ThE Automotive Disc Hydra

Engineering Studies AST2

 Abstract

This report details how braking systems and subsystems function, as well as their advantages, disadvantages, and
their performance in comparison to other braking systems and subsystems. This report also offers a small history
relating to the development of braking systems as well as their impacts and implication on society. The report than
goes into depth with a focused research on the Disc brake. The report then concludes with an overall reflection on
what has been learnt, as well as statements regarding design, construction and type of materials implemented and
finally a recommendation of the best way the brake system can be employed in society.
 Introduction
14/6/21

Block Brake
For as long as humanity has had the means to make something go, they have needed the means to make it stop.
Almost all braking system rely on friction, which turns the kinetic energy from a rotating wheel into thermal energy,
as well as light energy and sound energy. The earliest braking systems were found on horse-drawn stages coaches.
The system used what is known a block brake (or external shoe brake) where a wooden block would be pushed into
the wrought iron rim of one of the stagecoaches wheels. This would generate friction slowing the coach down. These
were only effective because the driver of the stagecoach sat up so high meaning that the lever that he had to pull
generated a large amount of leverage.

Figure 1: A Horse drawn stage coach that employs a block brake on its front right wheel

Pneumatic Train Brake

As steam trains became a popular means of transport, developments around components that were employed on
steam trains happened rapidly. This resulted in the 1875 invention of the Westinghouse Airbrake which used
compressed air to hold the brake on when in advent that the train would Disconnect from its carriages. The brake
used a clasp brake (also referred to as a railway brake) which used a pneumatic system to press a cast iron shoe into
the outside of the wheel. The Westinghouse brake primarily functioned as a failsafe for when carriages uncoupled
from the locomotive during travel, before the invention of the Westinghouse system the carriage would continue to
move until the friction from the wheels caused it to slow and eventually stop. This dangerous event could be
completely avoided with the use of the Westinghouse system. The Pneumatic Train brake combined with the
Westinghouse system was made compulsory on all trains and carriages in Britain in 1889. A similar system to the
Westinghouse Airbrake is still found on trains and semi-trailers today.

Band Brake
The next development in braking systems was the band brake. The band brake used a band which was usually made
of leather, to constrict around a hub. The band brake was lever operated and was first employed on stagecoaches to
replace the block brake but saw great use on early automobiles. The pneumatic tyre had made the block brake
ineffective and obsolete, so band brakes were found on most early automobiles. Karl Benz`s “Benz Patent-
Motorwagen” which is considered to be the first car, employed a band brake for its rear wheels. There were some
obvious issues surrounding band brakes. The band brake became ineffective is dust or moisture built up between the
band and the hub. The band brake also did not work if the vehicle was in reverse and had to constantly be replaced,
with each band only lasting for about 1600 kilometres.

Figure 2: simple band brake used on a bicycle. Note the steel band that is actuated
by a cable and lever system.

Drum Brake
Developed by French industrialist and pioneer of the French automotive industry Louis Renault in 1902, the Drum
brake was similar to the contracting band brake except the friction material expanded and rubbed against the inside
of the hub rather than the outside. The Drum brakes mechanism was contained meaning that it was largely
unaffected by rain and dirt. The mechanism being contained meant that a build up of brake dust would adversely
effect the brake function, requiring constant cleaning due to a build-up of brake dust. If the brake was submerged in
water, like what would happen if you drove through a creek, then the water would have difficulty escaping the brake
causing the brake to become ineffective. This mean that the brakes needed to be constantly applied after
submersion to evaporate any water trapped inside of the Drum. Renault`s Drum brake was mechanically operated
and was highly inefficient due to the loss of force caused by friction between moving parts. A mechanical system also
meant that the system would have to be manually balanced so that an equal braking force was applied to each side
of the car.

