A.C.

TECHNOLOGY AND
CLARK SIT-DOWN RIDER
LIFT TRUCKS

Russ Davies David T. Nicolette

Product Service Manager (Virtuoso) Technical Trainer
 FUNDAMENTALS OF

ELECTRICTY AND MAGNETISM

 The subject of “The Fundamentals of Electricity and
Magnetism” is the foundation on which the study of
Electrical Equipment and Components is based.
Whether the Component is an Electrical Motor,
Transistorized Motor Controller, Alternator,
Generator, Coil (both Ignition and Control),
Transformer, or Reactor, the same Basic Principles
contained in the following materials apply equally and
as well to all Electrical Equipment and Components.

The Service Technician who wants to progress in his / her

chosen field soon recognizes the paramount importance
of a Good and Solid Knowledge of these Electrical and
Magnetic Fundamentals in order to properly
Troubleshoot and Diagnose both Internal Combustion
and Electric Lift Truck Problems and Issues.
THE COMPOSITION OF

MATTER
 Electricity is the movement of Electrons
To understand Electrons you must first understand MATTER

MATTER is anything that has MASS (weight), and takes up space.

Anything that has Mass exerts a force of Gravity.
MATTER is all (everything) around us.
Today there are 5 states of Matter:
Bose Einstein Condensate (1995 Forms very near absolute Zero).
Solid.
Liquid
Gas / Vapor
Plasma (1978 very hot gases with free Electrons).

All Matter is composed of basic building blocks called ELEMENTS.

Each Element has its own unique characteristics.
Today there are 117 Basic Elements in the Periodic Table.
Page #1
 An ATOM is the smallest particle into
which an Element can be divided and still
retain it’s unique characteristics as an
Element.

The outer most orbit of Electrons,

known as the Valence Ring, is
what we deal with in Electricity.
Elements with more than 4 Elements with less than 4
electrons in their outer orbit electrons in their outer orbit are
are considered insulators. considered good conductor’s.

Elements with exactly four

electrons in their outer orbit are
Page #2 considered Semi-Conductors.
 Isotopes are Atoms with Atoms will always try to achieve
additional Neutrons. their stable state which is the
same number of Protons and
Counting the number of Protons Electrons.
will give you the Atoms Atomic There can never be more than
Number. 8 electrons in an Atoms 1st,
Atoms with a Theoretical Drawing of a Atom. 2nd, and Outer Most (Valence
deficiency of electrons Ring) Orbits.
are called
“Positive Ions”.

Atoms with a excess of

electrons are called
“Negative Ions”.

Page #3
 SUMMARY OF THE COMPOSITION OF MATTER

All things are made up of Matter.

There are 5 States of Matter.
All Matter exerts a force of Gravity.
There are 117 known Elements of Matter.
The smallest particle of an element is an Atom.
The Atom consists of Electrons in orbits about a core containing Protons.
Each Atom contains an equal number of Protons and Electrons.
The Electrons occupy Shells or Orbits which are different distances from the core.
The number of Electrons in the outer orbit (Valence Ring) determines to a great
extent the electrical characteristics of an element.
By adding Proton to the core of an Atom we change the Element.
By adding a Neutron to the core of an Atom we make the Element heavier.
By adding or subtracting Electrons from an Atom we change the Electrical
Characteristics of the Element.
Page #4
 WHAT THE HECK IS

ELECTRICITY?
Page #5
 In an Atom the Proton is said to have a Positive Charge and the Electron is said to have a Negative
Charge, the term Charge implies a Potential Force.

