Arctic Cat Panther 1974 Manual page 93

I'
THEORY OF OPERATION
diverting current to the headlight low beam
filament.
Electric Start System
The function of the electric start system is to crank
the engine, by means of an electric motor, for
starting purposes. To produce and store the current
necessary for the electric start system, a nu mber of
components are used in conj"unction with each
other.
1. FLYWHEEL-MOUNTED PERMANENT
MAGNETS - Provide a moving magnetic field
when the flywheel is rotatin.g around the
coils.
2. LIGHTING COILS - Mounted on the base
plate, just above the ignition system exciting
coil is the 23 watt lighting coil. Mounted
opposite the 23 watt lighting coil is the large
100 watt lighting coil. The four leads of the
coils are connected in parallel at the engine
connector by two common end pieces. To
make sure there will be maximum output, the
yellow wire having a black and green tracer
must be connected with the green wire having
a black tracer. Additionally, the solid green
wire must be connected with the yellow wire.
3. REGULATOR RECTIFIER - Diverts to
ground any unwanted or excess voltage that
is not used by the electric start system or
the lighting system. It also converts alter-
nating current (AC) to direct (DC), which is
required to charge the bavery.
4. STARTER MOTOR AND RING GEAR -
Used to crank engine over.
5. BATTE RY - Stores the electrical energy that
is supplied to the electric starter motor during
cranking.
6. SOLENOI D - Acts as a switch to allow
current to pass from the battery, through the
heavy cables and to the starter motor.
To start the engine, using the electric start motor,
direct current flows from the battery, through the
heavy cables and, as a result, activates the electric
starter motor. Since the starter motor requires a
substantial amount of current for operation, heavy
gauge battery cables and ground cable is used for
direct current transmission. To keep the heavy
battery cables as short as possible, a solenoid is
used. The solenoid acts as a switch between the
battery and starter motor, Fig. IV -14. Starter
motor engagement with the ring gear takes place
when the ignition switch is in the START position.
At this time, the heavy cable circuit to the battery
is closed, resulting in direct current flow to the
sta rter motor and subsequent starter gear
engagement with the ring gear, Fig. IV-14.
Fig. IV·14
Battery
--1~~_lgnition
Switch
Starter
Motor
The battery is used as a storage center and power
source for the electric start motor. And to operate
the starter motor, the battery must be fully
charged, which will result in maximum output
from the battery. Current for the battery charge
system is supplied by the magneto alternator
system. The generated current, which is induced in
the I ighting coils by the rotating magnets, is routed
to the regulator/rectifier. As current goes into the
regulator/rectifier, it is alternating current; this
type of current will not charge the battery.
Therefore, alternating current must be changed to
direct current for battery charging purposes.
Because a change from alternating current to direct
current is made within the regulator/rectifier, the
battery receives only positive charges, resulting in a
fully-charged battery. When the battery is fully
charged, the regulator/rectifier routes the excess
current to ground, which prevents damage to the
charging and lighting system.
Tachometer
The function of the engine tachometer is to
register the engine mainshaft revolutions per
minute. To accomplish this, the positive (+) and
IV-9