Re: measuring peak voltage

Andy C wrote:

hi there,
we have a batch of voltage regulators for motorcycles which are meant to
regulate the battery charging voltage to approx 14volts max... i suspect
they are occasionally putting out 'spikes' of higher voltage which keeps
blowing bulbs on the bikes they are fitted to...
can anyone think of an inexpensive way (or already available kit or
instrument perhaps) whereby we can fit something to a bike... take it

for a

ride... and it will record the peak voltage so we can prove they are

faulty

?
many thanks !
andy



It might be easier and cheaper to simply fix the problem than to analyze

it. A 15 volt zener diode at the bulb would surely do it. Higher voltage
spikes don't strike me as a likely cause of bulb failure. Vibration and bulb
design are more likely candidates. What about an LED replacement for the
incandescent bulb(s)?

Chuck


Hi Chuck,
thanks for that - we are having a nightmare with this ! the problem is
occuring on a whole batch of bikes from one specific manufacturer, they seem
to have in common that they all have the same voltage regulator and similar
wiring loom.
on some of the bikes the bulbs will blow every 15 or 20 mins.... on a test
bike i've tried LED bulbs and they seem to fix the problem except for the
headlight bulb for which i presume there is no LED possible replacement...
to try to eliminate vibration and bulb quality as the possible cause i've
previously tried physically soldering a halogen headlight bulb directly into
the wiring and mounting it solely (but securely) with silicone... this
lasted a little longer but still blew after a while - i can only think it is
the regulator... the regulators charge the battery at 14.8 volts - other
bike regulators seem to be more like 14.0... do you think 14.8 is too high?
how would the 15 volt zener diode work ?
many thanks again,
andy


check the battery connection.
if you lose the connection the alternator will run wild.
make sure the accessory line to th rest of the bike is
secure from the battery connection. it's possible the
alternator is connected to the battery higher up in the
circuit. a bad module plug can also cause this.


--
"I'm never wrong, once i thought i was, but was mistaken"
Real Programmers Do things like this.
http://webpages.charter.net/jamie_5

.

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