What you’ll learn:
Electricity Fundamentals
Alternating Current (AC)
Direct Current (DC)
Car ECU Fundamentals
Automotive Computer Diagnostics
Chip Tuning
Automotive Electrical Diagnostics
Requirements:
No prerequisties
Description:
The Role of Electricity in the automobile in the past, electrical systems was 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 there are very few electrical systems that are still independent. Today, most manufacturers 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. Consider the following example. 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 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.
The computer is an electronic device that stores and processes data and are capable of operating other devices. The use of computers on automobiles has expanded to include control and operation of several functions, including climate control, lighting circuits, cruise control, antilock braking, electronic suspension systems, and electronic shift transmissions. Some of these are functions of what is known as a body control module (BCM). Some body computer-controlled systems include direction lights, rear window defogger, illuminated entry, intermittent wipers, and other systems that were once thought of as basic. A computer processes the physical conditions that represent information (data). The operation of the computer is divided into four basic functions:
