12

Auxiliaries

12.1 Windscreen washers

and wipers
12.1.1 Functional requirements
1
The requirements of the wiper system are simple.
The windscreen must be clean enough to provide
suitable visibility at all times. To do this, the wiper
system must meet the following requirements.

● Efficient removal of water and snow.

● Efficient removal of dirt. 2
● Operate at temperatures from 30 to 80 ° C.
● Pass the stall and snow load test.
● Service life in the region of 1500 000 wipe cycles.
● Resistant to corrosion from acid, alkali and ozone.

In order to meet the above criteria, components of

good quality are required for both the wiper and 3
washer system. The actual method used by the
blades in cleaning the screen can vary, providing
the legally prescribed area of the screen is cleaned.
Figure 12.1 shows five such techniques.
Figure 12.2 shows how the front screen is split
into ‘zones’ and how a ‘non-circular wiping’ tech-
nique is applied. 4

12.1.2 Wiper blades

The wiper blades are made of a rubber compound
and are held on to the screen by a spring in the
wiper arm. The aerodynamic properties of the
wiper blades have become increasingly important 5
due to the design of the vehicle as different air cur- Figure 12.1 Five techniques of moving wiper blades on the
rents flow on and around the screen area. The strip screen
on top of the rubber element is often perforated to
reduce air drag. A good quality blade will have a
contact width of about 0.1 mm. The lip wipes the
surface of the screen at an angle of about 45°. The
12.1.3 Wiper linkages
pressure of the blade on the screen is also important Most wiper linkages consist of series or parallel
as the coefficient of friction between the rubber and mechanisms. Some older types use a flexible rack
glass can vary from 0.8 to 2.5 when dry and 0.1 to and wheel boxes similar to the operating mechan-
0.6 when wet. Temperature and velocity will also ism of many sunroofs. One of the main consider-
affect these figures. ations for the design of a wiper linkage is the point at
318 Automobile electrical and electronic systems
Figure 12.2 Non-circular wiping
Figure 12.3 Two typical wiper linkage layouts
which the blades must reverse. This is because of
the high forces on the motor and linkage at this
time. If the reverse point is set so that the linkage is
at its maximum force transmission angle then the
reverse action of the blades puts less strain on the
system. This also ensures smoother operation.
Figure 12.3 shows two typical wiper linkage lay-
outs, the first figure is shown at the reverse point.
Note that the position of the rotary link and the
angles of the rods are designed to reduce the load-
ing on the motor at this point.
Figure 12.4 shows one method used on some
vehicles together with the cam linkage, which allows
off-screen parking.
Figure 12.4 Wiper linkage used on some vehicles, together
with the cam link which allows off-screen reverse parking
12.1.4 Wiper motors
Most, if not all, wiper motors now in use are the per-
manent magnet motors. The drive is taken via a
worm gear to increase torque and reduce speed.
Three brushes may be used to allow two-speed oper-
ation. The normal speed operates through two-
brushes placed in the usual positions opposite to
each other. For a fast speed, the third brush is placed
closer to the earth brush. This reduces the number of
armature windings between them, which reduces
resistance and hence increases current and therefore
speed. Figure 12.5 shows two typical wiper motors.
Typical specifications for wiper motor speed and
hence wipe frequency are 45 rev/min at normal
speed and 65 rev/min at fast speed. The motor must
be able to overcome the starting friction of each
blade at a minimum speed of 5 rev/min.
The characteristics of a typical car wiper motor
are shown in Figure 12.6. The two sets of curves
indicate fast and slow speed.
Wiper motors, or the associated circuit, often
have some kind of short circuit protection. This is to
protect the motor in the event of stalling, if frozen to
the screen for example. A thermal trip of some type
is often used or a current sensing circuit in the wiper
ECU, if fitted. The maximum time a motor can with-
stand stalled current is normally specified. This is
usually in the region of about 15 minutes.
12.1.5 Windscreen washers
The windscreen washer system usually consists of a
simple DC permanent magnet motor driving a cen-
trifugal water pump. The water, preferably with a
cleaning additive, is directed onto an appropriate
part of the screen by two or more jets. A non-return
valve is often fitted in the line to the jets to prevent

