The article provides a detailed explanation regarding the various voltage regulator wiring configurations used in motorcycles. The article was submitted by Mr. Abu-Hafss.
Technical Specifications
After working on different voltage regulators, I feel to share my findings on your blog so that other people may also get benefit. Please insert the diagrams appropriately in the article. I will update further by providing examples of each type.
Thanks and regards
Abu-Hafss
UNDERSTANDING WIRING OF MOTORCYCLE VOLTAGE REGULATORS
Motorcycles are usually equipped with permanent magnet AC generators. The magnitude of the voltage produced by these generators depends upon the RPM of the engine. Despite these generators are specifically designed to produce about 13-15VAC at high RPMs, they do require a voltage regulator to provide a safe voltage for battery charging and for the electrical system. These generators could have single-phase or a three-phase winding. No matter the winding is single-phase or three-phase; all voltage regulator units have two parts i.e. Rectifier Section and Voltage Regulator Section. Here, we will only discuss various types of voltage regulators and not their internal circuits.
VOLTAGE REGULATORS FOR SINGLE-PHASE GENERATORS
1) 2-pin Regulator: This type may be found on some small bicycles which do not have battery and only have Head Lamp & Tail Lamp. Since the incandescent bulbs work well on AC voltage, there is no rectifier section in this type of regulator. The circuit inside the unit regulates the AC voltage coming from the generator to 13.5 – 14 VAC for the bulbs. This regulator is basically an AC voltage regulator.
2) 3-pin Regulator: This type may be found on some motorcycles. In this system, we see that one end of the winding is grounded to the chassis of the bike, which is connected to the negative terminal of the battery. The other end of the winding supplies AC voltage to the rectifier section which converts it to DC voltage. Then it enters the Regulator section which maintains the output to an ideal 14.4V for charging a 12V battery (or 7.2V for a 6V battery) and powering the electrical system.
3) 4-pin Regulator (A): This type may be found on some motorcycles. In this system, both the ends of the winding go to the Rectifier section which converts AC to DC voltage and then the Regulator section regulates to 14.4V as discussed above.
4) 4-pin Regulator (B): This is the most common type found on motorcycles with single-phase winding. In this system, the stator has dual windings. One supplies power for charging the battery and for the electrical system. The other supplies power exclusively for the Head Lamps and the Tail Lamps. This type of regulator unit is basically a combination of 3-pin Regulator and 2-pin Regulator. The 3-pin Regulator section provides 14.4V DC for the battery and the 2-pn Regulator provides 13.5 – 14V AC for the Lamps.
VOLTAGE REGULATORS FOR THREE-PHASE GENERATORS
Three-phase windings are two types i.e. Y-type and Delta type.
The working principle of a regulator for three-phase generator is the same as 4-pin Regulator (A), but of course, the internal circuitry would be quite different.
An example of such 3-phase regulator can be seen in the article: motorcycle shunt regulator circuit using SCR
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Hello Swagatam and thanks for an informative article.
I have a mid 1980s Yamaha FZ750 which has been heavily modified for race use, including the replacement of the OE lead acid battery with a modern LiPo battery for weight saving purposes. The original reg/rec circuit is functioning normally but does not regulate with the accuracy required by the Lithium battery – the charging voltage can rise to 15.2V at maximum revs, whilst the battery manufacturer specifies an absolute maximum of 14.8V.
Since the battery is situated directly beneath the rider’s primary reproductive organs, I would like to improve the regulation in order to reduce the chances of an unpleasant experience… Would the circuits in your links be suitable? Also, would it be possible to ‘daisy chain’ one of your regulators between the OE regulator and the batttery? This last question because the OE reg/rec circuit is mounted on the end of the generator and it would be difficult to make a replacement to fit in the available space.
Many thanks,
Gavin
Hello Gavin, you can try the second last circuit from the following link, and connect it between the existing regulator and the battery
https://www.homemade-circuits.com/motorcycle-full-wave-shunt-regulator/
Before installing you will need to modify the 4k7 resistor value to ensure that the output never exceeds 14.8 V. For this you can feed a 15 or 24 V DC input rated at 500 mA from an adapter across the DC supply lines of the circuit, and then adjust the 4k7 resistor until a 14.8 V is fixed at the output. The 4k7 resistor could be replaced with a 10k preset for this adjustment
Hello swagatam good to meeting you at this wonderful site just question can I apply this kind of regulator to a wind mill for ac generator thank you any answer bye bye
Thanks pendon, it is possible to use the concept in windmills provided the regulator is a shunt type regulator designed to shunt the excess voltage from the input source to ground.
I have a 1980 200cc Honda Benly twin with 6 volt electrics. It has a single phase alternator which produces up to 50volts AC (maybe more if I really revved the engine!) The voltage rectifier/regulator is u/s and I cannot source an alternative. It has 5 wires. : 2 from the alternator, 1 from/to the battery positive, 1 to ground, (Negative) and another also to the battery positive when the ignition is turned on. If I cannot find a replacement, is there any way of wiring two 12 volt units in series to do the job? Perhaps there is another make of bike with a single phase 6 volt system that would be suitable. I would appreciate any help.
I am not sure about the 5th wire and why it goes to the battery along with another wire, so effectively two wires are shorted with the battery positive.
If charging the battery from the alternator is the main purpose, you could try building and installing the last circuit from this article, it should do the job for you:
https://www.homemade-circuits.com/motorcycle-full-wave-shunt-regulator/
Hello, good afternoon, thank you very much for your quick response. You recommend the circuit with lm741, but I do not understand … The generator of the bike has one. Voltage output between 60 to 90vca.
From already thank you very much
Hello, please see the diagram inside the video.
For the LM741 also you can replace the 6 diode bridge with a 4 diode bridge and feed the input to it from the single phase alternator.
Hello, sir, good afternoon. You could make a voltage regulator circuit for my motorcycle .. It’s simple phase, and the generator voltage is 60 to 90 vca … It can be with some operational amplifier for more precision. From already thank you very much.
Pd: please have to be quite robust … Because I already change 3 and always burn.
Hello Carlos, you can try the circuit which is shown in the VIDEO presented in this article:
https://www.homemade-circuits.com/motorcycle-full-wave-shunt-regulator/
You recommend the circuit with LM431 and tip147 so that the voltage of the motorcycle is well regulated and can charge the battery …
Thank you.
If you have a 12V battery it will be 14V, for a 6V battery it will be 7V.
Hi, thanks for the quick response .. But my motorcycle is simple phase
For single phase just replace the 6 diode bridge rectifier with a 4 diode bridge rectifier circuit.
Hello good afternoon, please I need a regulating circuit from 100vca to 13vcc well stabilized. From already thank you very much.
Atte: Carlos
Hello Carlos, you can try the last circuit from this article:
https://www.homemade-circuits.com/motorcycle-full-wave-shunt-regulator/
I wonder what system is used for Yamaha outboard motors?