We make a stroboscope for installing the ignition with our own hands. How to assemble a stroboscope for installing the ignition with your own hands? Make a stroboscope for setting the ignition

An experienced motorist knows the value of the correct setting of the initial ignition timing, as well as the correct operation of such ignition timing controllers as vacuum and centrifugal. If the ignition timing is set incorrectly (even a deviation of 2-3 ° can play a significant role), this can lead to increased fuel consumption, loss of power and overheating of the engine, and even a reduction in its service life. Therefore, for each driver, the ability to check and adjust the ignition system is very valuable, although these processes are rather complex. But if the car owner has already decided to implement these operations, then the first thing he should arm himself with is a stroboscope for setting the ignition, which is designed to simplify the maintenance process of the described system.

A car strobe is that simple and affordable device that can be easily purchased at a store and which greatly simplifies the life of a car owner. Indeed, with this mechanism, even a novice driver will be able to check and adjust the initial ignition timing in no more than ten minutes, as well as check both types of regulators (centrifugal and vacuum) for any damage.

The principle of operation of this device lies in the stroboscopic effect, the essence of which can be explained approximately as follows: if an object moving in the dark is illuminated with a bright and at the same time short flash, then it will begin to visually appear frozen exactly in the position in which the flash caught it. For example, if you illuminate a spinning wheel with flashes at a frequency that is equal to the frequency of its rotation, then you can also visually stop it. This is easy to see due to the position of some mark.

In order to set the ignition timing, you should start the engine at idle, and in the meantime, use a strobe light to illuminate the previously mentioned marks. One of them, which has the name "movable", is located on the crankshaft (alternatively, on the generator drive pulley or on the flywheel), and the other took its place on the motor housing. Flashes occur almost simultaneously with the moment when sparking occurs in the glow plug of one of the cylinders. To make this happen, the capacitive sensor of the described device is attached to the high-voltage wire of the glow plug.

Both marks should be visible during flashes. Moreover, the following conditions apply here: if the marks are accurately located opposite each other, then the ignition timing will be optimal, and if the movable mark has shifted, then the position of the breaker-distributor must be corrected until the marks match.

The main element of the stroboscope is a pulsed stroboscopic lamp of the inertialess type. In this mechanism, flashes are carried out at the moment when a spark appears in the candle of the first cylinder. As a result: the alignment marks, together with other engine elements that rotate synchronously with the crankshaft, appear stationary when illuminated by the previously mentioned lamp. This allows you to control the correct setting of the initial ignition timing.

From the foregoing, it seems possible to characterize the operation of the stroboscope in this way (at the same time, its device will also be explained): after connecting the leads to the battery, the voltage converter will start working, which is a symmetrical type multivibrator. The initial voltage is supplied from transistor-based dividers, which begin to open, and one of them necessarily does this much faster than the other. This causes the other transistor to close, which is explained by the application of a blocking voltage from the windings to its base. After that, the transistors open one after another, which causes one or the other half of the winding from the transformer to be connected to the battery. At the same moment, a voltage appears in the secondary windings, which has a rectangular shape and a frequency of about 800 Hz, the value of which is proportional to the number of turns in the winding.

At the moment when sparking occurs directly, in the first cylinder, a high-voltage type pulse enters the ignition electrodes located on the stroboscopic lamp through capacitors and a special arrester plug from the distributor socket. With all this, the energy that the capacitor accumulates is transformed into light energy from the flash of the lamp. After the capacitors are discharged, the lamp also goes out, but the capacitors are charged thanks to resistors up to a voltage of about 450 V. Thus, preparations for another flash are completed.

The resistors also serve to prevent the windings from shorting out when the lamp flashes. And the diode is designed to protect the converter transistor in case the stroboscope is connected in the wrong polarity.

The arrester, which is switched on by the spark plugs and the distributor, provides the necessary voltage of the high-voltage pulse in order to ignite the lamp. In this case, the pressure distance in the combustion chamber, between the spark plug electrodes and other factors do not play a role. It is thanks to the arrester that the uninterrupted operation of the stroboscope becomes possible even with the fact of short-circuited electrodes in the spark plug.

As you can see, the principle of operation of the analyzed mechanism is rather complicated, but this does not mean that it is impossible to understand it. Therefore, it is also important to understand how to set the ignition with a strobe, and try to carry out this process yourself.