In an Atom the Positive Charge of the Protons exert an Attractive Force on the
Negative Charge of the Electrons and this helps to hold the Electrons in their
orbits, along with the Gravitational Force of the Nucleus.
Electrons can be made to leave the orbits of their Atoms in some materials, but a force is needed
(Friction, Chemical, or Mechanical) to cause the Electron to leave its orbit. This can be demonstrated
by dragging your feet across a carpet, which is called Static Electricity (it is not moving).
The tremendous force between the Negative Potential of the Electron and the Positive Potential of the
Proton is so strong that if you could concentrate one pound of Electrons at the North Pole and then
concentrate the Atoms from which the Electrons were taken at the South Pole, the Attractive Force
between the two would be approximately Four Quadrillion (4,000,000,000,000,000) Tons of Force.

Similarly, if we were to place a concentration of Electrons at one end of a conductor (wire) and then
place the Atoms from which the Electrons were taken at the other end of the conductor, the attractive
Forces between the Negative and Positive Charges are called Potential Difference and it causes the
Electrons to travel through the conductor to the Atoms. This Potential Difference in turn is called
“VOLTAGE” or Electromotive Force and is measured in “Volts”.

Page #6
 The flow of Electrons through a conductor is called Current and is measured in
Amperes (Amps), which is the rate of Electron Flow per Second.

The Electric Current is One Amp (Ampere) when 6.28 Billion Billion
Electrons (6,280,000,000,000,000,000,000,000) pass a certain point in a
Conductor in One Second.

-
The Electrons DO NOT flow in one
direction only, they travel in a rather
Haphazard manner from one Atom to
another, but always toward the Atoms
that have a deficiency of Electrons. +

Electricity is always on stand-by because of this Voltage CAN exist

Page #7 without Current, BUT Current CANNOT exist without Voltage.
 All Conductors offer resistance to Current Flow.
Because of the number of Electrons in the Valence Ring some Elements offer very little
Resistance while other Elements present a large amount Resistance.
Inducing HEAT into a Conductor will INCREASE the Conductors Resistance.
The PHYSICAL SHAPE of a Conductor may also increase the amount of
Resistance in the Conductor.
BUT:
The Resistance in a Conductor is primarily the result of Two Factors:
First: The fact that the Atom Resists the removal of an Electron due to the
Attractions Force between the Positive Charge of the Proton and the
Negative Charge of the Electron, along with the Gravitational Force of
the Nucleus.
Second: The countless collisions that occur between the Electrons and Atoms as
the Electrons move through the Conductor. These collisions create
additional Resistance, and heat to build up in any conductor through
which a Current is Flowing.

Resistance is measured in Ohms. One Ohm is defined as the Resistance

that will allow One Ampere to flow when the potential is One Volt. The
Page #8 symbol used to identify Resistance (Ohms) is the Ω (omega).
 BASIC LAWS AND FORMULAS

FOR ELECTRICAL CIRCUITS

Page #9
 As stated One Ohm is the Resistance that will allow One
Ampere to flow when the Potential is One Volt. This is an
expression of Ohm’s Law.

Ohm’s Law expresses the relationship between

the three elements of Electricity:

Voltage (International Symbol E) E=IxR

Current (International Symbol I) I=E/R

Resistance (International Symbol R) R=E/I

When any two elements of an Electrical Circuit are know the third
Page #10 element of the circuit can be calculated using Ohm’s Law.
 POWER is the rate that Energy is delivered to a Circuit, or the amount
of Energy, and Heat Dissipated by the Resistance in a Circuit.
Power is measured in WATTS. One (1) Watt is a very small measurement
of power, it takes 746 Watts to equal One (1) Horsepower.

In Electricity, the Power of a Circuit is calculated by multiplying

the Volts times the Amps.

The International Symbol for Power is “P”

Using International Symbols, the Formula to calculate Power is:

P = E X I or Watts = Volts X Amps

Since a Watt is such a small measurement of Power, most Power
is calculated in Kilo-Watts or KW.
The formula for calculating Kilo-Watts is:

KW = Volts (E) x Amps (I)

1,000
Page #11
 EFFICIENCY RATING
EFFICIENCY = (WHAT COMES OUT) ÷ (WHAT GOES IN)

A DC Electric Drive Motor uses 48 volts at 155.42 amps and

develops 8.2 Horsepower. How efficient is this motor?

