Excerpt:

"Lab Scopes"-just mention the words, and some guys shudder with fear and confusion. Oh, they may not show it, but deep down inside, they get nervous. How do they work, how do you get the pattern on the screen, and what does the pattern mean? How do you know if the signal is good or bad? That's what this book is about. You could call this "Lab Scopes for Dummy's", except I'd probably get a call from the lawyer of the group that puts out all those books, and we don't want that.

The purpose of this book is to make it simple. I firmly believe that if you can't make something simple when you explain it to somebody else, you don't really understand it. Later on, we'll get into some more complex applications of lab scopes. But we'll still make that simple, too. (You'd be surprised at all the testing you can do that will help you with your diagnosis.) This book is designed for the technician who doesn't really know how to use a lab scope, also called a DSO. (Digital Storage Oscilloscope)

We're going to explain these things:

		How does a lab scope work? (in very simple terms) When you look at a pattern on the scope, what are you seeing, and how do you know if it is bad? How do you get a pattern on the scope, how do you do the adjustments to make the pattern look right?

• What do you do when you can't get a pattern on the screen at all? (A lot of guys have this problem, but don't admit it to their friends…)
• What are some of the different things you can do and see with the lab scope? (Most technicians don't know how much diagnosis you can do with an inexpensive scope, and a few attachments.)
• What are the different types of scopes? And what are they good for? Do you have to spend a lot of money for a really expensive one? And where would you get one?
• Where and how do you hook up the scope to the circuit? Does it make much difference?

We'll show some pictures, to make things simple. And please forgive my sick sense of humor, or attempts at humor. It's meant to help keep you awake. I know after a long day at work on your feet, it would be easy to just nod off. So hang on to your hats, here we go…

The book contains these chapters:

1. Lab Scopes - How do they work? - Compared to a Scan Tool; Compared to a Voltmeter; What a Lab Scope Shows; Analog or Digital; Analog Lab Scopes; Digital Lab Scopes; Downside of Digital; Advantages of Digital; Introduction to a Basic Model; Divisions or Graticules; Voltage; Time; Zero Point; Channels.
2. Basic Electricity, Circuits and Digital Signals - What is Electricity?; Definitions; Voltage; Amperage; Resistance; Watts; Types of Circuits; Series Circuit; Parallel Circuit; Digital Signals; Hertz or HZ; Duty Cycle; Pulse Width; Number Symbols; Milli or m; Kilo or K; Micro; Mega or M
3. Pattern Recognition - Magnetic Pickup RPM Sensor; Hall Effect RPM Sensor; Optical RPM Sensor; Throttle Position Sensor; Fuel Injector; Duty Cycle; Ignition Primary; Alternator Ripple.
4. Getting a Pattern on the Scope - What if nothing happens when you turn it on?; Where to connect the test leads?; The Black Test Lead; The Red Test Lead; Warning; To look at a Computer Input; About Shielded Wires and Electrical Noise; To look at a Computer Output; How to Connect to the Wire; How to Back Probe a Wire; To Puncture or not to Puncture the Wire; Why Do It?; How to Puncture the Wire; What to Adjust? Or Why Doesn't My Pattern Look Right?; Voltage Adjustment; Time Settings; Ground Positioning; 10:1 Probes; Sampling Rate; What to Do.
5. Trigger - Positive and Negative Slope; To Adjust the Trigger; Tricky Stuff About Trigger; What do you mean Trigger Mode?; Trigger Mode and Intermittent Signals; Uses for Trigger Mode.
6. Relative Compression - Counter Electro-motive Force; To Measure Starter Current; High Amp Probe (or Current Clamp); Set Up Your Scope; How Do You Know Which Cylinder is Low?; Relative Compression Test.
7. Fuel Pumps -Low Amp Probes; Where to Attach the Current Probe; About Fuel Pumps; Fuel Pump Commutator Segments; Fuel Pump Brushes; Good Fuel Pump Pattern; Bad Fuel Pump Pattern; After Replacing the Pump.
8. Primary Ignition - How to Generate Spark; Capacitive Discharge System; Primary Wiring; 10:1 Filter; When You Hook Up Your Scope; What The Scope Pattern Means; Dwell or Saturation; Spark Duration; Using Spark Duration for Diagnosis; High Resistance; Low Resistance; RPM Probes; RPM Trigger; Primary Ignition Pattern; High Resistance Problem.
9. Primary Ignition Amperage or Current Ramping - Counter Electromotive Force (CEMF); Primary Ignition Volts; Primary Amperage; Computer Controlled Dwell; Low Current Probe; What To Look For; Normal Good Current Ramp; Possible Problems to Diagnose.
10. Secondary Ignition - High Voltage; Basic Secondary Ignition Pattern; Firing KV; String Theory; Open Spark Plug Wire; High KV; High Resistance Problems; Low KV; Low Resistance Problems; String Theory Example; Low Resistance; 10,000:1 Probe; Secondary Ignition Readings; Secondary Hookup; Voltage Between Probe and Ground; Using an Adapter; Using Adapters to Pick Up Signals; Foil Tape; "Right Side Up" Patterns; Pattern Points Down; Ignition Sparks Go Down; DIS Systems; Parade Patterns; Normal Engine; Low Resistance Problem; Parade Pattern of 4 Cylinder Engine.

To read a free sample excerpt from this book, please see the samples from the Introduction to Lab Scopes and Advanced Lab Scopes books.

Please note that this is an electronic book - a file that lives on the internet. It is cheaper than the printed version of the book. You can access it as soon as your order is complete, save it to your computer, print it out or look at it another day online.