ok, this is just gonna be the first Post .. I will post several updates for construction assistance ........

first off here is an Image that you can find by searching Patents .... this should give you an Idea of how to build the actual Glow Plug adapter that will screw into your engine





OK next... this is an image of a Glow Plug... yeah I know we all know what they look like....
you will need to remove the guts from one that is Failed, you want one that has not been completely blown to pieces as the plan is to install a Fused Quartz Rod in place of the heating element ...... possibly you can stuff a 5mm rod inside of it, I would need to take some measurements to be sure, I have not done this yet, the Quartz rod can be found by many suppliers just Google.




OK Next is the Schematic of the Electronics, this can be assembled on a small piece of Perf Board, you do not need an Etched PCB to construct this but I will post more layout information when I get a chance to run this thru EagleCAD (another Software I use in Electronic Design)
I will add a Bill of Materials in a future Post, but for now let's just say these are all common parts that are not difficult to find.
IT will require a bit of skill and ingenuity ...





EDIT: the VSS should be VDD, I used the wrong symbol VDD is the CMOS IC Positive Supply and VSS is the Most Negative Supply.... it does not change the circuit for viewing it's just a Mislabel on my part.
EDIT: Change resistor R3 to a 390K ohm Value, as it is easier to source and will work just as well.

My Standard Disclaimer as follows......................................

This information is provided free of charge and is probably worth precisely what you paid for it. If you build one of these devices, it is likely that it will fly apart and kill everyone within 5 blocks. Construct and use at your own risk.

 

subscribing. I'm curious about eagleCAD. I use CATIA/Rhino/Revit/Maya and was an AutoCAD guru back in the day

 

EagleCAD is now owned by Autodesk and they have managed to really destroy it, I run the last version made by Cadsoft DE, it has a vast support of parts Libraries that were user generated, but now Autodesk has killed most of the sites that hosted the Free Libraries.

I used Autocad back in the 80's and even until Inventor 7 was released. we ended up dumping all Autodesk products and went with Solidworks as it's far more intuitive,( I can't get into the Lawsuit issues we had with Autodesk but they got hosed)

the bottom line is our experiences with Autodesk were not very favorable.

any way there are still plenty of Forums for EagleCAD ... OrCAD, Protel and KiCAD <<=== is open source
there are also several Cloud based such as EasyEDA <<=== I refuse to use any Cloud based anything <<== this is the largest issue I have with Autodesk products.

I could go on but I'll just get off the soap Box...

 

ok, I drafted the board up in EagleCAD the connection for the Phototransistor is marked "C" and "E" for Collector and Emitter a good phototransistor to use would be a Part number 3DU5C it's rated at 10 volts so will be fine, it is also a metal can type with a Focus lens and is for visible light spectrum.

I need to figure out best component placement to generate a board file so folks can see how it is actually wired besides just a schematic, which for some is all that is needed... I'll post it when I get done with it...

in the mean time here is the EagleCAD screen shot....

 

here is the routed board in Eagle ....... I'm never super pleased with the auto router so I will clean it up and manually Route the Board but this gives you all you need to see how the board is constructed, as you see it is single side, so nothing complex.

Now remember you are looking at this layout from a top Component side View but the Dark Blue Lines and the Green pads are really on the Bottom side of the board. All the Grey in this image is on the Top Side of the board. hopefully that simplifies things a bit.

OK time for Fireworks and Celebration

 

here are the Fixed Board views after a bit of my tweaking to clean it up, it looks much cleaner.


this is the top View......




This is the Bottom View, this would be your guide for doing Pinpoint wiring of the components on a piece of Perf Board.
the Circuit will fit on a 30mm X 80mm piece of Perf Board.




the parts are all common values and can be found at Digikey or Mouser, I'll post a BOM a bit later.

 

here is a BOM from Digikey. it is all the electronic components... Change the value of the 380K Ohm resistor to 390K as it is more common and will work fine in the circuit.



Quanity Manufacturer Part Number Manufacturer Digi-Key Part Number
1 Each CD4011BE Texas Instruments 296-2031-ND
3 Each C320C104K1R5TA KEMET 399-4263-ND
1 Each PN2222ATA ON Semiconductor PN2222ATACT-ND
1 Each BPY 62-3/4 OSRAM Opto Semiconductors Inc. 475-1351-ND
1 Each 1N4005-TP Micro Commercial Co 1N4005-TPMSCT-ND
1 Each C503B-RAN-CZ0C0AA2 Cree Inc. C503B-RAN-CZ0C0AA2CT-ND
1 Each CF14JT1K00 Stackpole Electronics Inc CF14JT1K00CT-ND
1 Each CFM14JT47R0 Stackpole Electronics Inc S47QCT-ND
2 Each CF14JT27K0 Stackpole Electronics Inc CF14JT27K0CT-ND
1 Each CF14JT100K Stackpole Electronics Inc CF14JT100KCT-ND
1 Each CF14JT390K Stackpole Electronics Inc CF14JT390KCT-ND