48V X 155.42A = 7,460.16W

7,460.16W ÷ 746W (1HP) = 10.0002145HP
8.20HP ÷ 10.00HP = 0.82
0.82 X 100 = 82%
The 48 Volt DC Motor used in this example is 82% Efficiency.
Which means 18% of the Input Energy was burnt off as HEAT.
Page #11A
 SERIES CIRCUITS
IN ANY CIRCUIT WHAT GOES OUT MUST COME BACK !!!

In Series Circuits:
The Current through each component in the Circuit is the SAME.
Kirchoff’s Series Circuits Current Law: It = Ir1 = Ir2 = Ir3

The Voltage Drops across each Component will be DIFFERENT if the

RESISTANCE VALUES are DIFFERENT.

The SUM of the Voltage Drops EQUALS the Source Voltage.

Kirchoff’s Series Circuits Voltage Law: Et = Er1 + Er2 + Er3

Page #12
 PARALLEL CIRCUITS
IN ANY CIRCUIT WHAT GOES OUT MUST COME BACK !!!

In Parallel Circuits:
The Voltage through each component in the Circuit is the SAME.
Kirchoff’s Parallel Circuits Voltage Law: Et = Er1 = Er2 = Er3

The Current through each Component will be DIFFERENT if the

RESISTANCE VALUES are DIFFERENT.

The SUM of the Separate Currents EQUALS the Total Circuit Current.
Kirchoff’s Parallel Circuits Current Law: It = Ir1 + Ir2 + Ir3

Page #13
 PARALLEL CIRCUITS
IN ANY CIRCUIT WHAT GOES OUT MUST COME BACK !!!

In Parallel Circuits:
Total Resistance in a Parallel Circuit DECREASES when Parallel
Branch Circuits are added, Total Circuit Resistance is ALWAYS LESS
than any of the individual Branch Circuit Resistances.

Kirchoff’s Parallel Circuits Resistance Laws: 1/RT = 1/R1 + 1/R2 + 1/R3

In a Parallel Circuit with only two (2) Branch Circuits, the Product
Divided by the Sum Formula used to determine the Total Resistance
in the Circuit.

RT = R1 x R2 Otherwise known as:

R1 + R2
Series – Parallel Circuits
Page #14
 THE PROPERTIES OF

Page #15
CONDUCTORS
 THE PROPERTIES OF CONDUCTORS
As Stated Earlier:
Elements with less than 4 electrons in their outer orbit are considered
good CONDUCTORS. The reason for this is the FORCE that holds the
Electrons in their orbit is RATHER WEAK and we can make Electrons
move in and out of the orbit easily.
Elements with more than 4 electrons in their outer orbit are considered
INSULATORS. The reason for this is the FORCE that holds
the Electrons in their orbit is VERY STRONG and it is very hard to
dislodge the Electrons from their orbit.

The best Conductor used today is the Precious Metal GOLD, most metals are good
Conductors but the most commonly used metals that are used for Conductors are
Silver and Copper.
Since all Conductors have a certain amount of Resistance to the Electron Flow,
any time a Current is passed through a Conductor you will experience a Voltage
Drop.

Page #16
 THE PROPERTIES OF CONDUCTORS
What this means is the Electrons enter the Conductor with more
Potential than they will exit with. As shown in the figure below.

The Resistance of a Conductor is DIRECTLY PROPORTIONAL

to the Conductors LENGTH and INVERSELY PROPORTIONAL
to the Conductors DIAMETER or CROSS-SECTION.

Page #17
 THE PROPERTIES OF CONDUCTORS
HEAT is also an EXTREMELY IMPORTANT factor that will
affect the Resistance of ANY Conductor. The affect of HEAT on
a Conductor is shown in the graph below.