Hydraulically Actuated Braking System

The first hydraulically actuated brakes were proposed by Malcom Lockheed in 1918. The concept used a series of
tube and cylinders to transmit the force via a hydraulic fluid, the concept also included the first pedal actuated
braking system. This system was fitted to a Model A Duesenberg a high-class car at the time, but the system was
plagued with fluid leakage problems due to the expanding and contracting piston heads in the slave cylinders. This
led to the invention of rubber seals that solved the fluid leakage problems. The hydraulic system was quickly adapted
by American car manufactures due to its ability to evenly distribute braking force among 2-4 wheels.

Figure 4: A Model A Duesenberg with Disc brakes on all 4 wheels

The Disc Brake

The original patent for the Disc brake was awarded to William Lanchester in 1902. Lanchester`s Disc brake used a
copper brake pad to pinch a steel brake Disc. The brakes were not adopted at the time due to the loud sound that
the copper on steel produced when the brakes were applied. This problem was later fixed by Herbert Frood who
added asbestos linings to the brake pads. The first Disc brakes were all hydraulically actuated as it allowed for the
most effective transfer of force as well as producing high enough forces to actuate the piston in the slave cylinder.
Disc brakes were slowly put onto motorcycles and aeroplanes, but it was not until 1951 when automotive Disc
brakes were brought back into the public eye, when they were showcased at the London Motor Show. By the 1960s-
Disc brakes were used on most European built cars because the braking forces need to slow newer cars that were
faster, bigger and heavier, could not be supplied by a Drum brake.

The benefits of the Disc brake were that they didn’t suffer from “brake fade” which is the phenomenon that occurs
when the brakes overheat causing the friction material to rapidly lose efficacy. This was because the brake Disc as
well as the brake pad were exposed to cool air which made it much harder to reach the temperature at which the
friction material began to burn. The Discs were typically made of cast iron which is still commonplace today, this is
because of the hardness and attainability that cast iron offers as well as its thermal properties.

Material Developments
As braking systems developed friction materials also began to develop a lot faster as manufacturers looked to build
the longest lasting and most effective brakes. The first brake pads were made of asbestos as it was extremely light,
lasted a long time and was a poor conductor of thermal energy meaning it heated up slower. Eventually it was
Discovered that asbestos was carcinogenic and by 2004 asbestos in brake pads had been outlawed in Australia. This
opened the door for NAO (Non-Asbestos Organic) brake pads which use materials such as fibreglass, rubber, and
Kevlar in place of asbestos. Metallic brake pads also became common place often being made from metals such as
copper, brass, steel and iron and produce the most effective brake pad. Ceramic brakes used porcelain fibres and
clay fibres in place of metals, this meant that they were far lighter than metallic or NAO brake pads while also
providing the longest operating time and the widest range of effective operating temperature of the 3. All of these
brake pads are made of fibres bonded together with binders such as phenol formaldehyde.

Material Advances
Brake Discs were also beginning to be made out of more advanced materials such as carbon-ceramic composites.
Carbon-ceramic brake Discs were originally developed in the 1980s for aerospace applications as well as high-speed
trains as a lighter alternative to metallic brake Discs. The technology was adapted by high performance car
manufacturers and Formula 1 teams. This is because carbon-ceramic composite is not a strong of a conductor of
heat, resulting in a lower peak temperature under peak braking forces. This results in lower wear as well being able
to endure conditions that would cause a metallic Disc to warp.

Figure 5: Michael Schumacher’s carbon-ceramic brakes reach red hot temperatures of around 1000 degrees Celsius at the 1996 Japanese Grand
Prix
Anti-Lock Brake System
In 1978 the first automotive ABS (Anti-lock Brake System) was introduced on the W116 Mercedes-Benz S-class. ABS
is a computer-controlled system that uses sensors that detect rapid deceleration in a wheel that occurs when it is
locking up. In an emergency braking situation if the wheels lock up the driver loses control of the steering as well as
having their brake distance increased. The sensor than tells the car’s computer that it has locked up, the car than
uses a solenoid valve to release the pressure in the slave cylinder letting the wheel spin again. This process happens
roughly 20 time a second in modern cars. This system greatly improved safety in cars at a time where the public was
beginning to make a shift towards increased vehicle safety.

