with soft
iron cores to make strong electromagnets, which can change polarity with the direction
of current flow in the loop conductors.
• The armature, which consists of a series of wire conductor loops wound around a
laminated iron core, is mounted on the motor spindle.
• A commutator consists of a set of contact bars fixed to the
spindle of the motor and connected to the armature
windings. As the spindle rotates, the commutator reverses
the flow of current in a winding.
• For a single armature winding, when the shaft has made
one-half complete turn, the winding is now connected so
that current flows through it in the opposite of the initial
direction.
• The armature current causes the fixed magnetic field to
exert a rotational force, or a torque, on the winding to
make it turn.
• The commutator periodically reverses the direction of
current flow through the winding so that current flow in
the circuit external to the machine continues in only one
direction.
• The magnetic strength of the field magnetic poles is usually determined by using an
electrical winding around the pole shoe. The wire coil is wound around one pole shoe and
then the other in the opposite direction, so that the opposing field poles are produced
opposite to each other in the casing.
• When an electrical current is passed through a conductor a magnetic field is formed
around that conductor. The magnetic field direction depends on the direction of the
current flow.
• The drive from the motor is taken from a pinion gear on the spindle to the large diameter
starter ring gear on the engine. The starter ring gear is fitted to the outside of the flywheel
on manual transmission vehicles, or the torque converter drive plate on automatic
transmission vehicles.
• The pinion meshes with the ring gear only during starting and is made to slide axially on or
with the spindle to engage the drive when operated.
Ignition system
• The purpose of the ignition system is to supply
a spark inside the cylinder, near the end of the
compression stroke, to ignite the compressed
charge of air/fuel vapor.
• For a spark to jump across an air gap of 1.0
mm under normal atmospheric conditions (1
bar) a voltage of 4–5 kV is required.
• For a spark to jump across a similar gap in an
engine cylinder, having a compression ratio of
8:1, approximately 10 kV is required. For
higher compression ratios and weaker
mixtures, a voltage up to 20 kV may be
necessary.
Generation of high voltage
• If two coils (known as the primary and secondary) are wound on to the same iron core,
then any change in magnetism of one coil will induce a voltage in the other. This happens
when a current is switched on and off to the primary coil.
• If the number of turns of wire on the secondary coil is more than on the primary a higher
voltage can be produced. This is called transformer action and is the principle of the
ignition coil.
The value of this ‘mutually induced’ voltage depends on:
the primary current
the turns ratio between primary and secondary coils
the speed at which the magnetism changes.
Electronic ignition
Constant dwell
• The term ‘dwell’ when applied to ignition is a measure of the time during which the
ignition coil is charging, in other words when primary coil current is flowing.
• Although this was a very good system in its time, constant dwell still meant that at very
high engine speeds the actual time available to charge the coil would only produce a
lower power spark.
• Note that as engine speed increases, the actual time is reduced. All systems nowadays are
known as constant energy, ensuring high-performance ignition even at high engine speed.
Constant energy
• For a constant energy electronic ignition system to
operate, the dwell must increase with engine speed.
• This will only be of benefit if the ignition coil can be
charged up to its full capacity in a very short time
(the time available for maximum dwell at the
highest expected engine speed). To this end,
constant energy coils are very low resistance, so a
high current will flow quickly.
• Constant energy means that within limits, the
energy available to the spark plug remains constant
under all operating conditions. This was achieved by
using a pulse generator in the distributor to inform
an ignition module about the engine position and
speed so that the module could determine the
switch-on (start of dwell) and switch-off points (end
of dwell and ignition timing spark).
Distributor ignition system
• A high-tension current is
produced by the ignition
coil, when the low-tension
circuit from the battery
through the coil to the
earth connection (vehicle
frame) is interrupted.

A coil-ignition system of the Kettering type

Production of a magnetic field
using a conductor

A coil-ignition system of the Kettering type

Internals of a coil indicate the
primary/secondary and core
Action of a capacitor
Distributorless ignition system (DIS)
• DIS uses a special type of ignition coil, which
outputs to the spark plugs without the need
for a high-tension distributor.
• The DIS consists of three main components:
the ECU, a crankshaft position sensor and
the DIS coil.
• The basic principle is that of the ‘lost spark’.
The distribution of the spark is achieved by
using two double-ended coils, which are
fired alternately by the ECU. The timing is
determined from a crankshaft speed and
position sensor as well as a load (MAP)
sensor and other corrections such as engine
temperature.
• When one of the coils is fired, a spark is delivered to two engine cylinders, either 1 and 4
or 2 and 3. The spark delivered to the cylinder on the compression stroke will ignite the
mixture as normal. The spark produced in the other cylinder will have no effect, as this
cylinder will be just completing its exhaust stroke.