In a 10 Foot piece of wire, for every 100° of Temperature rise in the

Conductor (wire), the Resistance in the Conductor (wire) will increase by
approximately 25%.
The Electrons must go through billions and billions of Collisions when traveling
through a Conductor, these Collisions are a form of Friction.

Friction GENERATES HEAT!!

The higher the Heat in a Conductor carrying Current, the higher the Resistance!
Page #18
 THE PROPERTIES OF CONDUCTORS
When using a Digital Voltmeter to check the Continuity of a Circuit, if the Circuit has
Continuity with no Resistance, the Digital Voltmeter will display a value of “0.00”.
If the Circuit is completely “OPEN”, the Digital Voltmeter will display “OL”.

IN SUMMARY:
The LONGER the wire (Conductor), the GREATER the
RESISTANCE.
The LARGER the wire (Conductor) DIAMETER (Cross-
Section), the LESS the RESISTANCE will be.

The HOTTER the wire (Conductor) the GREATER the

RESISTANCE.
Page #19
 MAGNETISM

Page #20
 MAGNETISM
No one knows just exactly what Magnetism is.
The most widely accepted theory states that “when all the Electron
Orbits are aligned in the same direction, the Atoms will form small
Domains within the Element, each Domain exerts a Field of Force and
since all of the Atoms and Electrons are aligned in the same direction all
of the Domain Forces are added together to form one larger Field of
Force called a Magnetic Field.”

Magnets and Magnetic Fields always have North and South Poles.
Magnetic Materials, including other Magnets,
are acted upon when located in a Field of Force.
Unlike Poles Attract, and Like Poles Repel.
An unmagnetized piece of Iron can become a Magnet through the Principle of
Magnetic Induction or Electromagnetic Induction.
Page #21
 ELECTROMAGNETISM

Page #22
 ELECTROMAGNETISM
Any time a current is past
through a Conductor it will
generate a Magnetic Field
around the Conductor.

The Right hand Rule of a Straight Conductor

can be used to determine the direction of the
Magnetic Lines of Force, called Flux, in a
Straight Conductor carrying a Current.

The Higher the Current in the Conductor

the Stronger and larger the Magnetic
Field.

Two Adjacent or Parallel

Conductors carrying Current in
Opposite Directions will tend to
Page #23 move away from each other.
 ELECTROMAGNETISM
Two Conductors carrying Current in Opposite
Directions and placed in a Magnetic field is how
an Electric Motor is made to spin, using the Force
of the Magnetic Fields.

Two Adjacent or Parallel

Conductors carrying an Equal
Current in the Same Direction will
tend to move toward each other and
form a Larger and Stronger
Magnetic Field.

The more Conductors the

Larger and Stronger the
Magnetic field.

Page #24
 ELECTROMAGNETISM
A Straight Current-Carrying Conductor, when formed into a
single Loop, has the same Magnetic Field surrounding it as it
did when it was straight. It is easily understood, using the
Right Hand Rule, that ALL of the Lines of Force enter the
INSIDE of the wire loop on one-side and leave the wire loop on
the OUTSIDE or other-side.

When a Current Carrying Conductor is wound into a

number of Loops to form a Coil the resultant
Magnetic field is the SUM of all the Single Loop
Magnetic Fields Added Together.

In order to determine the Polarity of the Coils Ends

Magnetic Field simply use the Right Hand Rule for
Coils: Grasping the Coil with the Fingers of your
Right Hand pointed in the Direction of Current Flow
through the Loops of the Coil, the Right Thumb will
then Point to the North Pole of the Coil
Page #25
 ELECTROMAGNETISM
Air is a VERY POOR conductor of Magnetic Lines of Force (Flux)
and resists a Magnetic Circuit,
but Iron is a VERY GOOD conductor for Magnetic Circuits.
When a Magnetic Material such as Iron is inserted
through the core of the Coil, or Coil is wound over an
Iron Core, we have formed a usable Electromagnet
because the Iron will concentrate the Magnetic Lines of
Force (Flux) at the North and South Poles GREATLY
INCREASING the Strength of the Magnetic Field at the
Poles by approximately 2,500 times.
The strength of the Magnetic Poles (N and S) in and Electromagnetic is
DIRECTLY PROPORTIONAL to the Number of Turns of Wire (Conductor) in
the Coil and the amount of Current (Amperes) flowing through the Coil.

