Automotive Brake Design

Dr. Yehia Eldrainy

Braking System
Three Requirements
• Decelerate in a controlled repeatable manner
• help maintain constant speed down hill
• hold vehicle stationary on a flat or on a gradient

Brakes should work in diverse conditions:

- Slippery, wet and dry roads
- Rough or smooth road
- Split friction surfaces
- Straight line braking or when braking on a curve
- Wet or dry brakes
- New or worn linings
- Laden or unladen vehicle
- Vehicle pulling a trailer or caravan
- Frequent or infrequent applications of short or lengthy duration
- High or low rates of deceleration
- Skilled or unskilled drivers
Brake – Sub systems
- Energy source (muscular effort vacuum boost/power braking/surge brakes /
spring brakes)
- Modulation System(to control brake force)
- Transmission systems(brake lines/tubes, brake hoses(flexible tube),
rods /livers/cams/cables etc.
- Foundation brakes

Four stages of Brakes system design

- Fundamental stage
- choice of force distributing between axles
- Transmission System Design
- sizing of master cylinder, rear & front wheel cylinders
- Foundation system design
- to apply loads & torque
- thermal , wear & noise characteristics
- Pedal assembly and vacuum boost system
Vehicle parameters required for brake system design
- Laden and unladen vehicle mass
- Static weight distribution when laden and unladen
- Wheelbase
- Height of center of gravity when laden and unladen
- Maximum vehicle speed
- Tire and rim size
- Vehicle function
- Braking standards
Brake System Components & Configurations
- Pedal assembly
- Brake booster
- to reduce manual pressure
- vacuum booster(uses negative pressure in intake manifold)
- Master cylinder
- initiates & control braking
- two separate braking circuits (primary & secondary)
 Contd..
- 2 pistons in the same cylinder
- If one system has a leak , the other takes care
 Regulating valves
- when load transferred to the front , braking at rear need to be
reduced
- 3 types
- load sensitive(based on suspension displacement)
- Pressure sensitive
- Deceleration sensitive
- Foundation brakes
- Disc brakes/ Drum brakes
- If both are discs , a small
drum type parking brake also used
- Brake System Layout
- 2 variants-II & X
 Contd..
- Load sensitive pressure regulating valve: Valves of this type are fitted to
vehicles that experience changes in axle load. The valve is anchored to
the vehicle body and is also connected to the rear suspension through a
mechanical linkage. This enables the rear brakes to compensate for the
change in axle load;
- Pressure sensitive pressure regulating valve isolates the rear brake
circuit when the line pressure exceeds a predetermined value.
Deceleration sensitive pressure regulating valve: The actuation point is
determined by the rate of deceleration of the vehicle and this is
typically of the order of 0.3g. A benefit of this type of valve is that it
does provide for a degree of load sensitive operation as the overall
deceleration of the vehicle is a function of the vehicle weight and the
line pressure.
Kinematics of Braking

The preceding analysis assumes the vehicle deceleration is achieved instantaneously and
is sustained for the duration of the stop. No account is taken of driver reaction time, initial
system response time, deceleration rise time, change in deceleration during the period of
actual braking and, if applicable, release time.
Typical Measured Deceleration time-history
Driver reaction time (t0-t1)
- driver responds & move his foot to the pedal
Initial system response time (t1-t2)
- -up to start of breaking force at tyre
Deceleration rise time (t2-t3)
- -time to reach peak
- deceleration

Breaking time t3-t4

-till vehiclestops
Release time t4-t5
-brake release starts to end
of brake force
Stopping time t0-t4/t5
Braking time t1-t4/t5
 Kinematics of braking
S1=U(t1-t0)
S2 =U(t2-t1)

Stopping distance

Braking distance
 Kinematics of Braking

Assuming x is positive in the direction of

travel
 Kinematics of Braking
Note that the front and rear braking force terms, Tf and Tr, represent the sum of all the
effects that combine to generate the forces which act between the front and rear axles
and ground.
These include the torque generated by the brakes together with rolling resistance
effects, bearing friction and etc.