• Because of the low

compression, and the exhaust
gas in the lost spark cylinder,
the voltage used for the spark
to jump the gap is only about 3
kV. The spark produced in the
compression cylinder is
therefore not affected.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FpGGpgSEU94
Coil on plug (COP) direct ignition system
• Direct ignition is a further improvement
on distributor less ignition.
• This system utilizes an inductive coil for
each engine cylinder. These coils are
mounted directly on the spark plugs.
The use of an individual coil for each
plug ensures that the charge time is
very fast.
• This ensures that a very high-voltage,
high energy spark is produced. This
voltage, which can be in excess of 40 kV,
provides efficient initiation of the
combustion process under cold starting
conditions and with weak mixtures.
• In this system, a camshaft sensor provides information as to which cylinder is on the
compression stroke.
• The voltage across the plugs allows measurement of the current for each spark and will
indicate which cylinder is on its combustion stroke. This works because a burning mixture has
a lower resistance. The cylinder with the highest current at this point will be the cylinder on
the combustion stroke.
Capacitor Discharge Ignition System (CDI)
• A CDI is an electronic ignition device that
stores an electrical charge and then discharges
it through an ignition coil in order to produce a
powerful spark from the spark plugs in a petrol
engine.
• Here the ignition is provided by the capacitor
charge. The capacitor simply charges and
discharges within a fraction of time making it
possible to create sparks. CDIs are commonly
found on motorbikes and scooters.
• A typical CDI module consists of a
small transformer, a charging circuit, a
triggering circuit and a main capacitor.
• First, the system voltage is raised up to 250 to 600 volts by a power supply inside the CDI
module. Then, the electric current flows to the charging circuit and charges the capacitor.
The rectifier inside the charging circuit prevents capacitor discharge before the moment
of ignition. When the triggering circuit receives the triggering signal, the triggering circuit
stops the operation of the charging circuit, allowing the capacitor to discharge its output
rapidly to the low inductance ignition coil.
Sensors
• Sensors provide information to the engine management system as well as to the driver.
• Sensors convert what is being measured into an electrical signal. This signal can then be
used to operate a display, such as a gauge or warning light, on the instrument panel.
Pressure Sensors
• The measurement of manifold pressure, ambient pressure, cylinder pressure, lubricating
oil pressure etc. will involve the use of transducers like variable capacitance, strain
gauge, Piezoelectric etc.
• In most cases, only an average variation in the pressure is needed. In others,
instantaneous variations within a crank angle may be needed.
a) Strain Gauge Sensors
• The strain gauge consists of a conductor which changes its dimensions along with the
member whose strain is to be measured. The change in dimension as well as the stress in
the wire leads to a change in the resistance of the wire.
• Thus, the change in the resistance of the strain gauge element can be used to determine
the strain on the element which is itself the strain on the member.
• Strain gauges can be pasted on the upper and lower
sides of the diaphragm of pressure sensors to detect
the deformation and hence the pressure.
• Diffused semiconductor strain gauges with a very
high sensitivity can be used to measure low
pressures. Here the strain gauges are diffused on the
diaphragm that is square in shape.
b) Capacitance Transducers
• The working principle of a capacitive transducer is
variable capacitance.
• As per its structure, these are having two parallel
metal pates which are maintaining the distance
between them. In between them, dielectric medium
(such as air) can be filled. So, the distance between
these two metal plates and positions of the plates
can change the capacitance.
c) Piezoelectric Sensors
• In order to measure the cylinder
pressure, fast acting piezoelectric
pickups are used.
• Piezoelectric pickups use quartz or
other crystals, which are stressed
when a pressure is applied. This
causes two opposite sides of the
crystal to get oppositely charged.
• The charge is proportional to the
applied stress/pressure. A charge
amplifier is used to convert this
charge to an equivalent voltage and
amplify it.
Temperature Sensors
• Temperature of the manifold air, coolant,
lubricant etc. can be measured by thermistors,
Resistance Temperature Detectors (RTD) and
Thermocouples.
a) Thermistors
• Thermistors are constructed out of
semiconductor materials like cobalt or nickel
oxides. Electrons break away from covalent
bonds at high temperatures and thus the
resistance falls.
• A thermistor is suitable for temperature
measurements below 300 ◦C.
• They give a large change in resistance for a
given variation in the temperature.
b) Thermocouples
• When two dissimilar metals are joined, and
the junctions are maintained at different
temperatures an emf is developed. The emf
depends on the difference in temperature
and the materials. This is called the Seebeck
effect.