A Magnetic Fields Strength is measured in Amp-Turns,

which is the Number of Turns of Wire in a Coil
multiplied by the amount of Current being conducted
through the Coil. The Coils shown on the right are
physically and electrically different but there
Page #26 Electromagnetic Field Strength is the same.
 ELECTROMAGNETISM
A Magnetic Line of Force (Flux) must have a complete and closed Circuit in order to exist, just like Electric Current
that can only flow through a Complete and Closed Circuit.

Reluctance in a Magnetic Circuit is defined as the Resistance to the Magnetic Lines of Force (Flux) being formed.

An Electromagnetic Circuit can be expressed as a Formula much like Ohm’s Law

expresses an Electrical Circuit.

The Number of Magnetic Lines of Force in an Electromagnetic Circuit is proportional to:

AMP-TURNS
RELUCTANCE

As was stated earlier the Number Magnetic Lines of Force (Strength) in a Magnetic Field is Directly Proportional to
the Amp Turns, which is verified in the above Formula. The Higher the Current through the Coil the higher the Amp
Turns, the higher the number of Turns on the Coil the higher the Amp Turns.
THE GREATER THE AMP TURNS THE GREATER THE NUMBER OF MAGNETIC LINES OF FORCE.

Also as demonstrated by the Formula, we learn that the Number of Magnetic Lines of Force (Strength) is Inversely
Proportional to the Reluctance in the Magnetic Circuit.
THE GREATER THE RELUCTANCE, THE FEWER THE NUMBER OF MAGNETIC LINES OF FORCE.

Since most Magnetic Circuits consist of Iron and short Air Gaps, the Reluctance in such a
Page #27 Series Circuit is equal to the Iron Reluctance added to the Air Gap Reluctance.
 ELECTROMAGNETISM
Air has a very high impact on the Reluctance of the
overall Magnetic Circuit since Air itself has a very
high Reluctance. As stated in the previous Formula
the Magnetic Lines of Force are Inversely
Proportional to the Air Gap.

Even though the Air Gap in a Magnetic Circuit is

generally a very small portion of the overall
Magnetic Circuit it has a very profound effect on
the Strength of the Magnetic Field.

As seen by the Magnetic

Circuits to the left, by
doubling the Air Gap we
have cut the Magnetic
Page #28
Lines of Force by half.
 ELECTROMAGNETISM
So what have we learned?
Electricity and Magnetism are related because the Magnetic
Field is established around a Conductor the is carrying
current.
An Electromagnet has a North Pole at one end and a South
Pole at the other end of the Iron Core, much like a Bar
Magnet.

Every Magnetic Field has a complete Circuit that is occupied

by Lines of Magnetic Force called Flux.

The amount of Flux created by an Electromagnet is Directly

Proportional to the Ampere-Turns, and Inversely Proportional
to Reluctance.
Page #29
 ELECTROMAGNETIC
INDUCTION

Page #30
 ELECTROMAGNETIC INDUCTION
Voltage or Electromotive Force (EMF)

When a Wire (Conductor) cuts across

(Perpendicularly) Magnetic Lines of Force
(Flux) a small Potential (Voltage, EMF) will be
induced into the wire. This principle is known
as Electro-Magnetic Induction

The Wire MUST cut the Magnetic

Lines of Force in a Perpendicular
manner. If the wire is moved Parallel
to the Magnetic Lines of Force, there
will be NO Induced Potential.