Rear motor with
electronic components
Figure 12.6 Characteristics of a wiper motor; the two sets of
curves indicate fast and slow speed
water siphoning back to the reservoir. This also
allows ‘instant’ operation when the washer button is
pressed. The washer circuit is normally linked to the
wiper circuit such that when the washers are oper-
ated the wipers start automatically and will continue
for several more sweeps after the washers have
stopped. The circuit is shown in the next section.
12.1.6 Washer and wiper circuits
Figure 12.7 shows a circuit for fast, slow and inter-
mittent wiper control. The switches are shown in
the off position and the motor is stopped and in its
park position. Note that the two main brushes of the
motor are connected together via the limit switch,
delay unit contacts and the wiper switch. This
causes regenerative braking because of the current
generated by the motor due to its momentum after
the power is switched off. Being connected to a
very low resistance loads up the ‘generator’ and it
stops instantly when the park limit switch closes.
Auxiliaries 319
Front wiper motor Figure 12.5 Wiper motors
When either the delay contacts or the main switch
contacts are operated the motor will run at slow
speed. When fast speed is selected the third brush on
the motor is used. On switching off, the motor will
continue to run until the park limit switch changes
over to the position shown. This switch is only in the
position shown when the blades are in the parked
position.
A simple capacitor-resistor (CR) timer circuit
often based around a 555 IC or similar integrated
circuit is used to control intermittent wipe. The
charge or discharge time of the capacitor causes a
delay in the operation of a transistor, which in turn
operates a relay with change-over contacts.
Figure 12.8 shows the circuit of a programmed
wiper system. The ECU contains two change-over
relays to enable the motor to be reversed. Also con-
tained in the ECU is a circuit to switch off the
motor supply in the event of the blades stalling. To
reset this the driver’s switch must be returned to the
off position.
12.1.7 Electronic control of
windscreen wipers
Further control of wipers other than just delay is
possible with appropriate electronic control. Manu-
facturers have used programmed electronic control
of the windscreen wipers for a number of years now.
One system consists of a two-speed motor with two
limit switches, one for the park position and one that
operates at the top limit of the sweep. A column
switch is utilized that has positions for wash/wipe,
fast speed, slow speed, flick wipe and delay, and
which has several settings. The heart of this system is
the programmed wiper control unit. An innovative
feature is that the wiper blades may be parked below
the screen. This is achieved by utilizing the top limit
switch to signal the ECU to reverse the motor for
parking. The switch is normally closed and switches
open circuit when the blades reach the ‘A’ post. Due
to the design of the linkage, the arms move further
320 Automobile electrical and electronic systems

Figure 12.7 Wiper circuit with intermittent/delay operation as well as slow and fast speed

Figure 12.8 Programmed washer wipe and variable intermittent wipe circuit

when working in reverse and pull the blades off the
screen. The normal park limit switch stops the motor,
via the ECU in this position.
Some vehicles use a similar system with even
more enhanced facilities. This is regulated by either
a central control unit (CCU) or a multifunction unit
(MFU). These units can often control other systems
as well as the wipers, thus allowing reduced wiring
bulk under the dash area. Electric windows, head-
lights and a heated rear window, to name just a few,
are now often controlled by a central unit. A CCU
allows the following facilities for the wipers (front
and rear).
Front wash/wipe
The CCU activates the wipers when the washer
switch is pressed and keeps them going for a further
six seconds when the switch is released.
Intermittent wipe
When the switch is moved to this position, the CCU
operates the wipers for one sweep. When back in
the rest position, the CCU waits for a set time and
then operates another sweep and so on. This con-
tinues until the switch is moved to the off position.
The time delay can be set by the driver – as one of
five settings of a variable resistor. This changes the
delay from about 3 s with a resistance of 500 , to a
delay of about 20 s with a resistance of 5400 .
Rear wiper system
When the switch is operated, the CCU operates the
rear wipers for three sweeps by counting the signal
from the park switch. The wiper will then be activated
once every six seconds until switched off by
the driver.
Rear wash/wipe
When the rear washer switch is pressed, the CCU
will operate the rear wiper and then continue its
operation for three sweeps after the washer switch
is released. If the rear wiper is not switched on the
CCU will operate the blades for one more sweep
after about 18 s. This is commonly known as the
‘dribble wipe’!
Rear wiper when reverse gear is
selected
If the front wipers are switched on and reverse gear
is selected the CCU will operate the rear wiper con-
tinuously. This will stop when either the front wipers
are switched off or reverse gear is deselected.
Auxiliaries 321
Stall protection
When the rear wiper is operated, the CCU starts a
timer. If no movement is detected within 15 s the
power to the motor is removed. This is reset when
the driver’s switch is moved to the off position.
12.1.8 Microprocessor
controlled wipers
A problem facing car manufacturers is that of
fitting a suitable wiper linkage into the minimal
space available with modern body styles. One solu-
tion is to use a separate motor for each blade. This
leaves another problem, and that is how to synchron-
ize the operation of each motor. In order to allow
synchronization, a datum point and a way of meas-
uring distance from this point is needed. The solu-
tion to this is to utilize a normal park limit switch as
the datum and to count the revolutions of the motor
armature to imply distance moved.
A computer program can then be used to control
the motors. The inputs to the program are from the
driver’s switch, the motor limit switches and the
motor armature revolution counters. Fully pro-
grammed operation in this way will allow more
sophisticated facilities to be used if required. A
slight delay in the start and reverse point of each
motor can be used to reduce high current draw.
12.2 Signalling circuits
12.2.1 Introduction
Direction indicators have a number of statutory
requirements. The light produced must be amber,
but the indicators may be grouped with other
lamps. The flashing rate must be between one and
two per second with a relative ‘on’ time of between
30 and 57%. If a fault develops, this must be appar-
ent to the driver by the operation of a warning light
on the dashboard. The fault can be indicated by a
distinct change in frequency of operation or the
warning light remaining on. If one of the main
bulbs fails then the remaining lights should con-
tinue to flash perceptibly.
Legislation exists as to the mounting position of
the exterior lamps, such that the rear indicator
lights must be within a set distance of the tail lights
and within a set height. The wattage of the indicator
light bulbs is normally 21 W at 6, 12 or 24 V as
appropriate.
Brake lights fall under the heading of auxiliaries
or ‘signalling’. A circuit is examined later in this
section.