Schematic Reference

Lights On!

This circuit ensures that you will never again forget to switch on the lights of your car. As soon as the engine is running, the dipped beams and the sidelights are automatically switched on. The circuit also causes the dipped beams to be extinguished as soon as the main beams are switched on. As you can see from the schematic diagram, no special components are needed. When the engine is running, the alternator will generate a voltage of more than 14 V. Diode D1 reduces this voltage by 5.6 V and passes it to the base of T1 via R1. Due to the resulting current, T1 conducts. The amplified current flows via R3, the base of T3 and D3 to ground. This causes T3 to also conduct and energize relay Re1.

If the driver now switches on the main beams, a current flows through D2 and R2 into the base of T2, causing this transistor to conduct. As a result, the voltage on the base of T3 drops, causing T3 to cut off and the relay to drop out. When the main beams are switched off, the previous situation is restored, and the relay again engages. The dipped beams and the sidelights are switched by the contacts of relay Re1. Diodes D5 and D6 ensure that the sidelights are illuminated if either the dimmed beams or the main beams are switched on. In practice, this means that the sidelights will be on whenever the engine is running, regardless of whether the main beams are switched on.