Characteristics of the stroboscope for ignition installation

The stroboscope has a certain set of characteristics that distinguish it from other devices, making it so unique and necessary. Among these, for example, is the fact that the power source for this device can be both its own batteries (mini-accumulators or batteries) and the car's on-board network. This begs the question of what is the best way - autonomous power supply or still due to its network. I will only say that this is not so fundamental, but at the same time it is necessary to indicate that the first method eliminates the need for wires to reach for the device.

Another distinguishing characteristic of a stroboscope is that the minimum flash rate it can produce must match the speed of the crankshaft, which rotates at its maximum level. Most often you can find a stroboscope with a frequency of 50 Hz.

Also, the strobe usually cannot work for a long time in the flash mode, which is due to the unique design of the lamps. Most often, this device is capable of work that lasts no more than ten minutes. These indicators should be indicated in the instructions. In order to prevent unforeseen situations, the stroboscope, and above all its lamps, must be allowed to rest, the duration of which is equal to the operating time.

Homemade stroboscope

Before embarking on the process of creating a homemade strobe, I recommend remembering the safety rules. This is very important, since all parts of this device are under mains voltage.

Therefore, it must not be allowed that some part touches the walls of the case (if it is metal), and the wires of the flash lamp are connected to the reflectors. It would also be ideal if a plastic handle was put on the variable resistor. As for the wires for switching on, they must have a plug at the ends and be in good insulation.

All parts of the future stroboscope (naturally, in addition to the impulse transformer and lamp) must be mounted on a board made of insulating material. Their relative position does not play a significant role, but the obligatory condition is that the installation is carried out according to the concept. The flash lamp, together with the transformer, should be installed inside a reflector, which can be used in large sizes.

If there is no dinistor, then it can be replaced with a starter that used to be used for a fluorescent lamp. And given that the starter is capable of operating at a higher voltage level than the dinistor, then another diode will need to be introduced into the device in order to obtain a double-voltage rectifier. In this case, the flare energy will also increase. Also, instead of a dinistor, a thyratron having a cold cathode can be used.

To all car owners who have made a firm decision to make a stroboscope on their own, I recommend that you first make a detailed diagram so that you can be guided by it during the installation of the device and not be distracted by anything.

Get to know your car, understand its device, and then the problems during its operation will be significantly reduced.

Video “Do-it-yourself car strobe”

The video shows how to do it yourself and how to use a strobe for a car.

I propose a diagram of an automobile stroboscope for setting the ignition timing of the UOZ. The circuit is powered by a 12V car battery. As a light-emitting element, LEDs from a flashlight are used in it.

Consider the operation of the circuit: When the device is connected to the battery, the capacitor C1 quickly starts charging through the resistor R3. Having reached a certain level, the voltage through the LEDs and resistor R4 is supplied to the base of the transistor, which opens. At the same time, relay P1 is activated, its contact closes and prepares a circuit consisting of a thyristor, relay contact P1, LEDs and capacitor C1 ready. When the control electrode of the thyristor receives a pulse from contact X1 through the divider R1, R2, the thyristor instantly opens and the capacitor quickly discharges through the LEDs. There is a bright flash! The base of the transistor, through the resistor R4 and the thyristor, is connected to a common wire and the transistor closes, turning off the relay. Since the relay armature has a small inertia and residual magnetization, the contact does not open immediately, but after a few microseconds, thereby increasing the burning time of the LEDs. The contact opens, the thyristor is de-energized and the circuit returns to its original state, waiting for the next pulse. Thanks to this, the strobe flicker becomes brighter and the mark on the flywheel is clearly visible, leaving behind a small trail. By selecting a capacitor, you can adjust the duration of the burning of the LEDs. The larger the capacity, the brighter the flash, but the longer the trail of the tag. With a smaller capacitance, the sharpness of the mark increases, but the brightness decreases. It is impractical to do this, since the RAM setting will have to be done in the dark, which is not very convenient.

After assembling the stroboscope, it is necessary to check its performance. We connect a 12V DC voltage source to terminals X2 and X3. When the terminals X1 and X2 are connected to each other, the relay should "buzz" (ringing mode).

