CP Fitters' Phase 2 Apprenticeship Training

The Sterling Engine is a simple piece of engineering that runs on hot and cold air.

The engine has very few parts:

• Cylinder
• Displacer Piston
• Diaphragm
• Flywheel
• Crankshaft.

When the bottom of the Cylinder is heated the air will rise pushing the Piston to the top of the Cylinder. When the Piston reaches top dead center the Diaphragm pulls all the hot air in, the Piston drops back down to Bottom Dead Center and the Diaphragm pushes the hot air back into the Cylinder. This process is constantly repeated. 

> means greater than -example 2 > 1

< means less than - example 1 < 2

≤ means less than or equal to.

≥ means greater than or equal to.

Lambda, a letter from the Greek alpahbet. In automotive engineering, it is used to represent the stoichiometric ratio of the amount of air required to burn a fuel. For example, for diesel, the value is approximately 14.5:1, meaning that it takes 14.5 parts of air to burn 1 part of diesel.

The stoichiometric ratio for petrol is approximately 14.7:1.

This is a Perkins designation, and refers to the 1100 series engine. The '4' refers to a four cylinder engine, and the 'D' refers to the common rail engine.

This engine has full electronic control of the fuel system - common rail with electronic injectors. 

As of April, 2012, we operate 3 of these engines.

This designation refers to the 1100 series Perkins engine. The '6' refers to the number of cylinders, and the 'C' refers to the fuel injection system, which is mechanical, based around a rotary fuel injection pump. This engine is the forerunner of the 1100D common-rail engine. Currently, the section is equipped with 6 1106C engines and 3 1104D engines.

During the electrical module, one of the suggested exercises is to construct various electrical circuits such as parking lamps, headlamps (including relays) and glow plug circuits (including solenoid control).

In order to facilitate this exercise, we use 12V electrical training boards. These are boards of steel construction, with a working tray and a base that can accommodate a 12V battery.

This set up allows apprentices to construct the various circuits, and connect the board to an engine fitted with an alternator.

This set up allows each apprentice to wire up all the basic electrical circuits and components found in a typical plant vehicle.

• You can learn more about the circuits built here
• You can see some pictures from a typical lighting circuit exercise here

This consists of a 12V lamp, with two different terminals. One terminal (the earth terminal) consists of a short cable and a crocodile clip. The other terminal is at the pointed end of the tool. It is used by fastening the crocodile clip to a good earth point, and then using the sharp end of the took to probe wires. If the wires are live, the lamp will glow.

During the induction phase of the course, you will be issued (at your own expense) with a 12V test lamp.

The number '18650' describes a battery, similar in size to an AA battery.

An 18650 is a lithium ion rechargeable battery. The correct name is “18650 cell”.

The 18650 cell has voltage of 3.7v and a capacity of between 1800mAh and 3500mAh.

The cell name is based on its dimensions: the cell is 18mm in diameter and 65mm in length.

For comparison purposes, an AA cell is a 14500 cell - 14mm in diameter and 50mm in length

One of a series of diodes (the 1N4000 series). They are popular, 1 amp, general purpose, silicon rectifier diodes.

During the Phase 2 course, we use these diodes to make half-wave rectifiers, full-wave rectifiers, and to suppress voltage spiking on 30 amp relays in circuits such as the time-delay circuit built as part of the Electrical Module.

• Read more about this diode on Wikipedia
• See this component on the Rapid Website
• Download the Data Sheet for this and the other diodes in the series (1N4001 to 1N4007)