Escolar Documentos
Profissional Documentos
Cultura Documentos
Ever since the invention of the wheel, if there has been "go" there has been a
need for "whoa." As the level of technology of human transportation has increased, the
mechanical devices used to slow down and stop vehicles has also become more complex.
In this report I will discuss the history of vehicular braking technology and possible
future developments.
Before there was a "horse-less carriage," wagons, and other animal drawn
vehicles relied on the animal’s power to both accelerate and decelerate the vehicle.
Eventually there was the development of supplemental braking systems consisting of a
hand lever to push a wooden friction pad directly against the metal tread of the wheels. In
wet conditions these crude brakes would lose any effectiveness.
The early years of automotive development were an interesting time for the
designing engineers, "a period of innovation when there was no established practice and
virtually all ideas were new ones and worth trying. Quite rapidly, however, the design of
many components stabilized in concept and so it was with brakes; the majority of
vehicles soon adopted drum brakes, each consisting of two shoes which could be
expanded inside a drum."
In this chaotic era is the first record of the disk brake. Dr. F.W. Lanchester
patented a design for a disk brake in 1902 in England. It was incorporated into the
Lanchester car produced between 1906 through 1914. These early disk brakes were not as
effective at stopping as the contemporary drum brakes of that time and were soon
forgotten. Another important development occurred in the 1920’s when drum brakes
were used at all four wheels instead of a single brake to halt only the back axle and
wheels such as on the Ford model T. The disk brake was again utilized during World War
II in the landing gear of aircraft. The aircraft disk brake system was adapted for use in
automotive applications, first in racing in 1952, then in production automobiles in 1956.
United States auto manufacturers did not start to incorporate disk brakes in lower priced
non-high-performance cars until the late 1960’s.
2
HOW BRAKES WORK
We all know that pushing down on the brake pedal slows a car to a stop. But how
does this happen? How does your car transmit the force from your leg to its wheels? How
does it multiply the force so that it is enough to stop something as big as a car?
BRAKE BASICS
When you depress your brake pedal, your car transmits the force from your foot
to its brakes through a fluid. Since the actual brakes require a much greater force than
you could apply with your leg, your car must also multiply the force of your foot. It does
this in two ways:
The brakes transmit the force to the tires using friction, and the tires transmit that
force to the road using friction also. Before we begin our discussion on the components
of the brake system, let's cover these three principles:
Leverage
Hydraulics
Friction
2
3
LEVERAGE
The pedal is designed in such a way that it can multiply the force from your leg
several times before any force is even transmitted to the brake fluid.
In the figure above, a force F is being applied to the left end of the lever. The left
end of the lever is twice as long (2X) as the right end (X). Therefore, on the right end of
the lever a force of 2F is available, but it acts through half of the distance (Y) that the left
end moves (2Y). Changing the relative lengths of the left and right ends of the lever
changes the multipliers.
HYDRAULIC SYSTEMS
The basic idea behind any hydraulic system is very simple: Force applied at one
point is transmitted to another point using an incompressible fluid, almost always an oil
of some sort. Most brake systems also multiply the force in the process
FRICTION
Friction is a measure of how hard it is to slide one object over another. Take a
look at the figure below. Both of the blocks are made from the same material, but one is
heavier. I think we all know which one will be harder for the bulldozer to push.
3
4
To understand why this is, let's take a close look at one of the blocks and the table:
Even though the blocks look smooth to the naked eye, they are actually quite
rough at the microscopic level. When you set the block down on the table, the little peaks
and valleys get squished together, and some of them may actually weld together. The
weight of the heavier block causes it to squish together more, so it is even harder to slide.
The type of material determines the coefficient of friction, the ratio of the force
required to slide the block to the block's weight. If the coefficient were 1.0 in our
example, then it would take 100 pounds of force to slide the 100-pound (45 kg) block, or
400 pounds (180 kg) of force to slide the 400-pound block. If the coefficient were 0.1,
then it would take 10 pounds of force to slide to the 100-pound block or 40 pounds of
force to slide the 400-pound block.
