Car wiring diagrams: types of circuit diagrams, learning to read for beginners

When, when going on a fishing trip, the headlights on a private car do not light up in the evening, some drivers grab their heads. They cannot read the wiring diagrams of a car and a breakdown of this kind immediately becomes an unsolvable problem. For this reason, teaching literacy to read electrical circuits is not just a whim, but a necessity for the normal use of an iron horse.

Types of electrical circuits

Learning about the unknown usually begins with the basics or initial concepts. To learn how to read electrical schematic diagrams, they will learn what they are and why they are needed. Here are the main types:

• Primary. These are circuits that provide voltage from a power source directly to the consumer of this energy.
• Secondary. Circuits with a voltage of no more than 1 kV, which are mainly used for the installation of control and signaling equipment.
• Protection, signaling, control systems and others. Varieties of secondary electrical circuits.
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• Principled. Simplified images, where only the main elements are indicated, and minor ones are omitted.
• Mounting. Detailed images including minor nodes. They are used for the installation of electrical equipment.
• Single-line. Schematic plan showing the connection sequence for the main phase.
• Fully linear. A schematic representation that is used to indicate three-phase lines. It indicates the sequence of connections in all three phases.
• Deployed. Detailed drawings of the complete electrical equipment on site.

The type of such images is determined by its purpose. For example, an assembly requires one plan, a concept of operation requires another, a repair requires a third, and so on.

Symbols

When faced for the first time with an electrical circuit, a beginner may think that he has a Chinese letter in front of him. However, having mastered the basic designations and principles of construction, very soon reading electrical circuits for beginners can become a habit. To begin with, they are determined with the main parts of any documentation of this kind. These are three groups of common constituent elements in function:

1. Sources of electricity - devices, units and devices that generate current.
2. Electricity receivers are devices, assemblies, equipment that converts or uses electric current.
3. Electricity transmitters - wires, switches, other current conductors, as well as measuring instruments, amplification, attenuation, control and others, that is, everything that helps to transfer current from a source to to the consumer.

Symbols have been invented for all components of the electrical circuit. The icons are placed in the order in which they are wired, not literally. That is, two bulbs can be located on the device side by side, and on the diagram - in parts opposite to each other. Elements connected to one voltage of a circuit are called a branch. They are connected by knots. The nodes on the diagram are marked with dots. Closed paths can contain multiple branches. The simplest wiring diagrams - these are images of single-circuit circuits. The most complex ones are multi-circuit.

To study the decoding of symbols, use special reference books. In addition to symbols, explanatory inscriptions and indications of markings of the electrical equipment and parts used are used on the diagrams.

Reading order

In fact, an electrical circuit is a drawing. On it with the help of symbols depicts the device of electrical equipment. Knowing the basic principles of constructing such drawings and symbols, you can master the reading of electrical circuits. For beginners, this is exactly what you need. So, it is easier to train on simplified drawings than on those where all the details are shown.

For the correct reading of the diagrams, they learn a simple algorithm of actions that will help not to miss important trifles. Here is the sequence for studying the wiring diagram:

1. Determine the number of contours and branches in each contour.
2. Allocate the symbols of all components of the circuit.
3. Each designation is examined in order. Find in the directory what it corresponds to, and find out all possible information about the element. If necessary, write it down so as not to forget and not to look for it again.
4. For clarity, they find the desired unit or part on their car, if they study the electrical circuit of the car.
5. They try to understand the principle of operation and the technical purpose of this or that element. Some people wonder what will happen if the element is removed from the chain, whether it can be replaced with something else.
6. Scrupulously read additional information in the description of the circuit or in the markings next to the elements. Sometimes the diagrams contain marking tables that require additional attention.

Having learned to read simple diagrams, they move on to more complex ones. The electrical equipment of modern cars is becoming more and more complex. Many blocks contain electronic stuffing.

It is very difficult for a novice electrician to understand such schemes. However, knowing the basics, they can make simple electrical repairs using their car's wiring diagram.