Extended Price Description
$0.51 ....... IC GATE NAND 4CH 2-INP 14DIP
$1.23 ........CAP CER 0.1UF 100V X7R RADIAL
$0.25 ........TRANS NPN 40V 1A TO92
$3.03 ........SENSOR PHOTO 830NM TOP TO206AA <<<<== you can use PN 475-1077-ND from digikey PhotoDiode cost $1.06
$0.11 ........DIODE GEN PURP 600V 1A DO41
$0.15 ........LED RED CLEAR 5MM ROUND T/H
$0.10 ........RES 1K OHM 1/4W 5% AXIAL
$0.10 ........RES 47 OHM 1/4W 5% CF MINI
$0.20 ........RES 27K OHM 1/4W 5% AXIAL
$0.10 ........RES 100K OHM 1/4W 5% AXIAL
$0.10 ........RES 390K OHM 1/4W 5% AXIAL



Perf board is available from digikey also.... pretty sure ya can find 5.5mm High tension wire for the loop and a piece of shielded cable (mic or guitar cable comes to mind)
Fused quartz rod is cheap too, you just need to collect some fittings that you can modify for the actual Glow Plug Adapter... having a Lathe is a big Plus here ... an inventive person can get by with a Drill Press.

Not much more to say about it other than the Spark Plug Side of your Timing light/meter goes facing the Capacitor or facing Down as viewed on the original Schematic that I posted.

 

KiCAD is probably more popular today as it is FREE, it's Parts Libraries are really Lacking and it's Library management just Sucks (sorry but I don't have a better word to describe my feelings on this)

I have a 32 bit version of KiCAD and the biggest issue is you cannot have multiple folders for libraries (My Eagle Libraries take up close to 10GB of drive space)
the nice thing about KiCAD is you can Convert the Eagle Libraries to a Format to use with KiCAD and it will also Render your PCB creation in 3D if you have FreeCAD installed.

I use KiCAD on a limited basis and spent almost a month converting my Eagle Libraries for it.

one more note on this Circuit you could use it with a Shock Sensor with minor modifications.

 

This is a cool project! I'm interested to see how it works out. It's a cheaper option vs. the spark adapters from SnapOn or Gunson.

BTW, here's a link to the electronics supplier you mentioned.

https://www.digikey.com/

 

I doubt the Circuit is much different from either of those you mention,
you could power this from 12 Volts instead of a 9V Battery, but that just adds extra wires to get caught in the Fan
it wouldn't be a bad Idea to put a simple ON/OFF switch to keep the battery from draining when not in use.

and it can be converted to Piezo type sensing .... you can find a simple explanation of using Piezo sensors here ===>> https://www.edgefx.in/piezoelectric-...witch-working/

I would need to make some measurements off the injector lines to determine just how to best implement this method, the Glow Plug Method is tried and True.

Fused 5mm Quartz rod is pretty cheap couple dollars here is just a Sample link first one I see using DuckDuckGO ====>> http://www.fdglass.com/product/herae...ed-quartz-rod/

here is one in Canada for a 4' length https://artistryinglass.on.ca/quartz-rod-5mm.html way more than is needed.

 

Just for the Heck of doing it, a simple way to to use Piezo with the Original Circuit might be to replace the Phototransistor with this circuit.......




D1 is a Zener Diode can be a Value of 5 to 12 volt depending on the gate you are using..... we don't want the Pizeo to make a high enough voltage spike to Kill the 4011 IC
we also might want to add some Gain Control so the Circuit won't just trigger off of stray vibrations too... I would need to experiment with this a bit before making a Definitive post on it.

 

Lonewolf, are you an electronics engineer? Just wondering because I'm an FAA radar technician and a HAM. I rarely see component level schematics at work or at the local HAM club. Good job, BTW!

 

I'm Retired now and yes I was an Electronics/Mechanical Field Engineer, I have worked on many older Radar/Doppler systems in the past too, I still have AE and AP license but it's Dated from back in the HH-3E days

I noticed your Call letters, I used to mess with Radio many years back, still have a couple Tube Rigs, I played with SDR quite a bit too, just for fun, I still run CB in my truck, I know there is a lot of newer stuff out there but Hell I don't even use Smart Phones .... I'm just a Cantankerous Old Fart anymore

I used to be Admin in some Facebook Groups for 3D printing but got tired of the BS on FB.

I ran my own Welding Equipment Repair shop for 17 years before I retired in 2005 .. I did all component level repair except when Warranty wanted me to just replace boards.

I did work in a Nissan/Volvo Dealership as head mechanic and Service Manager for a couple years before I opened my own business.