Whether the Wire cuts across the Magnetic Lines of Force or

whether the Magnetic Lines of Force cut across a stationary
Wire, it does not matter as long as there is relative motion in a
perpendicular manner between them.
Page #31
 ELECTROMAGNETIC INDUCTION
Voltage or Electromotive Force (EMF)
In order to determine the Polarity of the Induced Potential
consider the Magnetic Field and Conductor shown in this picture.
1.) The Magnetic Poles are marked and the Lines of Flux
flow from the North Pole to the South Pole.
2.) The Conductor is moving to the Left through the
Magnetic Field.
3.) The Left Side of the Conductor is called “The Leading Side”.

Grasp the Conductor with the Fingers of your Right Hand on the Leading Side of the Conductor,
and pointed in the direction of the Magnetic Lines of Force, your Thumb will then be pointing in
the direction of Current Flow.

The Polarity of the Induced Potential, and the Direction of Current

flow, are determined by the relative direction of wire movement and
the direction of the Magnetic Lines of Force.

When the direction of wire movement is

REVERSED the Induced Potential polarity and
Page #32 Current Flow are REVERSED.
 ELECTROMAGNETIC INDUCTION
The Factors that determine the magnitude of the Induced Potential are:
1.) The Strength of the Magnetic Field – The GREATER the number Lines of Force (Flux) that cuts
the Conductor, the GREATER the Induced Potential.
2.) The Speed at which the Lines of Force (Flux) are cutting across the Conductor – If the rate of
Relative Motion between the Flux and Conductor is increased, the GREATER the number of
Lines of Force that will be cut at any given interval of time INCREASING the
Induced Potential.
3.) The Number of Conductors cutting the Lines of Force – The GREATER the number of Conductors
(Connected in Series) that cut the Lines of Force, the GREATER the Induce Potential.

IN SUMMARY:
The Stronger the Magnetic Field,
The Greater the Speed of Relative Motion,
The Larger the Number of Conductors cutting the Flux,

The Greater the Induced Potential.

Page #33
 ELECTROMAGNETIC INDUCTION
GENERATED VOLTAGE – Inducing a Potential into a Conductor by
PHYSICALLY moving the Conductor or the Magnetic Lines of Force in a manner
which causes them to cut across each other in a perpendicular direction.
A DC Generator works on the principle of a Conductor cutting across Magnetic Lines of Force.

As the Conductor rotates and cuts the Magnetic Lines of Force, an Induced Voltage and Current will begin to
flow in the direction indicted, through the Commutator and Brushes, and supply power to the load.

The AC Generator, or Alternator, works on the very same principle.

The difference is that the Conductors are stationary (Stator), and the Magnetic Lines of Force are rotated
(Rotor) through the Conductors. This will Induce Voltage into the Conductors to power the load.
Page #34
 ELECTROMAGNETIC INDUCTION
SELF-INDUCTION – Inducing a Potential into a Conductor WHEN THE
Current Flow in the Conductor itself is changing. The Magnetic Field created by
the changing Current Flow through the Conductor itself INDUCES a Potential in
the Conductor, so the Potential is SELF-INDUCED.

As discussed earlier when Current passes through a Conductor it generates a Magnetic Field of
Concentric Circles around the Conductor, the Magnetic Field of Concentric Circles will Expand
as Current Increases, and will Decrease as Current Decreases. As the Magnetic Field Increases
and Decreases the Flux will cut across the Conductor and Induce a Potential into the Conductor.

Since there is Relative Motion in a Perpendicular Manner between

the Flux and the Conductor, the conditions for Inducing a Potential
have been met.

During Self-Induction the Conductor becomes a separate

Power Source within the Circuit.

The Property of Inductance is what causes a Potential to

be induced into a Conductor when the Current in the
Conductor is Changing. Any Element that possesses the
Page #35 Property of Inductance is called an Inductor.
 ELECTROMAGNETIC INDUCTION
SELF-INDUCTION
The Inductance of any coil will be determined by the number of turns of wire, their spacing, and
the type of material used in the core of the coil.