The distance from the pedal to the pivot is four times the distance from the cylinder to the
pivot, so the force at the pedal will be increased by a factor of four before it is transmitted
to the cylinder.
The diameter of the brake cylinder is three times the diameter of the pedal
cylinder. This further multiplies the force by nine. All together, this system increases the
force of your foot by a factor of 36. If you put 10 pounds of force on the pedal, 360
pounds (162 kg) will be generated at the wheel squeezing the brake pads.
There are a couple of problems with this simple system. What if we have a leak?
If it is a slow leak, eventually there will not be enough fluid left to fill the brake cylinder,
and the brakes will not function. If it is a major leak, then the first time you apply the
brakes all of the fluid will squirt out the leak and you will have complete brake failure.
4
5
TYPES OF BRAKES
1. DRUM BRAKES
DRUM BRAKES
The drum brake has two brake shoes and a piston. When you hit the brake pedal, the
piston pushes the brake shoes against the drum This is where it gets a little more
complicated. as the brake shoes contact the drum, there is a kind of wedging action,
which has the effect of pressing the shoes into the drum with more force. The extra
braking force provided by the wedging action allows drum brakes to use a smaller piston
than disc brakes. But, because of the wedging action, the shoes must be pulled away from
the drum when the brakes are released. This is the reason for some of the springs. Other
springs help hold the brake shoes in place and return the adjuster arm after it actuates.
The disk brake has a metal disk instead of a drum. It has a flat shoe, or pad,
located on each side of the disk. To slow or stop the car, these two flat shoes are forced
tightly against the rotating disk, or rotor. Fluid pressure from the master cylinder forces
the pistons to move in. This action pushes the friction pads of the shoes tightly against the
disk. The friction between the shoes and the disk slows and stops the disk.
As with almost any artifact of technology, drum brakes and disk brakes both have
advantages and disadvantages. Drum brakes still have the edge in cheaper cost and lower
complexity. This is why most cars built today use disk brakes in front but drum brakes in
the back wheels, four wheel disks being an extra cost option or shouted as a high
performance feature. Since the weight shift of a decelerating car puts most of the load on
the front wheels, the usage of disk brakes on only the front wheels is accepted
manufacturing practice.
Drum brakes had another advantage compared to early disk brake systems. The
geometry of the brake shoes inside the drums can be designed for a mechanical self-
boosting action. The rotation of the brake drum will push a leading shoe brake pad into
pressing harder against the drum. Early disk brake systems required an outside
mechanical brake booster such as a vacuum assist or hydraulic pump to generate the
pressure for primitive friction materials to apply the necessary braking force.
5
6
All friction braking technology uses the process of converting the kinetic energy
of a vehicle’s forward motion into thermal energy: heat. The enemy of all braking
systems is excessive heat. Drums are inferior to disks in dissipating excessive heat:
"The common automotive drum brake consists essentially of two shoes which may be
expanded against the inner cylindrical surface of a drum.
The greater part of heat generated when a brake is applied has to pass through the
drum to its outer surface in order to be dissipated to atmosphere, and at the same time
(the drum is) subject to quite severe stresses due to the distortion induced by the opposed
shoes acting inside the open ended drum.
The conventional disk brake, on the other hand, consists essentially of a flat disk
on either side of which are friction pads; equal and opposite forces may be applied to
these pads to press their working surfaces into contact with the braking path of the disks.
The heat produced by the conversion of energy is dissipated directly from the surfaces at
which it is generated and the deflection of the braking path of the disk is very small so
that the stressing of the material is not so severe as with the drum."
The result of overheated brakes is brake fade...the same amount of force at the
pedal no longer provides the same amount of stopping power. The high heat decreases
the relative coefficient of friction between the friction material and the drum or disk.
Drum brakes also suffer another setback when overheating: The inside radii of the drum
expands, the brake shoe outside radii no longer matches, and the actual contact surface is
decreased.
Another advantage of disk brakes over drum brakes is that of weight. There are
two different areas where minimizing weight is important. The first is unsprung weight.