• One of the junctions must be at a known
temperature for us to measure the other
temperature. One of the junctions can be at
room temperature and we can separately
measure it.
• Thermocouples can be used generally for
high temperature measurement such as
exhaust gas temperature in turbochargers.
c) Resistance Temperature Detector (RTD)
• An RTD consists of a resistance element and
insulated copper wires. The resistive element
is the temperature sensing element of the
RTD.
• It is usually platinum because as a material it
is highly stable over time, it has a wide
temperature range, it offers an almost linear
relationship between temperature and
resistance, and it has a chemical inertness.
• An RTD works by using a basic principle; as
the temperature of a metal increases, so does
the resistance to the flow of electricity.
• The resistance value can then be converted
into temperature based on the characteristics
of the element. 
Position Sensors
• Inductive sensors respond to a
changing magnetic field that induces
current in a coil of wire and produces
voltage at its output.
• An inductor develops a magnetic field
when a current flows through it;
alternatively, a current will flow
through a circuit containing an
inductor when the magnetic field
through it changes.
• This effect can be used to detect
metallic objects that interact with a
magnetic field.
• A Hall-effect sensor (or simply Hall
sensor) is a device to measure the
magnitude of a magnetic field. Its
output voltage is directly
proportional to the magnetic
field strength through it.
• In a Hall-effect sensor, a thin strip of
metal has a current applied along it.
• In the presence of a magnetic field,
the electrons in the metal strip are
deflected toward one edge,
producing a voltage gradient across
the short side of the strip
(perpendicular to the feed current).
• The linear variable differential transformer has
three solenoidal coils placed end-to-end around
a tube. The center coil is the primary, and the
two outer coils are secondaries. A cylindrical
ferromagnetic core, attached to the object
whose position is to be measured, slides along
the axis of the tube.
• An alternating current drives the primary and
causes a voltage to be induced in each secondary
proportional to the length of the core linking to
the secondary.
• As the core moves, the primary's linkage to the
two secondary coils changes and causes the
induced voltages to change. The coils are
connected so that the output voltage is the
difference (hence "differential") between the top
secondary voltage and the bottom secondary
voltage.
Air-flow Sensors
• Intake air flow measurement is very essential to determine
the amount of fuel to be injected to obtain a given air fuel
ratio. Generally hot wire or flap type sensors are used.
• A hot wire sensor directly measures the mass flow rate of
air. The hot-wire mass sensor is positioned between the air
filter and the throttle valve.
• A temperature sensor installed close to the hot wire
measures the temperature of the air near the hot wire.
• When the engine is idling, a small amount of air flows
around the hot wire, so it takes a very low electric current to
keep the wire hot. The more air flows over the wire, the
more electrical current is needed to keep it hot. The electric
current is proportional to the amount of air flow.
• Flap Type Sensor moves against
a spring. The movement is
proportional to the air mass
flow rate. The flap movement is
determined using a
potentiometer.
• The problems with this
arrangement are that the flap
fluctuates when the air mass
flow varies with the strokes of
the engine. A compensating flap
is used so that it also varies as
the flow fluctuates and this is
used to compensate for the
fluctuations in the flap
movement.
Lambda Sensor
• A lambda sensor, or
oxygen sensor ensures the right amount
of oxygen in the air for efficient and
environmentally-friendly combustion.
• The sensor element is a ceramic cylinder
plated inside and outside with
porous platinum electrodes; the whole
assembly is protected by a metal gauze.
• It operates by measuring the difference in
oxygen between the exhaust gas and the
external air and generates a voltage or
changes its resistance depending on the
difference between the two.
Knock Sensor
• The knock sensor picks up vibration and sound coming
from the engine block, turns it into an electronic signal
and sends that signal to the engine control unit (ECU).
• It is mounted on the cylinder block at a suitable
location. It has a high natural frequency and a mass
held on a piezoelectric crystal. Any vibration makes the
mass to alternatively compress and relieve the
piezoelectric crystal thus producing a voltage
variation.
• According to Science Direct, “a piezoelectric ceramic is
a smart material that converts a mechanical effect
(such as pressure, movement, or vibration) into an
electrical signal and vice versa.
Actuators
• A sensor is a device that changes a physical parameter to an electrical output. As against,
an actuator is a device that converts an electrical signal to a physical output.
The sensor is situated at the input port to take the input, whereas an actuator is placed
at the output port.
• Hydraulic actuators are designed with a hollow cylindrical tube, making it possible for a
piston to easily slide.

• When pressure is applied to just one side of the

piston, it is called “single acting”. With this, the
piston moves in just one direction and for the return
stroke, a spring is often used. Pressure can also be
applied to both sides, which is known as “double
acting”. Pressure variance between the two sides is
what causes piston motion on either side.
• Pneumatic actuators are also
commonly used. In this case, energy
formed from high-pressure compressed
air or vacuum is converted into rotary or
linear motion.
• For main engine controls, this is the
preferred choice because this actuator
responds quickly in both starting and
stopping since operation does not
depend on reserved power.
• For an electric actuator, a motor is used
as power to convert electrical energy
into mechanical torque. It is this energy
that actuates equipment. Of all the
different types, an electrical actuator is
the most available and cost-efficient due
to not using oil.
Solenoid
• A solenoid is a long piece of wire which is
wound in the shape of a coil. When the
electric current passes through the coil it
creates a relatively uniform magnetic field
inside the coil.
• The solenoid can create a magnetic field
from electric current and this magnetic
field can be used to generate a linear
motion with the help of a metal core. This
simple device can be used as an
electromagnet, as an inductor.
• The magnetic strength of the solenoid can
be increased by increasing the density of
the turns or by increasing the current flow
in the coil.
• The solenoid simply works on the principle
of “electromagnetism”. When the current
flow through the coil, magnetic field is
generated in it, if you place a metal
core inside the coil the magnetic lines of
flux is concentrated on the core which
increases the induction of the coil as
compared to the air core.
• The linear solenoid consists of a coil of
wire which is wrapped around a movable
metal core which helps us to apply pulling
or pushing force to a mechanical device.
• This type of solenoids is mostly used on
starting devices. This switching mechanism
helps in completing a circuit and allows
the current to flow thorough a mechanism.
Stepper Motor
• A stepper motor rotates by performing
steps, that is, by moving by a fixed
number of degrees. This feature gives
the exact angular position of the shaft
by simply counting how may steps have
been performed, with no need for a
sensor.
• It has a stationary part (the stator) and
a moving part (the rotor). On the stator,
there are teeth on which coils are wired,
while the rotor is a permanent magnet.
• The stator is the part of the motor
responsible for creating the magnetic
field with which the rotor is going to
align.
• The main characteristics of the stator circuit include its number of phases and pole pairs,
as well as the wire configuration. The number of phases is the number of independent
coils, while the number of pole pairs indicates how main pairs of teeth are occupied by
each phase.
• The rotor is a permanent magnet that aligns with the magnetic field generated by the
stator circuit. This solution guarantees a good torque and a detent torque. This means the
motor will resist to a change of position regardless of whether a coil is energized.
Two-Phase, Single-Pole Pair Stator (Left) and Two-Phase, Dipole Pair Stator (Right)
• By energizing one or more of the stator phases, a magnetic field is generated by
the current flowing in the coil and the rotor aligns with this field. By supplying
different phases in sequence, the rotor can be rotated by a specific amount to
reach the desired final position.

Stepper Motor Steps

References
• https://www.elprocus.com/capacitor-discharge-ignition-cdi-system-working/
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W94iksaQwUo
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FpGGpgSEU94
• Automobile Mechanical and Electrical Systems: Automotive Technology : Vehicle Maintenance
and Repair
, Tom Denton
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commutator_(electric)
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLe8H2R6vgQ
• https://www.variohm.com/news-media/technical-blog-archive/how-does-an-rtd-work-
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hall-effect_sensor
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inductive_sensor
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linear_variable_differential_transformer
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Scpi91e1JKc
• https://www.samarins.com/glossary/airflow_sensor.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxygen_sensor
• https://techdifferences.com/difference-between-sensors-and-actuators.html#:~:text=A
%20sensor%20is%20a%20device,placed%20at%20the%20output%20port.
• https://circuitdigest.com/article/what-is-solenoid-its-working-principle-and-types
• https://www.monolithicpower.com/stepper-motors-basics-types-uses
• https://www.iqsdirectory.com/articles/thermocouple/thermistors.html