PEPM

AEL2501

Automotive Brake Systems

Lecture delivered by:

Prof. Ashok C.Meti
MSRSAS--Bangalore
MSRSAS
A.C.Meti MSRSAS

M.S Ramaiah School of Advanced Studies - Bangalore 1

PEPM
AEL2501

Session Objectives
• Study and understand the basic principles of
mechanical and hydraulic automotive brakes
• Study the configurations and working of drum and
disc brakes used in automobiles
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Topics
• Automotive Brake – Introduction
• Hydraulic brake principle
• D l brake
Dual b k circuits
i it
• Components of hydraulic brake systems
• Drum and Disc brakes
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AEL2501

Automotive Brakes - Introduction

• The brake system is designed to slow down and halt the
motion of the vehicle.
• Various components are used in braking system to convert
the momentum (Kinetic energy) in to heat energy using
friction.
friction
• Two forms of friction play important role in automotive
braking:
– Kinetic friction
– Static friction
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Braking Action AEL2501

• Braking action creates kinetic friction in the brakes and

static friction between the tire and road to slow the vehicle.
• When brakes are applied, the vehicle’s weight is
transferred to the fron
front wheels and is unloaded on the rear
wheels.
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M.S Ramaiah School of Advanced Studies - Bangalore 5

PEPM
AEL2501

Factor governing braking:

• There are four basic factors determine the braking power
of the system.
– Pressure – amount of friction generated between moving surfaces
contactingg one another depends
p in ppart on the ppressure exerted on
the surfaces.
surfaces
The hydraulic force is used to move brake pads or brake shoes
against spinning rotors or drums mounted on the wheels.
– Coefficient of Friction – In automotive brakes, the COF expresses
the frictional relationships between pads and rotors or shoes and
drums and is carefully engineered to ensure maximum
performance. [COF 0.25 to 0.55]
– Frictional Contact surface – It is the amount of surface
surface, or area
area,
that is in contact. Bigger brakes stop the car more quickly.
– Heat Dissipation – A large amount of heat is produced in brakes.
The weight and the speed of the vehicle determine the braking
mechanism.
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• Brake lining Friction Material

– Brake linings are either riveted or bonded to the brake shoes or
baking of the pad.(new ones integrally molded)
• Fully metallic linings of sintered iron used for heavy
application and racing
• Higher fade resistance
• Require higher pedal pressure
• Tendency to wear out the drums or rotors.
• Semi
Semi--metallic lining materials made of iron fibers molded
with adhesive matrix.
• Offer excellent fade resistance
• Good frictional characteristics and hence moderate pedal pressure
required
• No excessive wear on drums and rotors.
• Non
Non--asbestos lining materials made of synthetic substance.
• Manufacturers experimenting to meet established criteria for:
– long life
– friction characteristics
– drum and rotor wear
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– heat dissipation

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AEL2501

Hydraulic Brake Principle

• The hydraulic brake uses a brake fluid to transfer of
pressure from the brake pedal to the pads or shoes
shoes.
• The force can be increased or decreased at the wheels by
properly sizing the cylinder sizes.
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• The force can be increased at output

by increasing the size of the wheel’s
piston though piston travel decreases.
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AEL2501

Dual Brake Circuits

• If one circuit fails, the other provides enough braking power
to stop the vehicle.
• This system uses a tandem master cylinder.
Front-Rear Diagonal

Prop Valve

Prop Valve
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Rear Front School of Advanced Studies

M.S Ramaiah Rear
- Bangalore Front 10

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AEL2501

Master Cylinder
• It is the heart of the hydraulic
system.
• Converts the force exerted on
the brake pedal into hydraulic
pressure.
• Depressing the brake pedal
moves a push rod in the master
cylinder. Mounted on the push
rod, are a pair of pistons
(primary and secondary) in
tandem (one after the other) that
exert force against the fluid in
the
h master cylinder
li d bore.
b
• This creates pressure, which
along with the fluid that's
displaced by the pistons is
routed through the brake lines
to each of the wheel brakes.
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AEL2501

• Vacuum-assisted Power brake:

– The booster contains a rubber
diaphragm(s) connected between
the brake pedal and the master
cylinder
– The brake booster uses the
differential of engine vacuum
(negative pressure) and atmospheric
pressure (positive pressure) to
multiply force from the driver’s leg.
– This applies increased force to the
pushrod of the master cylinder,
generating more pressure from the
master cylinder than from use of the
driver’s leg alone.
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Typical brake lines & hoses layout AEL2501