Figure 6: A 1978 Mercedes-Benz W116 S-Class, the first production car equipped with ABS

The Regenerative Brake

The most modern advance in braking systems is the regenerative brake which uses a car spinning wheel to create
current. The first commercially available regenerative brake was installed on the Toyota Prius. The system used the
Prius` electric motor which would run in reverse and instead of powering the wheel, the motor would act as a
generator and charge the Prius` battery. The braking force was produced by the opposing electro-magnetic fields
that were created when the wheel tried to push against the motor. Other forms of regenerative brake such as the
kinetic energy recovery system, used a large fly wheel that was spun up by the wheels to produce a current to charge
the cars internal battery. This allows for must longer lasting electrically powered travel reducing the amount of
pollution produced for a combustion engine.

Figure 7: McLaren`s F1 GTR take it Kinetic Energy Recovery System from the
developments made by the Formula 1 team.
 Preliminary Research
Type Advantages Disadvantages Comparisons
Band  Cheap  Low levels of stopping  The band brake is both
 Easy to maintain power the cheapest to produce
System Operation: A band  Lightweight  Only works in forward and simplest brake
brake utilises a contracting  Maintenance can be direction system.
band that acts on a hub to done at home  Debris and moisture can  The band brake is the
slow or stop a spinning decrease effectiveness easiest to maintain.
object. A band brake is  Lacks self-adjusting  The band brake is the
typical operated by using a function most difficult brake to
lever to pull the band against  Difficult to operate operate as it is
the hub creating increased unassisted.
friction slowing down the  The band brake is the
object that is acting upon. least effective
 The band brake is the
Application: lightest braking system
 Bicycles
 Go-karts
 Billycarts
Drum  Cheapest hydraulically  Poor heat dissipation as  The Drum brake is more
powered system the system is contained expensive to produce
System Operation: A  Easily made into parking  Requires cleaning than a band brake but
modern Drum brake uses a brake  Debris and moisture can cheaper than a
hydraulically actuated piston  Cheap to maintain decrease effectiveness regenerative and Disc
to press 2 shoes into a Drum  Self-adjusting as friction  Heavy brake.
to slow or stop a spinning material wears  Difficult to maintain  The Drum brake is more
object. A Drum brake is  Large contact area  Prone to brake fade complex than a Disc
actuated by a user`s foot between the shoes and brake and a band brake
which can be assisted by a the Disc mean that less but far simpler than a
brake boost system, to effort/force is required regenerative brake.
increase the pressure inside to slow down which  The Drum brake is the
of the master cylinder. The means that assistance is most difficult to
master cylinder distributes not needed. maintain as it requires
pressure evenly between the  Maintenance can be constant cleaning which
slave cylinders which are done at home is due to the brake
placed on each brake. This being a contained unit.
causes the pressure inside of  If assisted the Drum
the wheel cylinder to rise brake is as easy to
driving a piston outwards operate as a Disc brake.
forcing the shoes into the If it is not that it is
Drum to create friction. slightly harder.
 Over a short distance
Application: the Drum brake is the
 Motorcycles most effective. Over a
 Cars longer distance the
 Trucks Drum brake is prone to
 All-Terrain Vehicles brake fade and
 Parking Brakes overheating making it
only better than a band
brake
 The Drum brake is
heavier than a Disc and
band brake

