AUTOMOBILE ENGINEERING 15ME655

MODULE 3
Steering and Suspension Systems: Steering geometry and types of steering gear box-Power Steering, Types of
Front Axle, Suspension, Torsion bar suspension systems, leaf spring, coil spring, independent suspension for
front wheel and rear wheel, Air suspension system.

Ignition System: Battery Ignition system, Magneto Ignition system, electronic Ignition system.

Introduction
The steering system is a group of parts that transmit the movement of the steering wheel to the front,
and sometimes the rear, wheels. The primary purpose of the steering system is to allow the driver to guide the
vehicle. When a vehicle is being driven straight ahead, the steering system must keep it from wandering
without requiring the driver to make constant corrections. The steering system must also allow the driver to
have some road feel (feedback through the steering wheel about road surface conditions). The steering system
must help maintain proper tire-to-road contact. For maximum tire life, the steering system should maintain the
proper angle between the tires both during turns and straight-ahead driving. The driver should be able to turn
the vehicle with little effort, but not so easily that it is hard to control.
Functions of steering systems,
• It helps in swinging the wheels to the left or right.
• It converts the rotary movement of the steering wheel into an angular turn of the front wheels.
• It multiplies the effort of the driver by leverage in order to make it fairly easy to turn the wheels.
• It absorbs a major part of the road shocks thereby preventing them to get transmitted to the hands of the
driver
• It provides directional stability.
• It helps in controlling wear and tear of tires.
• It helps in achieving the self-righting effect.
Requirements of steering system,
• It should multiply the turning effort applied on the steering wheel by the driver.
• It should be to a certain extent irreversible. In other words, the shocks of the road surface encountered
by the wheels should not be transmitted to the driver’s hands.
• The mechanism should have self rightening effect i.e., when the driver releases the steering wheel after
negotiating the turn, the wheel should try to achieve straight ahead position.
Factors influencing on effective steering
1. Factors pertaining to wheels
2. Steering linkage
3. Steering geometry
4. Suspension system.

GENERAL ARRANGEMENT OF STEERING LINKAGES

Based on vehicle type, i.e. a vehicle which has independent front suspension or a vehicle which has a
rigid axle type front suspension (commercial car) different steering linkages is used.
a) Steering Linkage used in the Vehicle with rigid axle front suspension
• The drop arm (also called Pitman arm) is rigidly connected to the cross-shaft of the steering gear at its
upper end, while its lower end is connected to the link rod arm through a ball joint.
• Stub axle is rigidly attached to the other end of link rod arm.
• Each stub axle is has a forged track rod arm rigidly bolted to the wheel axis.
• The other ends of track rod arms are connected to track rod by means of ball joints.

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b) Steering Linkage used for Independent front suspension

• In case of conventional rigid axle suspension, the main axle beam ensures the movement of stub
axle in the horizontal plane only, there is no vertical deflection of the suspension and hence there
is no change in the effective track-rod length.
• In case of Independent suspension, the two stub axles can move up or down independent of each
other due to which distance between ball-joint ends of the two track rod arms is continuously
varying.
• Here three piece track rod is used , the centre portion being called relay rod is used , which is
connected at one end to the idler arm supported on body structure and to drop arm of steering
gear at the other end through ball joints

STEERING GEOMETRY
The term "steering geometry" (also known as "front-end geometry") refers to the angular Relationship
between suspension and steering parts, front wheels, and the road surface. Because alignment deals with angles
and affects steering, the method of describing alignment measurements is called steering geometry. To secure
easy steering, smooth operation, and several front wheel alignment factors must be considered such as camber,
king-pin or steering axis inclination, caster, toe in and toe out and turning circles (angles) etc.

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1.CAMBER.

Camber angle is the inclination between the centre line of the tyre and the vertical. If the wheels are
inclined or tilted outward at the top, it is called "positive camber", and if the wheels are inclined inward at the
top, it is called "negative camber". It is also called as 'wheel rake angle’.
Front wheels are not mounted parallel to each other, instead they are tilted slightly outward at the top.
This is done to prevent the top of the wheels from tilting inward too much due to excessive loads or play in the
king pins and wheel bearings.
• Camber angle is usually less than 2° and exact amount depends upon king pin inclination
Effect:
• Tyre will wear more on one side than the other side, when it is tilted inward or outward.
• The positive camber causes the tyre to roll like a truncated cone.
• The positive camber makes the wheel to toe out and tyre will wear more on the outer side.
• The negative camber makes the wheels toe-in and tyre will wear more on the inner side.
• Initially the wheels are provided with positive camber, after loading automatically they comes to
vertical position.
It is clear that, when the vehicle is running with average load, zero camber angle gives maximum tyre
life. If the two front wheels are not provided with equal camber, the vehicle will try to pull towards the side
where the camber is higher. In the same way, if the wheels are provided with equal camber, the crowned road
has a tendency to pull away the vehicle to the side of the road. To obviate this, usually slight higher camber is
provided on the right wheel in case of right drive vehicles which have to move on the left side. For left hand
drive vehicles, left wheel is sided with higher camber.

2. KING PIN INCLINATION OR STEERING AXIS INCLINATION

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Inclination of the king pin from vertical is called the king pin inclination or king pin rake. [i.e. the angle
between verticle and king pin or ball joint centre line]. In case of king pin, this is called king pin inclination and
if ball joints are used, then it is called steering axis inclination (SAI). SAI is non adjustable, since it would
change only if the wheel spindle or steering knuckle are bent
• The king pin inclination is kept about 7 to 8 degrees and exact amount depends upon wheel rake angle.
Effect:
• King pin inclination in combination with caster provides directional stability.
• Helps the straight ahead recover and provide directional stability.
When the vehicle turns, the vehicle body is lifted up slightly due to king pin inclination. After
completing the turn, driver leaves the steering wheel and vehicle weight causes the wheels to
recover straight ahead position.
• This king pin inclination also uses suspension shocks to be transmitted to and absorbed by the
heavy inner spindle and knuckle assembly.

3. INCLUDED ANGLE(or Combined angle) AND SCRUB RADIUS

Included angle (or combined angle); It is the angle obtained in the vertical plane between the wheel
centre line and the king pin or ball joint centre line. It is equal to camber plus king pin inclination.
Scrub Radius; The king pin centre line when extended meets the road surface near the tyre centre line.
The distance between these two centre lines at the point where they intersect on the road surface is called
"Scrub Radius". It is positive when steering axis or ball joint centre line meets the road surface inside the tyre
centre line. If it meets the road surface outside the tyre centre line, the scrub radius is negative. A small scrub
radius is desirable as it reduces steering wheel shock from road irregularities and reduce steering effort.
o Combined angle varies from 9 to 10 degrees and scrub radius ranges up to 12 mm.
Effect:
• A negative scrub radius causes the wheel to toe- in as in figure.
• A positive scrub radius causes the wheel to toe -out as in figure.
• A zero scrub radius keeps the wheel in straight position without any tendency to toe in or toe out
as in figure. In this case, wheel centre line and king pin or ball joint centre line exactly meets on
the ground. This condition is called "centre point steering".
By experience, it has been proved that, if the ball joint centre line and wheel centre line meets
below the ground, it gives best results.
If both the wheels are not provided with equal combined angle, the vehicle will pull towards the side
where scrub radius is high.

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5. CASTOR

The king pins are tilted slightly from the vertical as shown in figure. The angle between the king pin
centre line and vertical, obtained in the plane of wheel is called the castor angle. If the king pin centre line
contacts the ground at a point in front of the wheel centre line, it is called Positive Castor, if it meets behind the
wheel centre line it is called Negative Castor.
• The castor angle should not exceed 3 degrees. In modern vehicles negative castor ranges from 2 degrees
to 8 degrees
Example: Caster angle provided on the furniture rollers and on the front wheels of the bicycles, The,
positive castor provided in both these cases causes the wheels to be pulled in any direction.
Effect:
• Positive castor on the car wheels provides directional stability.
• Positive castor increases effort required to turn the steering wheel.
• Positive castor increases the tendency to toe- in
• Negative castor on the car wheels provides poor directional stability.
• Extremely negative castor would cause wheel shimmy and cupped wear of front tires.
• Negative castor increases the tendency to toe- out. .
6. TOE-IN AND TOE- OUT CONDITIONS

Fig. Toe-in Fig. Toe-out

Toe-in; Front wheels are set closer together at the front than at the rear when the vehicle is stationary.

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Toe- in is nothing but the difference between the centre to centre distances of the rear ends and the front
ends i.e. (B - A)
Toe-out; Front wheels are set closer together at the rear than at the front when the vehicle is stationary.
Toe- out is nothing but the difference between the centre to centre distances of the front ends and the
rear ends i.e. (A - B)
• Toe-in initially provided generally does not exceed 3mm
Effect-
• Increase in toe-in would result in decreased oversteer and increased directional stability at high
speeds, whereas increase in toe-out would result in reduced understeer and greater ease in
steering during cornering.
• Excessive toe in or toe out will cause tyre wear.
• In rear wheel drive, Tire rolling resistance produces some drag which results in rearward
movement of the suspension arms against their bushings. To compensate this some toe-in is
provided, so that the tires run parallel to each other.
• In front wheel drive, front axle pulls the vehicle through itself, resulting in forward movement of
the suspension arms against their bushings to compensate which toe-out is provided.

STEERING GEARS
The steering gear is a device for converting the rotary motion of the steering wheel into straight line motion
of the linkage with a mechanical advantage.
If the steering wheel is connected directly to the steering linkage it would require a great effort to move the
front wheels. Therefore, to assist the driver, a reduction system is used having a steering ratio (the ratio between
the turn of the steering wheel in degrees or handlebars and the turn of the wheels in degrees ) between 10:1 to
24:1 the actual value depending upon the type and weight of the vehicle.
A higher steering ratio means that you have to turn the steering wheel more, to get the wheels turning, but it
will be easier to turn the steering wheel. A lower steering ratio means that you have to turn the steering wheel
less, to get the wheels turning, but it will be harder to turn the steering wheel. Larger and heavier vehicles like
trucks will often have a higher steering ratio, which will make the steering wheel easier to turn. In normal and
lighter cars, the wheels becomes easier to turn, so the steering ratio doesn't have to be as high. In race cars the
ratio becomes really low, because you want the vehicle to respond a lot quicker than in normal cars.

The steering gears are enclosed in a box, called the steering gear box. There are many different designs of
steering gear box. They are as follows:
1. Worm and wheel steering gear 4. Worm and nut or screw and nut steering gear
2. Worm and sector steering gear 5. Rack and pinion steering gear
3. Recirculating ball steering gear 6. Cam and roller or worm and roller steering gear

1. WORM AND WHEEL STEERING GEAR

The system consists of worm wheel which is carried in bearings in a cast iron case. The case is
made in halves. The outer end of the worm wheel is fixed to a drop arm which is having ball end to
connect the side rod. The side rod is connected to the steering arm which is fixed to the stub axles. The
worm which is keyed on to a steering shaft has a mesh with the worm wheel. The steering wheel is
mounted at the upper end of the steering shaft. When driver rotates the steering wheel then drop arm
moves either backward or forward direction. This motion results in motion of the stub axles.

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2. WORM AND SECTOR STEERING GEAR

In this type of steering box, the end of the shaft from the steering wheel has a worm gear
attached to it. It meshes directly with a sector gear (so called because it's a section of a full gear wheel).
When the steering wheel is turned, the shaft turns the worm gear, and the sector gear pivots around its
axis as its teeth are moved along the worm gear. The sector gear is mounted on the cross shaft which
passes through the steering box and out the bottom where it is splined, and the pitman arm is attached to
the splines. When the sector gear turns, it turns the cross shaft, which turns the pitman arm, giving the
output motion that is fed into the mechanical linkage on the track rod. The box itself is sealed and filled
with grease. In actual case, the worm wheel is not essential as it is having only partial rotation. Hence in
this type only a sector of wheel is used instead of worm wheel.

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3. RECIRCULATING BALL TYPE STEERING GEAR

It consists of a worm at the end of steering rod. A nut is mounted on the worm with two sets of
balls in the grooves of the worm, in between the nut and, the worm. The balls reduce the friction during
the movement of the nut on the worm. The nut has a number of teeth on outside, which mesh with the
teeth on a worm wheel sector, on which is further mounted the drop arm.
When the steering wheel is turned, the balls in the worm roll in the grooves and cause the nut to
travel along the length of the worm. The balls, which are in 2 sets, are recirculated through the guides.
The movement of the nut causes the wheel sector to turn at an angle and actuate the link rod through the
drop arm, resulting in the desired steering of the wheels. The end play of the worm can be adjusted by
means of the adjuster nut provided.
To compensate for the wear of the teeth on the nut and the worm, the two have to be brought
nearer bodily. To achieve this, the teeth on the nut are made tapered in the plane perpendicular to the
plane of Figure

4. WORM AND NUT TYPE STEERING GEAR

It consists of a worm and a ball nut and these are arranged as shown in fig. The rotation of
steering wheel turns the worm and hence the nut moves along its length. This movement of the nut
actuates the drop arm end to move linearly and thus actuates the link rod and swivels the wheel.

5. RACK-AND-PINION STEERING

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Rack-and-pinion steering is quickly becoming the most common type of steering on cars, small
trucks and SUVs. On most cars, it takes three to four complete revolutions of the steering wheel to make
the wheels turn from lock to lock (from far left to far right).
The rack-and-pinion gear set does two things:
• It converts the rotational motion of the steering wheel into the linear motion needed to
turn the wheels.
• It provides a gear reduction, making it easier to turn the wheels.
A rack-and-pinion gear set is enclosed in a metal tube, with each end of the rack protruding from
the tube. A rod, called a tie rod, connects to each end of the rack. The pinion gear is attached to the
steering shaft. When you turn the steering wheel, the gear spins, moving the rack. The tie rod at each
end of the rack connects to the steering arm on the spindle.
Some cars have variable-ratio steering, which uses a rack-and-pinion gear set that has a different
tooth pitch (number of teeth per inch) in the center than it has on the outside. This makes the car
respond quickly when starting a turn (the rack is near the center), and also reduces effort near the wheels
turning limits.

6. WORM AND ROLLER STEERING GEAR

Here a two toothed roller is fastened to the cross-shaft so that it meshes with the threads of the
worm gear. The worm gear is formed on the bottom end of the steering wheel shaft. Worm is fastened
between the two ball bearings in the casing. The outer end of the cross-shaft is formed in the spindle to
fix the drop arm. When the worm gear is turned by the steering wheel shaft, it causes the roller to move
in an arc so as to rotate the cross-shaft and at the same time turn on the roller pin connecting it to the
cross-shaft. The casing of the system is fixed with the column and generally bolted to the frame.
Similarly there can be other design of steering gears which may use one or- three-tooth rollers

POWER STEERING
Larger amount of torque is required to be applied by the driver for steering of medium and heavy
vehicles. Power steering system provides automatic power assistance(Hydraulic or Electric) to the turning effort
applied to the manual steering system. The power system is designed to become operative when the effort at
wheel exeeds a predetermined value, say 10N. The driver is able to steer the vehicle manually, if the power
system fails also.
Advantages,
• Steering effort is considerably reduced.
• High degree of steering response,
• The hydraulics of the power steering system absorbs the road shocks. Thus in a power- steered vehicle,
there is less driver-fatigue.
• Vehicle can be controlled quickly and effortlessly. Thus power steering leads to greater safety.

Power steering has two types of device for steering effort one type is a hydraulic device utilizing engine
power. The other type utilizes an electric motor. For the former, the engine is used to drive a pump. For the

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latter, an independent electric motor in the front luggage compartment is used the pump. Both develop fluid
pressure, and this pressure acts on a piston within the power cylinder so that the pinion assists the rack effort.
The amount of this assistance depends on the extent of pressure acting on the piston. Therefore, if more steering
force is required, the pressure must be raised. The variation in the fluid pressure is accomplished by a control
valve which is linked to the steering main shaft.

1) HYDRAULIC POWER STEERING (HPS)

Is a hydraulic system for reducing the steering effort on vehicles by using hydraulic pressure to
assist in turning the wheels. It is intended to provide for easier driving direction control of the car while
preserving "feedback", stability and unambiguity of the trajectory specified. The working liquid, also
called "hydraulic fluid" or "oil", is the medium by which pressure is transmitted. Common working
liquids are based on mineral oil. For pressure restriction in the pump there is a restrictive valve, which is
adjusted on different cars in a range from 7 to 13 MPa.

The figure shows a simplified diagram of hydraulic booster. The arrangement consists of a worm
and worm-wheel, distributor slide valve, booster cylinder etc. When the steering wheel is turned, the
worm turns the sector of worm wheel and hence actuates the arm. The arm in turn actuates the road
wheels through drag link. If the resistance offered to turn the wheels is too high and driver's effort to the
steering wheel is too weak, then the worm, like a screw in a nut will be displaced axially together with
the distributor slide valve. The axial movement will admit compressed air or oil in to booster cylinder
through the pipeline. The piston in the booster cylinder will turn the road wheels via the gear rack, the
toothed worm sector, arm and drag link. In the mean time, the worm sector will actuate the worm and
will shift it along with distribution slide valve to its initial position. This movement of slide valve will
stop the piston travel in the booster cylinder. Here the system uses power assistance in proportion to the
effort needed to turn the wheels.

2) ELECTRIC POWER STEERING (EPS OR EPAS)

In an electronic power steering system, steering sensor consisting of in fact two sensors, viz., a
‘torque sensor’ that converts the steering torque input and its direction into voltage signals, and a
‘rotations sensor’ that converts the rotation speed and direction into voltage signals, is located on the
input shaft of the steering gear box.
Inputs from the steering sensor and the vehicle speed sensor are fed to a microprocessor control
unit where these are compared with a preprogrammed force assist map. The control unit then sends out
the appropriate command signal to the current controller which supplies the appropriate current to the
electric motor. The motor pushes the rack to the right or left depending on in which direction the
current flows. Increasing the current to motor increases the amount of power assist.

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The electronic steering control unit is capable self-diagnosing faults by monitoring the system’s
inputs and outputs and the driving current of electric motor. In case of a problem, the control unit turns
of the entire system by actuating a fail-safe relay in the power unit, the system reverts back to manual
steering and warning light to the dashboard alerts the driver.

HYDRAULIC vs. ELECTRIC POWER STEERING

⚫ Hydraulic Power Steering System is complicated compared with Electric Power Steering
⚫ Hydraulic Power Steering System usually weighs more than Electric Power Steering
⚫ Hydraulic Power Steering uses hydraulic fluids for operation whereas there is no such fluid needed for
Electric Power Steering, thus Electric Power Steering needs less maintenance compared to hydraulic
power steering.
⚫ Electric Power Steering gives better response at different speeds as compared to Hydraulic Power
Steering
⚫ Eclectic Power Steering is less prone to problems and faults and are more durable as compared to
Hydraulic power steering.
⚫ Hydraulic power steering extracts power from engine, so it reduces the fuel mileage of the engine.
Electric power steering consumes power from battery which is also charged by engine, but it consumes
less power compared to Hydraulic power steering. So a car having Electric power steering will give
more mileage than one with Hydraulic power steering.

FRONT AXLE
The front axle is designed to transmit the weight of the automobile from the springs to the front wheels,
turning right or left as required. Front axle includes the axle-beam, stub-axles with brake assemblies and stub-
axle arm.
• It facilitates steering
• It absorbs shocks which are transmitted due to road surface irregularities
• It absorbs torque applied on it due to braking of vehicle

TYPES OF FRONT AXLE

Usually there are two main types of the front axles;
1) Live front axle 2) Dead front axle

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1) Live front axle;

A live front axle contains the differential mechanism through which the engine power flows
towards the front wheels. For steering the front wheels, constant velocity joints are contained in the axle
half shafts. Without affecting the power flow through the half shafts, these joints help in turning the stub
axles around the king-pin. Maruthi-800 has live front axle.

2) Dead front axle;

The front axles are generally dead axles, which does not transmit power. The front wheel hubs
rotate on antifriction bearings of tapered-roller type on the steering spindles, which are an integral part
of steering knuckles. To permit the wheels to be turned by the steering gear, the steering spindle and
steering knuckle assemblies are hinged on the end of axle. The pin that forms the pivot of this hinge is
known as king pin or steering knuckle pin.
• In which there is no connection with the engine and having no differential mechanism.
• These axles have sufficient rigidity and strength to take the weight.
• The ends of the front axle are suitably designed to accommodate stub axles.

SUSPENSION SYSTEMS
INTRODUCTION
The ability of vehicles to negotiate rough roads and handle well at high speeds is mainly due to proper
design of suspension system. If the axles are bolted directly to the body, any uneven spot in the road would
transmit adjoining force to the vehicle which in turn results in discomfort for riding. Hence the automobile
chassis is mounted on the axle through springs. This is done to isolate shocks on the vehicle body from road.
The parts which perform the function of isolating the vehicle from road shocks are called suspension system.
The main objectives of the suspension system are
1. To prevent the road shocks from being transmitted to the vehicle parts, thereby providing suitable riding and
cushioning effect to the occupants.
2. Reduces wear on the tyre.
3. To keep the vehicle stable while in motion by providing good road holding during driving, cornering and

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braking.
4. Provides safe vehicle control and free of irritating vibrations.
5. To preserve the stability of the vehicle in pitching or rolling.

Requirements of a suspension system

• Low initial cost.
• Minimum weight.
• Minimum tyre wear.
• Minimum deflection consistent with required stability

Elements of suspension system

Spring; it absorbs road shocks or impacts due to bump in road by oscillating. Tyres also provides spring effect,
but to a smaller extent.
Damper; they reduce the tendency of the carriage unit to continue to “bounce” up and down on its springs.
Oscillation due to road shocks are restricted to a reasonable level by damper

BASIC CONSIDERATION
1. Rolling: The centre of gravity of the vehicle will be at certain height above the ground level. A turning
couple about the longitudinal axis of the vehicle will be induced during cornering because of the centrifugal
force acting at C.G. and forces at tyre-road contact surface. These results in a motion called rolling.
2. Brake Dip and Squat
Brake Dip: on braking the nose of the vehicle has a tendency to be lowered or to dip
Squat; Due to torque load during acceleration tend the front of the vehicle to be lifted.
3. Unsprung weight: When the wheels hit a bump, they vibrate along with the unsprung parts which store the
vibration energy and transmit it to the sprung parts through the springs. When the weight of unsprung parts if
greater, it increases energy stored due to vibrations and thus transmits greater shocks to the sprung parts.
Therefore it is necessary to keep the unsprung weight as low as possible.
4. Road holding, The degree to which a vehicle maintains contact with the road surface in various types of
directional changes, e.g. dip, squat, cornering, etc.,

5. Ride and handling,

Ride is the qualitative ability of a vehicle to provide a smooth, comfortable drive on a bumpy road.
Handling is the ability of a vehicle to safely accelerate, brake and corner.
6. Side Thrust: Centrifugal force during cornering, cross-winds, cambering of the road etc., cause a side-thrust
to be applied to the vehicle.
7. Vertical Loading,
When the road wheel comes across a bump or pit on the road, it is subjected to vertical forces, tensile or
compressive, depending on road irregularity.

SPRINGS
Springs are resilient members and as such act as reservoirs of energy. They store the energy due to the
sudden force which comes when vehicle encounters a bump or a ditch. This energy is released subsequently and
with the action of damper, the energy is converted into heat and bounce is avoided. Springs used for suspension
system should absorb road shocks quickly and return to the original position slowly.
Spring Materials. Most springs are made of a tempered steel alloy known as spring steel, usually
chrome silicon or chrome-vanadium alloy

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TYPES OF SUSPENSION SPRINGS

1. Steel springs
a) Leaf spring b) Tapered leaf spring c) Coil spring d) Torsion bar
2. Rubber Spring
a) Compression spring b) Compression - shear spring c) Steel reinforced spring
d) Progressive spring e) Face shear spring.
3. Air springs
a) Bellow type b) piston type.
4. Plastic Spring

1. LEAF SPRING OR LAMINATED SPRINGS

The leaf springs are made up of steel plates of leaves as shown in fig. These are commonly used in
automobile rear suspensions. The leaves are held together at centre by a bolt which passes through holes in the
leaves. Many leaf springs have special springs have special inserts between the leaves to permit the leaves to
slip over one another when the spring bends. The spring leaves are of graduated length as shown; the front end
of the largest leaf is bent into a circle to form a spring eye and is attached to the spring hanger by a bolt. Rubber
bushings are used to provide the insertion to the bolt from the spring hanger. The rubber bushings serve two
purposes.
1. Absorb vibration and thus prevent it from getting up to the vehicle frame.
2. Allow the spring eye to twist back and forth as the leaf spring bends.
The rear end of the spring is also bent to form a spring eye. This spring eye is attached to the car frame
through a spring shackle. The shackle allows for changes in the length of the leaf spring as it bends. As the
spring is pushed upward or downward by bumps or holes in the road, the distance between the two spring eye
changes. The shackle acts as a swinging support that permits, this change in length.
• It produces squeaking sound
• They are also called as Semi elliptical springs as they are bent in that form.
• They are made from strips of spring steel.

3. COIL SPRING
A section of spring steel rod wound in spiral pattern or shape. Widely used in both Front and Rear
suspension systems. Like large metal bed springs, these coils cushion and absorb the shocks and bumps as the
vehicle is driven.
Nowadays coil springs have become very popular because of the limitations involved in leaf spring. Fig.
shows a front suspension system using coil springs. In the system shown, the coil spring is held between a
spring seat in the car frame and a lower control arm. The inner ends of control arms are pivoted on the car
frame, the outer ends are connected to the steering knuckle. This in turn is attached to the control arms. The ball
joints used to allow the steering knuckles to swing to the left or right for steering. In the assembled car, the
wheels are mounted from left to right pivot the front wheels, so that the car can be steered.
• The energy stored per unit volume is almost double in the case of coil springs than the leaf springs.
• The spring takes the shear as well as bending stresses and cannot take torque reaction and side thrust.
• Coil spring do not have noise problems,
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Fig. Coil spring

3. TORSION BARS
A torsion bar is a solid bar of steel which is connected to the car chassis at one end, and free to move at
the other end. They can be mounted across the car or along the car .The springing motion is provided by the
metal bar's resistance to twisting.
It is a simple rod which is acting in torsion and takes shear stresses only. It nearly stores the same
amount of energy per unit weight as that of coil springs. Torsion bar is often used with independent
suspensions.
When compared with other systems, it is lighter and occupies less space. Torsion tubes may also be
used instead of torsion bars. One end of torsion bar is fixed to the frame, while the other end is fixed to the end
of the wheel arm the supported in bearing. The wheel arm is connected to the wheel hub. When the wheel hits
a bump, it starts vibrating up and down and produces a torque on torsion bar, which acts as a spring.

Fig. Torsion bars

The two disadvantages associated with the use of torsion bar are.
i) It does not take braking or driving torque.
ii) No friction force exist, no damping and hence no control of vibrations produced due to road shocks.

INDEPENDENT SUSPENSION
Independent suspension is a broad term for any automobile suspension system that allows each wheel
on the same axle to move vertically independently of each other.
Advantages;
• Lighter springs can be used in case of independent suspension
• Improved steering precision since wheel movements are not linked.
• It reduces the tyre scrub and hence increases tyre life.
• It improves ride comfort.
Disadvantages;
• Greater maintenance required because of larger number of bearings.
• More rigid sub-frame or chassis frame required.
• Misalignment of steering geometry with the wear of components, thus requiring more frequent attention

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1. FRONT WHEEL (DEAD AXLE) INDEPENDENT SUSPENSION

Five types of independent suspension are in use for front axle:
a) Wishbone type or parallel link type
b) Mac Pherson strut type
c) Vertical guide type.
d) Trailing link type.
e) Swinging half-axle type.

a) Wishbone type or parallel link type

Fig. Wishbone type independent suspension with coil springs.

It consists of upper and the lower wishbone arms pivoted to the frame member. These arms
resemble letter ‘A’ of the Roman due to which these are also referred to as ‘A-arms’. The spring is
placed in between the lower wishbone and underside of the cross-member. The vehicle weight is
transmitted from the body and the cross- member to the coil spring through which it goes to the lower
wishbone member. A shock absorber is placed inside the coil spring and is attached to the cross-
member and to lower wishbone member.
The wishbone arms are like the chicken wishbone or letter V in shape, because of which the
system is so called. Because of this V-shape, the wishbones not only position the wheels and transmit
the vehicle load to the springs, but these also resist acceleration, braking and cornering (side) forces.
The upper arms are shorter in length then the lower ones. This helps to keep the wheel track constant,
thereby avoiding the tyre scrub thus minimising tyre wear. However, a small change in the camber
angle dose occurs with such an arrangement.

b) Mac pherson strut type of suspension

In this layout, only lower wishbones are used. A strut containing shock absorber and the spring
carries also the stub axle on which the wheel is mounted. The wishbone is hinged to the cross member
and positions the wheel as well as resists accelerating, braking and side forces. This system is simpler
than double wishbone type, and is also lighter, keeping the unsprung weight lower. Further, the camber
also does not change when the wheel moves up and down. This type suspension gives the maximum
room in the engine compartment and is, therefore, commonly used on front wheel drive cars.
Advantages:-
• Strut body carries spring assembly and compact
• Simple mounting and no need for an upper control arm
• Reduction in fasteners and alignment of vehicle suspension components.

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Fig. Mac Pherson strut suspension

c) Swinging half axle suspension

In this wheels are mounted rigidly on the half axles, which are pivoted on their ends to the chassis
member at the middle of the car. The main disadvantage of this system is that up and down movement of the
wheel cause the camber angle to vary.

Advantages ( Independent front suspension );

• Bigger deflection of front wheels, no reaction on steering
• Greater distance for resisting rolling action
• Front axle (small-stub), improves road holding tendency of tyres.
• Minimum vibrations
Disadvantages;
• Better shock absorber required.
• Expensive
• Tyre wear increases due to transmission of torque

2. REAR WHEEL (LIVE AXLE) INDEPENDENT SUSPENSION

Though the rear wheels are not to be steered, yet there is a considerable difficulty in the rear
wheel springing if the power has to be transmitted to the rear wheels. But even the rear wheel
independent springing is coming into prominence because of its distinct advantages over the rigid axle
type.

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a) de Dion type of axle

Fig. de Dion axle

Above fig. shows one method of rear wheel independent suspension. Universal couplings A and
B keep the wheel vertical, while the sliding coupling C is required to maintain the wheel track constant,
thereby avoiding scrubbing of the tyres. This method has been used in the de Dion type of axle.

b) Trailing link independent rear suspension

Fig. Trailing link independent rear suspension

In this the trailing links are pivoted at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the car and carry
the rear wheel at their ends as shown in the figure. A’s and B’s are the universal joints to keep the wheel
track and the camber constant with the up and down movement of the wheel. S’s are the coil springs
with shock absorbers mounted concentrically within them. The trailing links hold the wheels firmly and
also sustain accelerating and braking forces. A trailing link or arm runs from a point forward on the
floorpan back to the wheel assembly, while a leading link or arm is mounted to the floorpan behind the
wheel. Although the camber remains constant with respect to the vehicle body, yet when the vehicle
rolls into a corner, the trailing arm rolls for the same degree as the vehicle body, thus changing camber
angle with respect to the road surface. As both wheel now lean towards the outside of the corner, it
leads to understeer. Due to this reason, pure trailing arm is not being used.

