From the Rolls-Royce experimental archive: a quarter of a million communications from Rolls-Royce, 1906 to 1960's. Documents from the Sir Henry Royce Memorial Foundation (SHRMF).
Static induction effect in the ignition system and a proposal for a bench experiment to investigate it.
| Identifier | ExFiles\Box 61b\4\ scan0205 | |
| Date | 25th February 1925 | |
| Contd. -3- EFCl/T25.2.25. Now with regard to that portion of R's note R3/M2.2.25 which refers to this static induction effect, we are not clear as to his meaning in suggesting that exact synchronisation of ignition would "reduce the tendency of mutual induction tending to fire the wrong plugs." It has occurred to us that the supposed static inductione effect on the EAC. chassis, which cannot be reproduced at will, has been due to the existence of both sets of ignition wires in the same tube, and the occasional exact synchronisation, i.e. in the eleftrical sense, in two of the H.T. wires, of the magneto and battery ignition generator impulses. It might be that whereas each of these individually was incapable of inducing on a third wire sufficient potential to fire the spark plug connected to that wire, the combined action of the two correctly synchronised might be capable of this. The exact synchronisation of these two impulses in the electrical sense would be a phenomenon which might be expected to occur about as rarely as it has been observed, and if this explanation is correct, the only way to eliminate the possibility would be to use an earthed tube, as suggested. In this connection we propose making a further bench experiment with the present standard EAC. ignition tube of insulating material, in which one of the wires or additional (13th) wire is not connected to a terminal of either distributor, but is connected to a spark gap of its own (not subject to main sparking). It would then be | ||