Type Advantages Disadvantages Comparisons
Disc  Produces high levels of  Difficulty creating  The Disc brake is more
stopping power parking brake system expensive to produce
System Operation: A Disc  Dissipates heat quickly  Expensive to maintain than a Drum and band
brake uses a hydraulically or  Minimal decrease in  Most expensive brake but is cheaper
pneumatically actuated performance in wet hydraulically powered than a regenerative
piston to press a brake pad conditions system brake
into a brake Disc in order to  Lightweight for the  The Disc brake more
create friction. A Disc brake amount of stopping complex than a band
is actuated by a user`s foot power produced brake but is simpler
which is generally assisted  Easily maintained than both a
by a brake boost system, to  Self-cleaning regenerative brake and
increase the pressure inside  Self-adjusting as friction a Drum brake
of the master cylinder which material wears  The Disc brake is self
in turn increases the  •Easy to operate due to cleaning due to the
pressure inside of the slave Pascal`s principle friction materials being
cylinders which are placed  Does not suffer from exposed.
on each brake. Pressure brake fade  It is easier to maintain a
inside of the slave cylinders  Maintenance can be Disc brake than it is a
which are placed on each done at home Drum brake because the
brake. This causes the parts that need to be
pressure behind the piston changed most (like the
to rise driving it into the Disc brake pads and brake
where it creates friction. rotors) are easily
accessible and do not
Application: require the disassembly
 Cars of the whole unit to be
 Racing Cars maintained.
 Trucks  A Disc brake is always
 Bikes assisted meaning that is
 Aeroplanes the easiest to operate.
 Trains  The Disc brake is less
effective than the Drum
brake over a short
distance but is far
superior over a longer
distance as the friction
materials exposure to
cool air makes brake
fade nearly impossible.
 A Disc brake is also
more effective than a
regenerative brake in an
emergency situation as
it can apply more
stopping force to the
wheels slowing them
down faster.
 The Disc break is lighter
than the Drum and
regenerative brakes but
is heavier than a band
brake
Type Advantages Disadvantages Comparisons
Regenerative  The regenerative brake  Expensive to produce  The regenerative brake
is a non-friction brake  Only applicable to is the most expensive to
System Operation: A meaning that parts do hybrid or electric produce as it requires
regenerative braking system not rub against each vehicles complex electrical
uses the electric field other, this means that  Not effective in an systems. the system
generated when a vehicles they do not need to be emergency braking also functions as a
electric motor isn’t running replaced as often. situation motor meaning that it
to slow the vehicle down.  Some braking energy is  Auxiliary system that must be strong enough
When the wheels are reused in traction requires a friction brake to power the car making
spinning, and the motor is such as a Drum or Disc it more expensive.
accelerating the car the brake to be present  The regenerative brake
motor acts as a generator  The system can be very system is the heaviest of
which charges as cars heavy. all braking systems
electrical/hybrid system.  The system only works  The regenerative brake
This works because the when the car is on does not use friction to
magnetic field produced by  KERS systems raise the slow the car, this means
the rotor are opposed by the centre of gravity of the that maintenance is
electro-magnetic field of the car making it more rare, but any faults or
stator causing the wheel to difficult to turn in a high defects will require the
slow. This system is most speed situation a whole motor to be
commonly used on road  Maintenance must be replaced which is more
going vehicles and almost all done by a trained complex than any of the
locomotives professional other braking systems.
 The regenerative brake
Alternatively, a regenerative is the easiest to operate
brake may take the form of a as it requires a brake-
KERS (Kinetic Energy by-wire system (the
Recovery System). A KERS driver’s foot is not
system uses a large flywheel directly attached to a
that is spun up when the pushrod that operates
brakes are applied, the force the master cylinder.
required to spin this fly Instead, when the brake
wheel is enough to slow the is pushed a sensor
car down. The fly wheel is detects how hard it has
attached to a small been applied and then
generator which generates a uses electric motors to
current charging the cars actuate the master
internal battery. This system cylinder piston) which
is most commonly used on requires less effort than
racing cars and high- a traditional system.
performance road going  A regenerative brake is
hybrid or electric cars most effective at low
speeds and situations
Application: where the brake is
 Hybrid and electric cars applied softly. The
 Trains regenerative system
 Trucks cannot slow the car
 Racing cars rapidly so a friction
brake must take over
and the regenerative
system is shut off.
Type Advantages Disadvantages Comparisons
Automotive Handbrake  Does not fail if hydraulic  Mechanical operation  The force applied by the
system fails requires more effort handbrake cannot be
System Operation: An  Works if the vehicles than a hydraulic system controlled as it is either
automotive hand brake uses engine is turned off as it is unassisted on or off
a hand actuated lever to pull  The handbrake is rarely
a cable that locks the shoes used when the car is in
of a Drum brake against the motion
Drum. If a car has rear Disc  The hand brake is
brakes then a small Drum mechanical does not
brake known as an auxiliary rely on any hydraulic
Drum brake is mounted system meaning the
behind the rear Disc`s. brake will function if the
car is off
Application:  Due to the handbrake
 Trucks being actuated
 Cars mechanically it cannot
be is only assisted and
relies purely on the
effort from driver to
actuate
Anti-lock Braking system  Decreases stopping  Difficulty diagnosing  The anti-lock brake
distances in emergency malfunctions system is controlled
System operation: An anti- braking situation  It is impossible to tell if entirely by a computer
lock brake system is a  Improves vehicle control the ABS system is and requires no effort
electrically driven system in an emergency braking working just by looking from the driver to used
that stops the wheels of a situation at the system itself  An ABS system is light
vehicle from locking up in an  Decreases tyre wear  Sensors can become and is negligible in the
emergency braking situation. blocked with debris cars overall mass
A sensor that detects rapid resulting in the ABS  An ABS system does not
deceleration constantly system failing to work if the car loses
monitors each wheel, if rapid activate or activating power
deceleration is detected when it should not
than the than a small valve  Does not function if the
that is controlled by the cars car suddenly loses
computer is opened and power
closed rapidly to adjust the
braking pressure. This
prevents the wheels from
locking up meaning that
emergency braking distances
are decreased.