This is the total amount of weight of all the moving components of a car between the
road and the suspension mounting points on the car’s frame.
Auto designs have gone to such lengths to reduce unsprung weight that some,
such as the E-type Jaguar, moved the rear brakes inboard, next to the differential,
connected to the drive shafts instead of on the rear wheel hubs. The second "weighty"
factor is more of an issue on motorcycles: gyroscopic weight. The heavier the wheel unit,
the more gyroscopic resistance to changing direction. Thus the bike’s steering would be
higher effort with heavier drum brakes than with lighter disks. Modern race car disk
brakes have hollow internal vents, cross drilling and other weight saving and cooling
features.
Most early brake drums and disks were made out of cast iron. Current OEM
motorcycle disk brakes are usually stainless steel for corrosion resistance, but after-
market racing component brake disks are still made from cast iron for the improved
friction qualities. Other exotic materials have been used in racing applications. Carbon
fiber composite disks gripped by carbon fiber pads were common in formula one
motorcycles and cars in the early 1990’s, but were outlawed by the respective racing
6
7
sanctioning organizations due to sometimes spectacular failure. The carbon/carbon
brakes also only worked properly at the very high temperatures of racing conditions and
would not get hot enough to work in street applications.
A recent Ducati concept show bike uses brake disks of silesium, developed by
the Russian aerospace industry(3), which claim to have the friction coefficient of cast
iron with the light weight of carbon fiber.
Another area of development of the disk brake is the architecture of the brake
caliper. Early designs had a rigidly mounted caliper gripping with opposed hydraulic
pistons pushing the brake pads against a disk mounted securely to the wheel hub. Later
developments included a single piston caliper floating on slider pins. This system had
improved, more even pad wear. Most modern automobiles and my 1982 Kawasaki
motorcycle uses this type caliper. Current design paradigm for motorcycle brakes have up
to six pistons, opposed to grip both sides of a thin, large radius disk that is "floating" on
pins to provide a small amount of lateral movement; two disks per front wheel.
Improvements in control have been made available with the application of Anti-
Lock Brake technology. Wheel sensors convey rotation speed of each wheel to a
computer that senses when any of them are locked up or in a skid, and modulates
individual wheel brake hydraulic pressure to avoid wheel skidding and loss of vehicular
control.
The use of exotic materials for additional weight savings would be likely for the
future of motor vehicle braking. Disks mounted to the wheel’s rim gripped by an
internally located caliper is not necessarily a new design (Porsche, 1963) (4) but could be
a futuristic looking option for motorcycle wheels. Electric vehicles of the future will
likely utilize regenerative braking, the electric motors become generators to convert
kinetic energy back to electricity to recharge the batteries. As production vehicles
become increasingly quicker, the need for "whoa" will always accompany the "go."
7
8
MAIN PARTS:
BRAKE PAD
8
9
The caliper is the part that holds the break shoes on each side of the
disk. In the floating-caliper brake, two steel guide pins are threaded into the steering-
knuckle adapter. The caliper floats on four rubber bushings which fit on the inner and
outer ends of the two guide pins. The bushings allow the caliper to swing in or out
slightly when the brakes are applied
When the brakes are applied, the brake fluid flows to the cylinder in the caliper
and pushes the piston out. The piston then forces the shoe against the disk. At the same
time, the pressure in the cylinder causes the caliper to pivot inward. This movement
brings the other shoe into tight contact with the disk. As a result, the two shoes “pinch”
the disk tightly to produce the braking action
STAGES OF WORKING
9
10
This brake usually has four pistons, two on each side of the disk. The
reason for the name fixed-caliper is that the caliper is bolted solidly to the steering
knuckle. When the brakes are applied, the caliper cannot move. The four pistons are
forced out of their caliper bores to push the inner and outer brake shoes in against the
disk. Some brakes of this type have used only two pistons, one on each side of the disk
Proper function of the brake depends on (1) the rotor must be straight and smooth, (2)
the caliper mechanism must be properly aligned with the rotor, (3) the pads must be
positioned correctly, (4) there must be enough "pad" left, and (5) the lever mechanism
must push the pads tightly against the rotor, with "lever" to spare.