Advantages ( Independent rear suspension);

• Lesser unsprung weight – improves ride , reduces tyre wear.
• Increased passenger space
• Rear wheels remain stable
Disadvantages;
• Increased cost
• Complicated design
• Steering action is not proper
AIR SUSPENSION SYSTEM
Air or pneumatic suspension is incorporated in some tourist buses to improve the riding comfort of the
passengers.
The air suspension system posses the following advantages over conventional metal springs.

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1. The spring rate varies much less between laden and un laden conditions This decreases dynamic loading
2. Changes in head lamp alignment due to change in load are avoided.
3. It improves riding comfort to the passengers.
4 .Longer service life of the vehicle due to improved smoothness of run
In air suspension system, four air springs (air bags) which may be of bellow type or piston type are used
instead of coil springs. The atmospheric air passes through a filter and compressor raises its pressure to about
24kg / mm2- and air at this pressure is accumulated in an accumulator. The relief valve in the accumulator tank
acts as a safety valve. This high pressure air then enters to the air springs through lift control valve and
levelling valves, to the air springs as shown. The lift control valve is operated manually by means of a handle
on the control panel, though a cable running from the valve to the handle.

Fig. Layout of air suspension system

IGNITION SYSTEM
INTRODUCTION
The primary purpose of the ignition system of a small gasoline engine is to provide sufficient electrical
voltage to discharge a spark between the electrodes of the spark plug. The spark must occur at exactly the right
time to ignite the highly compressed air-fuel mixture in the engine’s combustion chamber.
The ignition system must be capable of producing as many as 30,000 volts to force electrical current
across the spark plug gap. The intense heat created by the electrons jumping the gap ignites the air-fuel mixture
surrounding the electrodes
Ignition system function
• Produces 30,000 volt spark across spark plug
• Distributes high voltage spark to each spark plug in correct sequence
• Times the spark so it occurs as piston is nearing top dead centre
• Varies spark timing with load, speed, and other conditions

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Factors affecting ignition

• The efficiency of ignition strongly depends on the spark characteristics such as total spark energy, the
evolution of the current-voltage ratio and the spark duration.
• The characteristics of spark in turn depend on the local air-fuel ratio at the spark gap at the time of
ignition, flow velocity, turbulence parameters and non-adiabatic effects such as heat transfer to the
electrodes and cylinder walls.
Ignition system requirements
• The spark plug must produce spark regularly.
• The spark should be sufficiently strong so as to initiate ignition of the charge.
• The system should be compact and light and must be easy to maintain.
• A source of electric energy.

IGNITION SYSTEM TYPES

Basically Convectional Ignition systems are of 2 types:
a) Battery or Coil Ignition System, and
b) Magneto Ignition System.
Both these conventional, ignition systems work on mutual electromagnetic induction principle.
Battery ignition system was generally used in 4-wheelers, but now-a-days it is more commonly used in 2-
wheelers also (i.e. Button start, 2-wheelers like Pulsar, Kinetic Honda, Honda-Activa, Scooty, Fiero, etc.). In
this case 6 V or 12 V batteries will supply necessary current in the primary winding. Magneto ignition system is
mainly used in 2-wheelers, kick start engines. (Example, Bajaj Scooters, Boxer, Victor, Splendor, Passion, etc.). In
this case magneto will produce and supply current to the primary winding. So in magneto ignition system
magneto replaces the battery.

BATTERY OR COIL IGNITION SYSTEM

Figure shows line diagram of battery ignition system for a 4-cylinder petrol engine. It mainly consists of
a 6 or 12 volt battery, ammeter, ignition switch, auto-transformer (step up transformer), contact breaker,
capacitor, distributor rotor, distributor contact points, spark plugs, etc. and here there are 4-spark plugs and
contact breaker cam has 4-corners. (If it is for 6cylinder engine it will have 6-spark plugs and contact breaker
cam will be a perfect hexagon).
The ignition system is divided into 2-circuits:
1.Primary Circuit : It consists of 6 or 12 V battery, ammeter, ignition switch, primary winding it has 200-300
turns of 20 SWG (Sharps Wire Gauge) gauge wire, contact breaker, capacitor.
2. Secondary Circuit: It consists of secondary winding. Secondary winding consists of about 21000 turns of
40 (S WG) gauge wire. Bottom end of which is connected to bottom end of primary and top end of secondary
winding is connected to centre of distributor rotor. Distributor rotors rotate and make contacts with contact
points and are connected to spark plugs which are fitted in cylinder heads (engine earth).
Working : When the ignition switch is closed and engine in cranked, as soon as the contact breaker closes, a
low voltage current will flow through the primary winding. It is also to be noted that the contact beaker cam
opens and closes the circuit 4-times (for 4 cylinders) in one revolution. When the contact breaker opens the
contact, the magnetic field begins to collapse. Because of this collapsing magnetic field, current will be induced
in the secondary winding. And because of more turns (@ 21000 turns) of secondary, voltage goes unto 28000-
30000 volts.
This high voltage current is brought to centre of the distributor rotor. Distributor rotor rotates and supplies this
high voltage current to proper stark plug depending upon the engine firing order. When the high voltage current
jumps the spark plug gap, it produces the spark and the charge is ignited-combustion starts-products of
combustion expand and produce power

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Fig. Battery coil ignition system

Note :
The Function of the capacitor is to reduce arcing at the contact breaker (CB) points. Also when the CB opens
the magnetic field in the primary winding begins to collapse. When the magnetic field is collapsing capacitor
gets fully charged and then it starts discharging and helps in building up of voltage in secondary winding.
Contact breaker cam and distributor rotor are mounted on the same shaft. In 2-stroke cycle engines these are
motored at the same engine speed. And in 4-stroke cycle engines they are motored at half the engine speed.