An Inductive Coil stores a certain amount of energy anytime

Current is flowing through it. The amount of energy stored by
an Inductive Coil is expressed in the following formula:

Inductance X Current X Current LX I XI

ENERGY = OR
2 2

By understanding the formula for calculating the Stored Energy of an Inductive Coil we
can see how important it is that the Coil is capable of reaching it’s Final Maximum Value of
Current, which will be the Circuit Current, before the Circuit is opened.

When the Inductive Coil reaches it’s Final Maximum Value of Current the Magnetic Field
developed by the Coil will also be at it’s Maximum Strength. At this point it is said that
the Inductive Coil has reached it’s SATURATION POINT or it is SATURATED.

In Automotive Technology the Saturation Point for the Ignition

Coil is calibrated by setting the DWELL, which is nothing more
than determining how long the Primary Coil will take to reach
Page #36 Saturation in Degrees of Crankshaft Rotation.
 ELECTROMAGNETIC INDUCTION
SELF-INDUCTION
When energizing a Circuit, Self Induction causes a time delay for the Circuit Current to reach its
Final and Full value after the Circuit is Activated, this in turn causes the Magnetic Field to build
at a Slower rate.

When the Circuit is De-Energized the Magnetic Field collapses at a MUCH FASTER Rate
than what it was built at, since the SPEED of the Relative Motion between the Conductor and
the Flux has increased, the Induced Potential will be INCREASED!

Since the collapse of the Magnetic Field is at a MUCH FASTER rate of Speed and in the
OPPOSITE DIRECTION of the Build, the Self Induced Potential will be MUCH GREATER
than the Circuit Potential and in REVERSE POLARITY!!!

Page #37
 ELECTROMAGNETIC INDUCTION
MUTUAL INDUCTION – Induction of a Potential into one Coil because of a
Changing Current in another Coil. The Magnetic Field created by the changing
Current Flow of one Coil cuts through the Conductors of a Second Coil and
INDUCES a Potential in the Second Coils Conductors.
In this drawing the Blue Winding, know as the Secondary or Secondary
Windings, are wound over an Iron Core. The Red Windings, known as
the Primary or Primary Windings, are wound over the Blue Windings.
Closing the Switch will cause current to increase in the Primary Windings,
and the Current increase will cause Magnetic lines of Force to build and cut
across the Secondary Windings.
This interaction between the Secondary Windings and the Magnetic Lines of
Force will cause a Potential to be induced into the Secondary Windings, at
which point the Secondary Windings become the Power Source for Resistor
“R”.
The Induce Current and Potential of the Secondary must OPPOSE any change in
the Primary Current, so when the Primary is increasing the Secondary Current
MUST flow in the Opposite Direction around the core in order to oppose the
increase.

When the Switch is opened and the Primary Current

decreases, the Secondary Current must flow in the same
direction around the Iron Core in order to oppose the
change, or to keep the Flux in the Iron Core from changing.
Page #38
 ELECTROMAGNETIC INDUCTION
MUTUAL INDUCTION

In order to understand how this works look at the lengthwise cross sectional view of the Coil, on the Right.

When the Current is building in the Red Windings (Primary), the Magnetic Lines of Force cut the Secondary
Windings from the “Top”, inducing a Current that opposes the Current Build of the Primary (Reverse Polarity).

If when the Switch is opened, a Self Induced Potential of 250 Volts occurs in the Primary Winding,
and the Secondary Winding have 100 times as many Windings, the Mutual Induction into the
Secondary Winding will be 25,000 Volts (250 X 100 = 25,000).
However, when the Switch is opened and the Current in the Primary Windings decreases, the Magnetic Lines of
Force cut both Windings from the bottom. Therefore, the Current that will be Induced in the Secondary
Windings will be the same Polarity as the Potential in the Primary Windings.
The magnitude of the Induced Potential will be primarily determined
Page #39 by the ratio of Primary to Secondary Windings.
 CAPACITORS

Page #40
 CAPACITORS
Capacitance is the ability of a configuration of materials to store an electrical charge.
Two conductors such as two metal plates spaced very close together and separated
by a thin insulating material such as paper, mica, or air is called a Capacitor.
When the two conductors (plates), are connected to a voltage source, the assembly
will exhibit the property of Capacitance.
The symbol for Capacitance is “C”, and the unit of measure is Farad, or Micro-Farads.