Application:
 Cars
 Trucks
 Motorcycles
 Trains
 Aeroplanes
Type Advantages Disadvantages Comparisons
Hydraulic systems  All energy is used  Air bubbles in the fluid  Hydraulic systems are
actuate the piston or can make the brakes more efficient at
System operation: hydraulic shoes “spongy” meaning that transmitting force than
systems use a liquid (usually  Hydraulic lines can go they are not as pneumatic systems
an oil that boils at an around other responsive  Although hydraulic
extremely high temperature) components easily  Expensive to maintain systems contain a liquid
to transfer force. hydraulic  Cheaper than  Difficult to maintain which is obviously
systems can be operated by Pneumatic systems  complicated heavier than a gas, the
hand, foot or electronically.* an overall hydraulic
system is lighter than a
Applications: pneumatic system
 Cars  Hydraulic system are
 Trucks more dangerous than
 Trains pneumatic systems and
 Aeroplanes can fail suddenly
 Bicycles  Hydraulic fluid may
 Motorcycles damage other
 Racing cars components in the car if
line or hoses leak
 The fluid in hydraulic
systems does not
expand or contract at
high altitudes making it
suitable for aircraft
 Pascals principal allows
hydraulic systems to
evenly distribute
pressure easily and
more effectively than
pneumatic systems
 Maintenance of a
hydraulic system is
more difficult as the
system must be
completely drained
before the system is
refilled with new fluid
 Hydraulic systems are
cheaper to produce
than pneumatic systems
Type Advantages Disadvantages Comparisons
Pneumatic systems  Easy/ to maintain  Energy that could be  As some energy is
 Simple used to actuate piston is wasted compressing the
System operation:  Gas can be sourced lost compressing the gas gas inside of the system,
pneumatic systems use a gas from the atmosphere as  More expensive than pneumatic systems are
to transfer force. pneumatic well as voided to the hydraulic systems less efficient at
systems can be operated by atmosphere transmitting force than
hand, foot or electronically.*  Light weight hydraulic systems
 Compressed air can be  Pneumatic systems are
Applications: used to store kinetic heavier than hydraulic
 Trucks energy systems
 Trains  Pneumatic systems are
 Buses safer than hydraulic
 Farm Equipment systems (which is why
they are employed on
heavy machinery) as
they are less prone
failing. Most pneumatic
systems use a
Westinghouse airbrake
which applies the brake
when the air pressure
inside of the system
decreases.
 The air inside of a
pneumatic system is
often sourced from the
atmosphere and can be
voided straight back to
the atmosphere making
them harmless to other
components
 The gas inside of
pneumatic systems
expands when the
system is at altitude
 Maintenance of a
pneumatic system is
easier and cheaper than
hydraulic system
 Pneumatic systems are
more expensive to
produce than hydraulic
systems
 Focused Research

Question 1
Describe how the main components of the chosen braking system work together. Create and label a diagram of the
entire braking system to aid your explanation.