Advantages,
1. It produces better sparks at low speeds of the engine i.e., during starting and idling.
2. The maintenance cost is negligible except for the battery.
3. The intensity of spark is not affected by advance and retard positions of timing control mechanism.
4. Simple distributor set.
5. The initial cost is low.
Disadvantages:
1. If battery runs down, the engine will not start.
2. The system weight is greater than magneto type.
3. The system wiring is much more complicated than magneto type.
4. The sparking voltage drops with increasing speed of the engine.

MAGNETO IGNITION SYSTEM

The magneto is a special type of electric generator produces and supplies the current in the primary
winding. The basic components of the magneto ignition system consist of a magneto, breaker points, condenser,
ignition switch, distributor, spark plug leads, and spark plugs. The battery and ignition coil of the battery have
been replaced by a compact magneto.
Basically magneto is of two types
1. Rotating armature type 2. Rotating magnet type.

1) Rotating Armature type

In this type, the armature consisting of primary and secondary windings and condensers, all rotate
between the poles of a stationary permanent magnet. The primary winding like the ignition coil has a few
hundred turns of thick wire while the secondary winding consists of some thousand turns of thin wire. The
contact breaker and condenser are also inserted into the primary circuit and rotated with the armature.
As the armature rotates, the magnetic flux in the armature core reaches zero and maximum. As the
magnetic flux alternately builds up and break down a voltage is induced in the primary and secondary coils.
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The change in flux is not rapid enough to induce the high potential required to overcome the resistance of the
air gap in the spark plug. Therefore, a means of creating a more rapid breakdown of the magnetic field is
required if current is to flow in the secondary coil.
An increase in the rate of magnetic flux break down is accomplished by means of breaker points and a
condenser. The breaker points are actuated by a cam attached to the rotor of the magneto. When the breaker
points are closed, current flows in the primary circuit. When this current reaches its maximum, the breaker
points are opened by the action of the cam and condenser is charged. The rapid discharge of the condenser
produces an instantaneous break down of the magnetic flux. The very rapid break down induces a very high
voltage, 10,000 to 20,000 volts in the secondary circuit. As usual the distributor rotor distributes this high
voltage to each spark plug according to firing order of the engine and hence ignite the charge in the combustion
chamber. The breaking of primary circuit, the motion of rotor, rotation of distributor arm all must be timed
very accurately to produce spark in each cylinder at the proper time. The engine is stopped by closing the
ignition switch and grounding the primary circuit.

Fig. Rotating armature type

2)Rotating Magnet type:
The working of this system is same as that of rotating armature type. Here magnet is made to rotate.
The alloys used for magnets are Nifal, Alnico, Alcomax etc.
The advantages of this type are
1) Larger size armature may be use, gives more space for insulation.
2) As armature remains stationary, no centrifugal stresses occur in the winding.
3) Contact breaker and condenser are also stationary.

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Fig. Rotating Magnet Type

.;
Fig. Rotating Magnet Type

COMPARISON BETWEEN BATTERY AND MAGNETO IGNITION SYSTEM

Battery Ignition Magneto Ignition
Battery is a must. No battery needed.
Magneto produces the required current for primary
Battery supplies current in primary circuit.
circuit.
A good spark is available at low speed also During starting the quality of spark is poor
Recharging is a must in case battery gets discharged. No such arrangement required.
Mostly employed in car and bus for which it is
Used on motorcycles, scooters, etc.
required to crank the engine.
Battery maintenance is required. No battery maintenance problems.
It occupies more space. It occupies less space.
Engine starting is much easier Engine starting is difficult

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ELECTRONIC IGNITION SYSTEM USING CONTACT BREAKER

a) Transistorised Ignition system

Fig. Schematic diagram of a transistor ignition system

For a transistor, the input and output resistance changes depending on the way in which it is connected
into the circuit. The basic parts of a transistor are base, emitter and collector.
A single electric source supplies current to E-B circuit and E-C circuit as in figure. The base current is
only a fraction of collector current, but the collector current cannot exist without base current. If the current
flow in the base circuit is interrupted, causes interruption of large current flow in the collector circuit. This is
used as an alternate for the breaker points and condenser of a conventional ignition system.
The above figure shows schematic arrangement of a Transistor assisted Contact system (TAC) in which
contact point is included. The current flow across the contact points is considerably reduced. The base is
connected to contact points. The collector is connected to the primary winding in the ignition coil and the
emitter is grounded. When the cam operates, contact breaker points opens and base current i.e., primary circuit
current is interrupted, thereby induces high voltage in the secondary.
The advantage of this system is that the contact points carry only small amount of current (about1/15th)
compared to conventional ignition contacts. This helps in improving the life of the contact points considerably.
In the coil, high energy can be stored as coil current is not limited by contact points.

Advantages;
• Longer life of the ignition system
• Reduces the power loss and fuel consumption.
• Reduces hydro carbon emissions from the engine.

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