A Farad is the SI (International) Unit used to measure Capacitance, it is formally

defined as the Capacitance of a Capacitor between the plates of which there appears
a potential difference of one volt when it is charged by a quantity of Electricity equal
to one Coulomb (one Amp). A Micro-Farad is one millionth of a Farad.
The greater the area of the plates, and the shorter the distance between them,
the greater will be the Capacitance.

Page #41
 CAPACITORS
Since the plates in the Capacitor are insulated from
each other, it would seem that no Current would
flow in the circuit. That is true EXCEPT when the
switch is initially closed.

Initially the Capacitor acts like a short circuit, but as the two plates become Positively
and Negatively Charged more and more Electrons left the Positive Plate and
congregated on the Negative Plate and now the voltage across the Plates (Capacitor
Voltage) approaches Battery Voltage.

As the charge on the Plates increases, the Capacitor Voltage increases to oppose
Battery Voltage, and the Current Flow decreases with time.
When the Capacitor Voltage becomes equal and opposite to the Battery Voltage the
Current flow in the Capacitor will completely stop.

The time needed for the Current Flow to reach

zero may only be a fraction of a second, but it can
be of major importance in Electrical Systems
where the Voltages are changing at extremely
rapid rates.
Page #42
 CAPACITORS

The Capacitor has the ability to store Electrical Energy, or to store a Charge.
So when the switch is opened the Charge and Voltage on the Capacitor will remain, the
higher the Capacitance and the Voltage, the higher the energy store in the Capacitor.
The energy stored in the Capacitor could be send to send the Capacitor Current
through the Resistor by adding a second switch into the Circuit.

When the switch is closed a surge

of Current will flow through the
Resistor until the Capacitor
Voltage is equal

As the Electron flow continues, the Voltage across the Plates

decreases, until finally the Current Value is Zero.

Once again the time it takes for the Capacitor to deplete

Page #43 it’s Charge may only be a Fraction of a second.
 CAPACITORS
IN SUMMARY:
1.) A Capacitor as it builds up a Charge, builds up a Counter Voltage across it’s Plates.

2.) The Capacitor has the ability to store Energy, or to store a Charge.

3.) Current flows only during a very short interval of time

when the Capacitor Voltage and Battery Voltage are
unequal.
The characteristic of a Capacitor to act initially like a Short
Circuit when a sudden difference in Voltage is applied
across its plates, makes it ideally suited to “Trap or
temporarily store Electrical Energy that otherwise could
damage Electrical Components.
That is the purpose of the Capacitor’s that are used in Ignition and
Motor Controller Circuits.

The High Voltages that occur across a Coil because of

Self Induction when the Circuit is opened, exist for a
very short period of time, such as 1/1,000,000 of a
second, and are called Transient Voltages.
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 CAPACITORS
Another important application where Capacitors are used to
smooth out rapidly changing Voltages is in Voltage Regulators,
Industrial Battery Chargers, and Additional Electrical
Auxiliary Functions placed on Lift Trucks.

These Voltages need to be smoothed out to a

more Constant Voltage or dissipated in a
smooth manner. A Capacitor used in this way
is connected across the changing Voltage, and
Page #45 is called a Filter Capacitor.
 CAPACITORS
You cannot check a circuit for Continuity if the Circuit
contains a Capacitor because the Capacitor will cause the
Resistance reading to continuously change. The Capacitor
MUST BE REMOVED from the Circuit before checking the
Circuit for Continuity with a Ohmmeter.

OM

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 ARE THERE
ANY
QUESTIONS?
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