Most modern cars have disc brakes on the front wheels, and some have disc brakes on all
four wheels. This is the part of the brake system that does the actual work of stopping the
car
The most common type of disc brake on modern cars is the single-piston floating
caliper. In this article, we will learn all about this type of disc brake design
Disk brakes are self adjusting. Each piston has a seal on it to prevent fluid
leakage. When the brakes are applied, the piston moves toward the disk. This distorts the
piston seal. When the brakes are released, the seal relaxes and returns to its original
position. This pulls the piston away from the disk. As the brakes linings wear, the piston
over travels and takes a new position in relation to the seal. This action provides self
adjustment of disk brakes.
10
11
EMERGENCY BRAKES
In cars with disc brakes on all four wheels, an emergency brake has to be actuated
by a separate mechanism than the primary brakes in case of a total primary brake failure.
Most cars use a cable to actuate the emergency brake.
Some cars with four-wheel disc brakes have a separate drum brake integrated into
the hub of the rear wheels. This drum brake is only for the emergency brake system, and
it is actuated only by the cable; it has no hydraulics.
A moving car has a certain amount of kinetic energy, and the brakes have to
remove this energy from the car in order to stop it. How do the brakes do this? Each time
you stop your car, your brakes convert the kinetic energy to heat generated by the
friction between the pads and the disc. Most car disc brakes are vented.
Vented disc brakes have a set of vanes, between the two sides of the disc, that
pumps air through the disc to provide cooling.
11
12
Improved road handling, higher engine ratings and torque, reduced drag and
rolling resistance resulting in faster acceleration and higher average speeds
Extremely high kinetic energy needed to brake on wet roads, high front axle loads
effecting vehicle directional stability
Full friction surface of the brake pad on the plane brake disk
No loss of brake power due to overheating or partial contact from brake drum
parts expansion
Disk brakes can withstand higher loads and its efficiency is maintained
considerably longer even under the highest stresses
12
13
Why do disk brakes have a better braking behavior?
Driver friendly braking behavior. Sensitive braking in all situations and better
Sensitive brake application and better brake feeling
13
14
LIMITATIONS
The individual components are subjected to extensive test on the test bed. The
optimum arrangement of components on the axle beam, operational reliability and
convincing performance are requirements that must be met prior series production.
Today, all MAN city, inter-city buses and coaches utilize the MAN disk brake system on
all wheels with ABS. The disk brake system is used with and without retarders
Brake performance is tested on the test track and in racing to ensure their practice. Only
after these extensive tests can the disk brake be cleared for production .
The brake disks are subjected to the highest stresses from contact pressure. The broad
brake disks with radial cavities made of heat resistant special gray cast iron, are still
operational in temperatures in excess of 1380 degrees F
Disk brakes are no substitute for an engine brake or retarder. Economic driving with
sensible use of the engine brake or retarder optimizes the service life of pads and disks
that are equal to those in comparable drum brakes
Economic use of technology means driving and braking with anticipation and economic
thinking. Disk brakes offers safety in any situation
14
15
CONCLUSION
Many trucks and buses are equipped with air actuated sliding caliper disk brakes
The high contact forces are transmitted mechanically via needle mounted actuating
device Depending on size the actuating pressure is transmitted evenly to the brake pads
via one or two plungers
The easy action, fully sealed guides between the axially moving sliding caliper and
fixed brake anchor plate are maintenance free. Integrated automatic adjustment with
wear display. There are no brake shafts, external levers or cylinder brackets, as the brake
cylinders are directly attached.
The high efficiency of 95% is achieved by only a few moving parts and low friction
bearings Asbestos free brake pads 19 to 23 mm thick, depending on version extremely
heat resistant brake disks (34 to 45 mm) made of special gray cast iron with internal
ventilation
The brake disks are 330 to 432 mm in diameter and permissible wear of 6 to 10 mm
allowed; depending on version .The service and parking brakes use the same actuating
unit and differ only in the shape of the brake cylinder.
15