Force is put into the system through a brake pedal which pivots on a fulcrum to push a pushrod. This action is
assisted by a brake boost system, on one side of a diaphragm a vacuum tube which takes the vacuum pressure from
of the engine, reduces the pressure on that side of the diaphragm. The other side of the diaphragm is exposed to
atmospheric pressure which is higher than the pressure of the vacuumed side of the diaphragm. When the pedal is
pushed down the atmospheric pressure is trying to fill the on the other side of the diaphragm to neutralise the
pressure, this assists the driver in pushing the pedal down. The pushrod is attached to the master cylinder piston
which is inside of the master cylinder. Infront of the master cylinder piston is uncompressible hydraulic fluid (which
is usually an oil). A hydraulic fluid reservoir lets hydraulic fluid into the system when the brake pedal is not applied,
once the piston moves past the reservoirs inlet port it closes it off from the rest of the system so that there is always
enough hydraulic fluid in the system, When the brake pedal is applied the fluid inside of the piston is forced
towards the slave cylinders, because the fluid in uncompressible the piston inside of the slave cylinder is forced
outwards. On the end of the slave cylinders piston is a brake pad which has high friction and hardness properties,
these brake pads are forced in a brake Disc creating friction slowing the car down. The main function of the brake
pad being forced into the cylinder to turn kinetic energy into thermal energy. When force stops being applied to the
brake pedal the spring inside of the master cylinder forces the master cylinder piston back into a neutral position.
This draws the fluid away from the slave cylinders which take the pads off of the brake Disc, stopping the braking
force.
Question 2
The braking system will rely on a friction material to create the stopping force. Describe the typical makeup of the
friction material and the role of two components in the material. Relate the type of friction material used to the
magnitude of the stopping force to be applied.

A friction material that is commonly used in Disc brakes is a ceramic based material that is used on brake pads, 2
components commonly used in this friction material are:

Porcelain: A dense form of porcelain makes up most of a ceramic brake pad. Porcelain is a very hard material
meaning that ceramic brake pads last longer than their organic and metallic counter parts. Porcelain is also a poor
thermal conductor meaning that ceramic brake pads heat up a lot slower than metallic or organic pads, this also
means that porcelain-based brake pads are more reliable and more effective across a wider range of operating
temperatures. Porcelain based brake pads also produce little to no brake dust compared to metallic and organic
pads.

Copper Filings: copper filings are present in the friction materiel as to increase friction as well as thermal
conductivity. Porcelain is a poor conductor of heat meaning it is slow to warm up but this means that it is also slow
to cool down, so copper (an excellent thermal conductor) filings are added to the friction material so that the friction
material is able to cool down faster. Porcelain is also a material with a relatively low friction coefficient compared to
copper, so copper filings are added to the friction material to increase the coefficient of friction between the Disc
and the brake pad. Porcelain will bill harder than almost any metal that would mean that the brake Disc would wear
out faster than the brake pads. Brake pads are designed to be changed more often and more easily than brake Discs
so having the brake pad wear out faster than the Disc would be counter intuitive. So that the brake pads are softer
than the Disc that they are being pressed into, copper filings are added as copper is one the softest metals meaning
that the overall hardness of the friction material will be reduced.

A ceramic base friction material is able to apply more frictional force than an organic friction material but less than a
metallic friction material, this is due to the lower friction coefficient of ceramics like porcelain when compared to
metals like copper that are typically used in metallic brake pads. Ceramic pads are still able to lock the wheels up
completely and are still suitable for use in a parking brake.