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AEL2501

Hydraulic safety switches and valves:

• Pressure differential switch
– Used to operate a warning light.
– Mainly used to tell the driver if pressure is lost in either of the two
hydraulic systems.
• Metering and proportioning Valves
– Used to balance the braking characteristics of the disc and drum
brakes.
– The braking response of the disc brake is immediate when the
pedal is operated.
operated
– Drum brake response is delayed as hydraulic pressure moves the
wheel cylinder pistons to overcome the force of return springs and
force the brake shoes to contact the brake drum.
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• Metering valve:
– A metering valve in the front brake holds off pressure to the front
calipers.
– This
hi delay
d l builds
b ild up pressure in
i the
h rear drums
d first.
fi
– When the rear brakes begin to take hold, the hydraulic pressure
builds to the level needed to open the metering valve.
– This process provides for better balance of the front and rear
brakes.
– It also prevents the lockup of the front brakes (until the rear brakes
have started to operate.)
• Proportioning valves:
– Used to control rear brake pressure, particularly during hard
braking.
– It keeps the front and rear braking forces in balance.
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AEL2501

Brake Fluid:
– Made from combination of various types of glycol, a non-
petroleum-based fluid.
– It is
i polyalkylene-glycol-ether
l lk l l l h mixture
i called
ll d Ployglycol
l l l for
f short.
h
– It should:
• Have a high boiling point
• Have a low freezing point
• Not damage rubber parts in the brake system.
– Brake fluid must meet one of three U.S. Department of
Transportation (DOT) specifications.
– DOT3 and DOT4 are glycol-based fluids, which absorb water.
DOT5 is a silicone-based fluid and does not absorb water.
– Most cars use DOT 3 fluid from the factory.
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Drum Brakes
– A drum brake assembly consists of:
• A cast-iron drum, bolted to and rotates
with the wheel
• A fixed backing plate to which the shoes,
wheel cylinders
cylinders, automatic adjusters and
linkages are attached.
– The shoes are lined with the friction
material which move outwards and
contacts the inner surface of the drum
when the brakes are actuated.
– As the drum rubs against the shoes, the
energy off the
h moving
i drum
d is
i
transformed into heat.
– When the brakes are released, the
shoes and hence the pistons are pulled
back by the return springs.
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M.S Ramaiah School of Advanced Studies - Bangalore 17

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AEL2501

Wheel Cylinder
• Hydraulic pressure is
transferred from the
master cylinder to each of
the wheel cylinder through
brake fluid.
• The wheel cylinders are
made up of cast iron with
a bore drilled and finished
to provide a smooth finish
for the wheel cylinder
seals and pistons.
• The links or push rods
force the shoes outward
against the brake drum.
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AEL2501

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Typical Drum Brake – exploded view AEL2501
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AEL2501

Disc Brakes:
• Disc brakes use a
piston(s) to squeeze
friction material on
both sides of a rotating
disc(rotor).
• The rotor is attached to
and stops the wheel.
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AEL2501
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AEL2501

Fixed Caliper Floating Caliper

Fixed Caliper Floating Caliper

• The caliper is bolted directly to the • Modern disc brakes use only one
steering knuckle and does not move. large piston in a caliper which moves
• When the brake pedal is depressed
depressed, slightly,
g y, allowing g it to squeeze
q the
hydraulic brake fluid is forced into rotor between the two disc pads.
the caliper cylinder bores. • The pressure on the piston forces the
• This forces the pistons outward and inside pad against the rotor.
against the pads. • At the same time the piston is pushing
against the rotor, the caliper itself is
A.C.Meti MSRSAS

being forced toward the center of the

vehicle.
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AEL2501

• Brake Pads
– Disc brake pads have friction material attached
t a steel
to t l backing.
b ki
– Three methods
• Riveting
• Bonding
• Integrally molding
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AEL2501

• Brake pad wear compensation

– As the disc brake pad wears, the caliper piston moves
out closer to the rotor.
– The additional brake fluid needed behind the piston
comes from the master cylinder and the brake fluid
level drops as the disc brake pads wear.
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PEPM
AEL2501

Summary
• The basic principles of mechanical and
hydraulic brakes have been explained.
• Detailed discussion on the constructional
features and working of drum and disc
brakes has been carried out
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M.S Ramaiah School of Advanced Studies - Bangalore 26

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