BRAKING

SYSTEMS

BRAKING PRINCIPLES
Kinetic energy
The purpose of a brake is to:
‘Convert kinetic energy to heat energy’.

The speed of the energy conversion controls the rate of retardation of a

vehicle, that is the vehicle’s rate of deceleration.
Heat generation at the brake is obtained by rubbing a fixed pad or shoe
against a rotating object driven by the motion of the vehicle.

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 A cam-operated brake shoe

Main types of brakes

● drum brake
● disc brake
The friction between the rubbing surfaces (i.e. brake shoe to brake
drum or brake pad to brake disc) is increased by attaching a friction
material to the fixed brake component, i.e. brake shoe or pad.

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Drum brakes
The ‘internal expanding’ type of brake uses two shoes which are
attached to a back-plate. The back-plate is fixed to a stub axle or axle
tube.
Each shoe is a T-section; a friction lining is riveted or bonded to the
outer face of the shoe. At one end of the shoe is fitted a device for
expanding the shoe when the brake pedal is depressed.

Brake drum components

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Disc brakes
The disc brake consists of an exposed disc, which is attached to the hub
flange. Two friction pads sandwich the disc, and these brake pads are
pressed onto the disc as the disc rotates giving a braking action.
The brake pad clamping action is produced by hydraulic pistons working
in cylinders formed within a caliper assembly. The caliper is secured to a
fixed part of the axle or hub carrier/suspension.

Brake disc components

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BRAKE OPERATING SYSTEMS

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DRUM BRAKES

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Leading and trailing shoe

brakes
The shoes are hydraulically expanded by two separate pistons fitted in a
wheel cylinder which is fixed rigidly to the back-plate. Rotation of the
shoes with the drum is prevented by an anchor pin that is securely
mounted on the back-plate so as to resist the full braking torque.

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A strong spring is fitted to return the shoes
when the brake pedal is released.
A snail cam or eccentric, mounted behind
each shoe, was traditionally provided for
manual adjustment of the shoes. These
cams can be partially rotated with the aid of
a shoe adjustment tool without removing
the drum.

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When the brake drums are not rotating, if

pressure is applied to the brake pedal,
hydraulic pressure forces both shoes
outwards and after the clearance has been
taken up, an equal force is applied by each
shoe to the drum.
This equal force does not apply when the
vehicle is moving and the drums are
rotating. The drag of a moving drum on the
friction linings causes one shoe to be
applied harder and the other shoe to be
pushed towards the off position. As a result,
the braking torque produced by the shoes is
in the ratio 4:1.

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Leading and trailing shoe brake

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DISC BRAKES

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Advantages
1. Easier dissipation of the heat
2. Independence of self-servo effect
3. The brake is not so sensitive to friction changes
4. Self-adjusting linings or pads are used which are usually easily
replaced
5. Pedal travel does not increase as the disc heats up (for drum brakes,
heating a drum causes expansion, which increases pedal travel)

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A two-cylinder caliper disc brake

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A single-cylinder caliper

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HYDRAULIC BRAKE
OPERATING
SYSTEMS

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ANTI-LOCK
BRAKING SYSTEMS
(ABS)

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Requirement for an anti-lock
braking system (ABS)
ABS ensures that the wheels do not lock during extreme braking thus
allowing improved levels of grip to be achieved by the tyres.
This enables the driver to have considerably increased control of the
direction of the vehicle in these critical moments.

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On a dry surface the adhesion varies as

the percentage of wheel slip ranges, from
0% (no slip) to 100% (locked wheel,
sliding over the road surface).

By limiting the amount of wheel slip,

vehicle stability and control is also
maintained while the vehicle is braking.

ABS maximizes the braking of a vehicle by

maintaining a slip ratio between 10 and
30%, which also allows the cornering
force to be as high as possible under
these conditions.

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 ECU and modulator
Wheel speed sensors and
a toothed rotor

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