Components of the Igniter
The igniter is mainly composed of a power supply, ignition coil, distributor, ignition switch, spark plug, additional resistance, short-circuit device, high and low voltage wires, etc.
Power Supply: It consists of a battery and generator. When starting, the ignition system is supplied with low-voltage power by the battery. After starting, when the generator voltage exceeds the battery voltage, the ignition system is provided with low-voltage power by the generator.
Ignition Coil: Converts the 12V low-voltage electricity provided by the car power supply into high-voltage electricity capable of breaking down the gap between the electrodes of the spark plug.
Distributor: Driven by the camshaft of the generator, it turns the primary current of the ignition coil on and off, ensuring the ignition coil generates high-voltage electricity in time. It transmits the high-voltage electricity to each cylinder spark plug and automatically adjusts the ignition time. The capacitor’s function is to reduce the spark of the breaker contact and increase the secondary voltage of the ignition coil.
Ignition Switch: Controls the on-off of the low-voltage circuit of the ignition system and the start and stop of the generator.
Spark Plug: Introduces high-voltage electricity into the combustion chamber to generate an electric spark to ignite the mixture.
Additional Resistance Short-Circuit Device: Short-circuits the additional resistance when starting, increasing the primary current of the ignition coil and enhancing the spark-over energy of the spark plug during startup.
Second, the Type of Igniter
Electronic Pulse Igniter: Due to its low power, it ignites through pulses. The energy of the burner is small, and the temperature of the spark generated is low. This type is not suitable for gases with high ignition points or mixed gases with low concentrations, as it may lead to safety accidents such as ignition failure or deflagration.
Electronic High-Frequency High-Voltage Igniter: This type has high power, high ignition energy, and a high spark temperature. However, its ignition time generally should not exceed 5 minutes to avoid overheating and burning out. It has a large and heavy volume, making installation and transportation challenging.
Coil Silicon Steel Sheet Igniter: This type has high power, high energy, and high spark temperature, with an ignition time of about 10 minutes. It is small and light, but the quality of domestic products is generally not good, and 90% of the market is occupied by imports.
3. How to Identify the Quality of the Igniter
When all the wiring of the igniter is plugged in, do not connect the power cord (the charging end of the AC igniter), or unplug the high-voltage output wire of the magneto in advance. After confirming that the ground wire of the igniter is well connected to the ground wire of the circuit on the vehicle, pull out the high-voltage cap from the spark plug and insert a backup spark plug on the vehicle body. Finally, connect the DC circuit on the motorcycle (the live wire is connected to the + pole of the battery) to the charging end of the igniter.
After connecting the igniter to the circuit as above, turn the magneto to make the trigger sensor send the ignition signal to the igniter to see if the spark plug ignites. If the spark plug fires, it’s a DC igniter. If there is no ignition for a while, carefully check the cause or use the meter measurement method to determine the nature of the igniter, judged as an AC igniter.
The safest way is to use a low-voltage power supply for repeated tests on the igniter. If it is determined not to be a low-voltage DC igniter, conditional riders can use a high-voltage power supply with a small current. If it is a DC igniter, be cautious because the current is small, reducing the voltage. However, the high voltage of a small current will still charge the AC igniter, so be careful to discharge numb hands during the test.
For special cases, such as when the inductive high-voltage package is not suitable for matching CDI igniter or when some igniters are combined with igniter and high-voltage package (e.g., XH90 four-stroke integrated igniter), additional considerations are needed. There is also a self-triggered two-stroke AC igniter using a magneto high-voltage power supply, forward charging, energy storage, and reverse triggering and discharging.