When adjusting the RAM, a white dot should be applied to the flywheel or pulley mark with a stroke for better visibility. Strobe elements are placed in the body of the LED flashlight. Feeding wires about 0.5 m long are passed through the rear holes of the flashlight, to the ends of which crocodiles with the appropriate color marking are soldered. A hole is drilled from the side of the housing through which the shielded wire of contact X1 is passed. Its length should be no more than 0.5 m. At the end, the screen braid is wrapped with electrical tape, and a copper wire 10 cm long is soldered to the central core, which serves as a strobe sensor. When connected, this wire should be wound on the high-voltage wire of the first cylinder over the insulation, 3-4 turns are enough. Winding should be done as close as possible to the candle in order to exclude the influence of neighboring wires.

About details: The design uses small-sized components. Transistor KT315 - it can be found in any equipment of past years with any letter index. Thyristor KU112A - from a switching power supply of an old TV. Resistors are small-sized 0.125 watts. Flashlight with diodes 6-12 pieces. If the flashlight is equipped with an electronic beacon, then this board is removed. Capacitor C1 for a voltage of at least 16V. Diode V2 is almost any low-frequency KD105, D9. Small-sized relay (BS-115-12A-DC12V), (RWH-SH-112D, 12A, cat.=12v). You can also use domestic small-sized relays, for example, RES-10 with a coil voltage of 12v.

The circuit is made by hinged mounting and compactly packed into a flashlight.

List of radio elements

Designation	Type	Denomination	Quantity	Note	Shop	My notepad
V1	bipolar transistor	KT315B	1			To notepad
V1	Thyristor & Triac	KU112A	1			To notepad
V2	Diode	KD522A	1			To notepad
R1	Resistor	51 kOhm	1			To notepad
R2	Resistor	4.7 kOhm	1			To notepad
R3	Resistor	510 ohm	1			To notepad
R4	Resistor	10 kOhm	1

Properly set ignition timing is the key to stable stable operation of the entire motor. Moreover, fuel consumption directly depends on ignition. In this article, I propose to consider the option of optical tuning of your car's motor using a stroboscope.

For this procedure, you will need the following tools:

1. Stroboscope.

2. The usual set of automotive tools.

3. Dielectric gloves.

Now in more detail.

First of all, you need to drive the car out of the garage. It is desirable that there is no light interference, for example, blinding or glaring sunlight, it is best to do this work in the afternoon. Carefully inspect the stroboscope for the absence of any mechanical damage on its body. Be aware that serious injury can result from contact with the high-voltage strobe converter circuit.

Next, turn off the engine, then using the clamps (be sure to observe the polarity), connect the device to the battery. Be careful that, God forbid, a short circuit does not occur, this can happen if the contact wires are connected incorrectly. In order to avoid trouble, read the instructions that came with the device. Then fasten the signal cable to the wire that is connected to the spark plugs of the first cylinder, thereby forming a capacitive coupling with the device.

Wires must be arranged in such a way that they cannot get into the rotating parts of the machine. Now you need to find a mark made with white paint on the pulley or flywheel of the crankshaft. After that, it is necessary to determine the same marking on the body of the power unit. Follow safety precautions, take off any metal objects: chain, bracelet, watch, etc. Place the shift lever in neutral position.

Next, put on the previously prepared dielectric gloves. Make sure that there is no contact of moving mechanisms with parts of the body or any items of clothing. After that, start the car engine and let it run, wait for the idle speed to stabilize. Then slightly loosen the mounting bolt that prevents the distributor from turning.

Let's go further. Take a strobe light and point its lamp at the crankshaft pulley to illuminate the mark on the housing and the risk on the engine. Slowly, without haste, turn the distributor body, achieving the maximum coincidence of the markings. When everything matched, the motor can be turned off and the strobe turned off. Now fix the distributor housing by tightening the mounting bolt.

Now you can test the machine in action. In order to check the correctness of the ignition adjustment, accelerate the car to 50 km / h on a flat stretch of road. Then sharply press the gas, in the event of detonation knocks that will last no longer than two seconds, we can safely conclude that the work of adjusting the ignition with a stroboscope was a success. We close the hood, fold the tool and enjoy the positive result.

A very powerful LED strobe that will perfectly complement any disco dance floor. A stroboscope was built on three LED matrices with a total power of 150 watts.