If an additional variable for linear deceleration, d, is defined such that

in which T is the sum of all those forces that contribute to the overall braking effort
Integrate the above equation it leads to
where x is the distance
travelled during the brake
application.
final velocity vf is zero
 Kinematics of Braking

For maximum deceleration

-both axles should be on border of lock simultaneously

the maximum deceleration cannot

exceed the value of tyre-ground
adhesion
- If d> g , µ> 1.0 (depends on tyre compound)
 Retardation force
• As already indicated, the primary source of retardation force arises
from the foundation brake. Secondary forces which contribute to the
overall braking performance include:
- Rolling resistance (=0.01g)
- Aerodynamic drag (proportional to square of speed) =0.03 g at high
speed
- Gradient(uphill/down hill)
- Drivetrain drag can contribute to the braking effort

Tyre-road friction
-Brake force Fb (and hence torque Tb) can not increase
unbounded it is limited by tyre road friction
-depends on tyre & road surface and road condition
-dry clean road 0.8 < µ <1
-icy surfaces 0.05 ≤µ ≤0.1
-wet surfaces contaminated by dirt 0.2≤µ≤0.65
 Mechanism of friction
Hysteresis and adhesion are the two mechanisms responsible for friction
coupling.
• Adhesion(intermolecular bonds between rubber & surfaces)
• hysteresis
- energy loss during rubber deformation during slip

-both rely on slip

 Friction depends on slip
• Adhesion & hysteretic phenomenon increase with slip up to 20% slip
• If slip> 20% , µb decreases
• Lateral brake force during turning depend on slip angle
• -lateral forces minimum when wheel is locked
 Brake Proportioning
If rear and front braking is not apportioned
– Insufficient deceleration
– Front axle lock (lack of steering control)
– Rear axle lock (instability)
– In either case – incomplete utilization of available friction (road adhesion)

load transfer during braking

A variable brake effort ratio is required to provide ideal braking.
Factors
– Change in vehicle weight;
– Change in weight distribution;
– The effect of gradients (positive and negative);
– Cornering, (also lateral forces);
– Varying road surfaces and weather conditions;
– Split friction surfaces where the coefficient of adhesion changes from
front to rear
 Selection of Components
Brake rotor and Calipers:
– It is beneficial to select a rotor having the diameter as large as can be
accommodated in the rims of the car.
– This is because of the reason that for the transmission of same torque,
with the increase in diameter, the respective force decreases.
– The rotor should be design to facilitate heat transfer.
B. Master Cylinder
– A tandem type master cylinder was selected so that independent two
hydraulic circuits can be obtained and it can be obtained by a single
control from brake pedal.
– An split-connections were given to the wheels so that the car maintains
stability in case of failure of one of the circuits.
– The circuit is made up of rigid pipes followed by flexible brake lines going
to the calipers .
 Brake Calculations
Note that all the relationships assume 100% efficiency in the whole system. All
the dimensions are in S.I. units.
Pedal ratio = L2 / L1
Fbp = Fd x (L2 / L1)
Where,
Fbp =force output of the assembly
Fd = force applied to the pedal pad by the driver
L1=distance from the brake pedal arm pivot to the output rod clevis attachment
L2 = distance from the brake pedal arm pivot to the brake pedal pad

The Master Cylinder:

Diameter of master cylinder piston
Area of master cylinder piston = Amc = (π/4) x Dmc2
Pressure generated by the master cylinder = Pmc = Fbp / Amc
Where, Pmc = hydraulic pressure generated by the master cylinder
Amc = effective area of the master cylinder hydraulic piston.
 Brake Calculations
The Caliper:
Diameter of caliper piston = Dcal
Area of caliper piston = Acal = (π/4) x Dcal2
Pressure transmitted to caliper = Pcal = Pmc
One sided linear mechanical force generated by the caliper will be equal to:
Fcal = Pcal x Acal
Where, Acal = the effective area of the caliper

The clamping force will be equal to twice the linear mechanical force as follows:
Fclamp = 2 x Fcal

The Brake Pad:

The frictional force is related to the caliper clamp force as follows:
Ffriction = Fclamp x μbp
Where, μbp = the coefficient of friction between the brake pad and the rotor
 Brake Calculations
The Rotor:
The torque is related to the brake pad frictional force as follows:
Tr = Ffriction x Reff
Where, Tr = torque generated by the rotor
Reff = the effective radius of the rotor (measured from the rotor center of rotation to
the center of pressure of the caliper pistons)
As the rotor is mechanically coupled to the hub and wheel assembly and the tyre is
assumed to be rigidly attached to the wheel, the torque will be constant throughout
the entire rotating assembly as follows:
Torque on Tyre (Tt) = Torque on wheel (Tw) = Torque on rotor (Tr)
The Tyre:
The force reacted at the ground will be equal to:
1. Force on the front tyre,
Ffront = Tt / Rfront
Where, Rfront = effective rolling radius of front tyre
2. Force on the rear tyre,
Frea r= Tt / Rrear
Where, Rrear = effective rolling radius of rear tyre
The total braking force reacted between the vehicle and the ground,
Ftotal = 2 x( Ffront) + Frear)
 Brake Calculations
Deceleration of vehicle in motion:
The deceleration of the vehicle will be equal to:
av = Ftotal / m
Where, av = deceleration of vehicle
mv = mass of vehicle
Braking distance of vehicle:
The theoretical braking distance of a vehicle in motion can be calculated as follows:
d = v2 / 2av
Where, v = velocity of vehicle
d = braking distance

Braking time of vehicle:

The theoretical braking time of a vehicle in motion can be calculated as
follows:
Tstop = (v x mv) / Ftotal
 Brake Calculations
Weight distribution:
From the vehicle’s center of gravity,
Vt = Ftotal
Vf = (Vt x CGr) / WB
Where, Vf = front axle vertical force
CGr = distance from the rear axle to the CG
WB = wheel base (distance from the front axle to the rear axle)
Vt = Total vertical force of vehicle
Vr = (Vt x CGf) / WB
Where, Vr = rear axle vertical force
CGf = distance from front axle to the CG
Now,
Percentage front weight = (Vf / Vt) x 100
Percentage rear weight = (Vr / Vt) x 100
 Brake Calculations
Dynamic impacts of vehicle:
Absolute weight transferred from the rear axle to the front axle,
WT = (av / g) x (hcg / WB) x Vt
Where, WT = absolute weight transferred from rear axle to front axle
g = acceleration due to gravity
hcg = height of CG from the ground
In order to calculate the steady-state vehicle axle vertical forces during a given
stopping event, the weight transferred must be added to the front axle static weight
and subtracted from the rear axle static weight as follows:
Vf,d = Vf + WT
Where, Vf,d = the front axle dynamic vertical force for a given deceleration
Vr,d = Vr - WT
Where, Vr,d = the rear axle dynamic vertical force for a given deceleration
 Brake Calculations
Effects of weight transfer on tyre output:
Under static conditions, the maximum braking force that an axle is capable of
producing is defined by the following relationships:
Ftyres,f = μf x Vf
Where, Ftyres,f = the combined front tyre braking force
μf = coefficient of friction between front tyre and road
Ftyres,r = μr x VrWhere, Ftyres,r = the combined rear tyre braking force
μr = coefficient of friction between rear tyre and road
However, as a result of weight transfer during a deceleration event the
maximum braking force that an axle is capable of producing is modified as
follows:
Ftyres,f,d = μf x Vf,d
Where, Ftyres,f,d = dynamic force on front tyre
Ftyres,r,d = μr x Vr,d
Where, Ftyres,r,d = dynamic force on rear tyre
 Brake Calculations
Calculating optimum brake balance:
Under static conditions,
(Ftyre,f / Vf) = (Ftyre,r / Vr)
However, as the brakes are applied the effects of weight transfer must be considered, as
the ratio of front and rear vertical forces will change as follows:
(Ftyre,f,d / Vf,d) = (Ftyre,r,d / Vr,d)