The principle of operation of the device is to give very short pulses of light (flashes) after a given period of time. In action, it very much resembles lightning during rain, when a completely dark room illuminates a bright light for milliseconds.
During the disco, it looks especially bewitching.
Details:

• LED Matrix -
• 12 V source -
• Transistor K2543 -
• Diode bridge -
• Chip NE555 -
• Resistors and Capacitors -

Mains voltage LEDs with built-in driver:

Strobe circuit

I would not say that the scheme is complex, rather simple. But it does not have galvanic voltage isolation, which means that you cannot touch any of the circuit elements during its operation and be especially careful during assembly.
Visually, the circuit can be divided into a 12 V power supply, a pulse generator, a rectifier and a line of LEDs.

Strobe operation

A short pulse generator is assembled on the NE555 chip. The time between pulses can be changed by turning the knob of the variable resistor R3.
A field-effect transistor key is connected to the output of this generator, which switches a voltage of 220 V in the power supply circuit of LED matrices connected in parallel to each other.
LED matrices are powered by direct current, which is rectified by a diode bridge. This is necessary in order to be able to switch the circuit with a field-effect transistor, which only works with constant voltage.

Strobe assembly

The stroboscope is assembled in a casing from the cable channel. The LEDs are bolted to the wide side, no heatsinks. Since the LED is used somewhere at 2-5% of its power (pulse work), there is no need for heat sinks.

The side walls are cut out of the same cable channel and glued with glue. Above is a variable resistor to adjust the flicker frequency.

Blocks of the circuit in the case:

Warning

LEDs are very powerful and can damage your eyes, so looking at them while working is not recommended. Strobe flashes are especially dangerous, as the eye relaxes in the dark, and a bright pulse penetrates directly into the retina.
Also, do not forget that the entire circuit is under mains voltage, which is life-threatening.

The result of the work

The work of the stroboscope, unfortunately, cannot be conveyed either through a photo or through a video. Since even a video camera captures a short impulse very poorly, and as a result, it simply lights up.
But I can say from myself that the strobe turned out to be excellent, the flashes are short and very bright. It looks very impressive, in general, everything is as it should be.

The LED stroboscope for setting the ignition allows you to quickly and with high accuracy set the optimal ignition timing (IG) in the car. This parameter plays an important role in the correct operation of the engine. A slight misalignment at ignition timing results in a loss of power due to increased fuel consumption and engine overheating.

Despite the large assortment of industrially produced devices for checking and installing UOZ, the relevance of creating a stroboscope with your own hands has not lost its meaning even today. The presented scheme of a home-made stroboscope for a car does not require adjustment after assembly and is made from available parts.

Schematic diagram of a stroboscope

The scheme was developed and presented in the ninth edition of the Radio magazine back in 2000. However, due to its simplicity and reliability, it remains relevant today.

In the circuit diagram of a stroboscope for a car, 4 parts can be conditionally distinguished:

1. Power circuit consisting of switch SA1, diode VD1 and capacitor C2. VD1 protects circuit elements from erroneous polarity reversal. C2 blocks frequency interference, preventing trigger failures. The SA1 switch is used to supply and disconnect power, any compact switch or toggle switch is suitable for this.
2. The input circuit, which consists of a sensor, capacitor C1 and resistors R1, R2. The function of the sensor is performed by the crocodile clip, which is attached to the high-voltage wire of the first cylinder. Elements C1, R1, R2 represent the simplest differentiating circuit.
3. A trigger microcircuit assembled according to the scheme of two single-shot single vibrators of the same type, which form pulses of a given frequency at the output. The frequency-setting elements are resistors R3, R4 and capacitors C3, C4.
4. Output stage assembled on transistors VT1-VT3 and resistors R5-R9. The transistors amplify the output current of the trigger, which is reflected in the form of bright flashes of the LEDs. R5 sets the base current of the first transistor, and R9 eliminates malfunctions of the powerful VT3. R6-R8 limit the load current flowing through the LEDs.

Principle of operation

The stroboscope circuit is powered by a car battery. At the moment of closing the switch SA1, the trigger DD1 goes into its original state. In this case, a high potential appears on the inverse outputs (2, 12), and a low potential appears on the direct outputs (1, 13). Capacitors C3, C4 are charged through the corresponding resistors.

The pulse from the sensor, passing through the differentiating circuit, is fed to the clock input of the first single vibrator DD1.1, which leads to its switching. The recharge of C3 begins, which after 15 ms ends with the next switching of the trigger. Thus, the single vibrator responds to pulses from the sensor, forming rectangular pulses at the output (1). The duration of the output pulses with DD1.1 is determined by the values ​​of R3 and C3.

The second single vibrator DD1.2 works similarly to the first, reducing the duration of the pulses at the output (13) by 10 times (up to about 1.5 ms). The load for DD1.2 is an amplifying stage of transistors that open for the duration of the pulse. The pulsed current through the LEDs is limited exclusively by resistors R6-R8 and in this case reaches a value of 0.8 A.

Do not be afraid of such a large current value. Firstly, its pulse does not exceed 1 ms, with a duty cycle of at least 15 in the operating mode. Secondly, modern LEDs have much better technical characteristics compared to their predecessors from 2000, when this circuit was first put into practice. Then it was necessary to look for LEDs with a light intensity of 2000 mcd. Now a white LED (from the English Light-emitting diode) type C512A-5 mm from the company with a scattering angle of 25 ° is capable of delivering 18000 mcd at a constant current of 20 mA. Therefore, the use of super-bright LEDs will significantly reduce the load current by increasing the resistance R6-R8. Thirdly, the time of using the stroboscope usually does not exceed 5-10 minutes, which does not cause overheating of the emitting diode crystals.

PCB and Assembly Parts

A home-made stroboscope for installing the ignition can be assembled both on inexpensive domestic radio elements and on more precise imported elements. Below is a board using domestic components for pin mounting.

Board in Sprint Layout 6.0 file: plata.lay6

Diode VD1 - KD2999V or any other with a small forward voltage drop. Capacitor C1 must be high-voltage with a capacitance of 47 pF and a voltage of 400 V. Capacitors C2-C4 are non-polar KM-5, K73-9 series at 0.068 μF 16 V. All resistors, except R4, are of the MLT type or planar with the ratings indicated on the diagram . Trimmer resistor R4 type SP-3 or SP-5 33 kOhm.

The TM2 trigger is better to use the 561 series, which is characterized by high noise immunity and reliability. But you can replace it with a 176 and 564 series microcircuit, given their pinout. Transistors VT1-VT2 fit KT315 B, C, G or KT3102 with a high gain. Output transistor - KT815, KT817 with any letter prefix. LEDs HL1-HL9 are better to take super-bright with a small scattering angle. They are placed on a separate board three in a row. In the absence of any circuit details, they can be replaced with more modern counterparts by slightly improving the board.

It is convenient to place a ready-made strobe control board and a board with LEDs in the body of a portable flashlight. In this case, it is necessary to provide a hole in the housing for the R4 regulator, and a standard switch can be used as SA1.

Setting

A tuning resistor R4 is installed in the circuit, by adjusting which you can achieve the desired visual effect. Turning the knob of the regulator, one can observe that a decrease in the current pulse leads to a lack of illumination of the marks, and an increase leads to blurring. Therefore, during the first start of the stroboscope, it is necessary to select the optimal flash duration.

The length of the shielded wire from the printed circuit board to the sensor should not exceed 0.5 m. A 0.1 m copper conductor soldered to the central core of the shielded wire is suitable as a sensor. At the time of connection, it is wound on the insulation of the high-voltage wire of the first cylinder of the car, making 3 turns. To increase noise immunity, the winding is carried out as close as possible to the candle. Instead of a copper conductor, you can take an alligator clip, which should also be soldered to the central core, and its teeth should be slightly bent inward so as not to damage the insulation.

Installation of UOZ with a stroboscope

Before considering the operation of a car strobe, you need to understand the essence of the stroboscopic effect. If an object moving in the dark is illuminated for a moment with a flash, it will appear frozen in the place where the flash occurred. If a bright mark is applied to a spinning wheel and illuminated with bright flashes coinciding in frequency with the wheel rotation frequency, then at the time of the flashes it is possible to visually fix the location of the mark.

Before adjusting the ignition timing of the car, two marks are applied: a movable one on the crankshaft (flywheel) and a stationary one on the engine housing. Then the sensor is connected, power is supplied to the stroboscope and the engine is turned on to idle. If the marks coincide during the flashes, then the SPD is set optimally. Otherwise, you should make adjustments until they completely match.

The presented do-it-yourself strobe for installing the ignition will allow you to debug the car's ignition system in a few minutes. As a result of the adjustment, the efficiency of the engine will increase and its service life will increase.

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