Question 3

For the chosen system explain why the method of transmitting the force to the friction material is the most
appropriate for the task (eg hydraulics, levers, cables etc). Suggest an alternate method of transferring energy to the
braking material and describe its advantages and disadvantages.

An automotive Disc brake uses a hydraulic system is to transmit force to friction. Hydraulics are used over
mechanical solutions as it is easier to make a hydraulic line that remains stationary go around the various other
components in car, whereas mechanical solutions take up more space and have difficulty applying an equal braking
force to all 4 brakes. Hydraulics are also used over mechanical solutions as they deal with the forces required for a
brake Disc to function better than mechanical solutions which would be both heavier and also fatigue faster.

An alternative method transferring force into the brake pad would be using a pneumatic system. Pneumatic systems
are already on other road going vehicles like buses, semi-trailers, and tractors. A benefit of the pneumatic system is
that maintenance is far easier than that of a hydraulic system. Pneumatic systems take gas straight from the
atmosphere and when it is note needed anymore, they can void that gas to the atmosphere. In contrast a hydraulic
system needs specialised fluid that resistant to boiling, an issue with this fluid is that its hygroscopic meaning that
when it is exposed to air it begins to absorb moisture which is not resistant to boiling. When the brakes heat up the
moisture in the lines boils and creates air bubbles resulting in force that should be used for braking is used to
compress these air bubbles reducing the effectiveness of the brakes. To prevent this hydraulic fluid needs to be
changed every 2 years. This involves completely draining the system and replacing the old fluid with new fluid.
Pneumatic systems are also a lot safer than hydraulic systems as many of them use a Westminster Airbrake which
rather than using air to apply force to the friction materiel it uses the air to move it away from the friction materiel.
This means that if there is a failure such as a puncture in one of the lines the brakes will be applied. If there was a
puncture in a hydraulic system than the brakes would lose all function. Hydraulics are used instead of pneumatic
solutions as they are cheaper to produce which is in the best interest of the car’s manufacturer. Hydraulics are also
used instead of pneumatics as they are a more efficient way of transmitting force. This is because in a pneumatic
system when force is applied to the gas, some force will be wasted compressing the gas rather than forcing the
brake pad into the calliper. In a hydraulic system the hydraulic fluid is uncompressible no force will be wasted
compressing the liquid meaning that more force will be used to force the brake pad into the calliper.

Question 4
Produce a table that lists one metal, one polymer and one ceramic and describe their use in the braking system. For
each of those materials list at least 3 mechanical properties and describe the method of shaping/forming used to
create the component.

Material Use in the braking system Mechanical Properties Shaping/forming method

Metal: Cast Iron Brake Disc  Great hardness Brake Discs are sand casted,
 Great rigidity the Disc remains in the cast
 High strength until it has cooled
completely. The Disc is than
put into a CNC machine
where holes for mounting
bolts machined into it,
imperfections in the Disc are
also machined off. After this
the quality of the brake is
often checked to make sure
that the correct hardness has
been achieved. If the Disc is
slotted, grooved, or dimpled,
then those details are added
to the Disc using a CNC
machine.
Material Use in the braking system Mechanical Properties Shaping/forming method
Ceramic: Porcelain Brake Pad  poor thermal conductor The friction materiel (the
 great hardness part that makes contact with
 great rigidity the brake Disc) is created by
machine mixing copper
filings, porcelain and clay
(the mix of these materials as
well as the types of materials
vary depending on the
manufacturer). The mixture
is than pressed into a mould
to give the friction materiel
its shape.

The backing plate which the

friction materiel is attached
to as well as being used to
mount the brake pad to the
calliper, starts out as a coil of
medium carbon steel which
is than flattened out. The
shape of the backing plate is
then punched out in a press.
If the friction materiel is
going to be pressed into the
backing rather than glued, a
texture is stamped in the
face of the plate allowing the
friction materiel to
mechanically bond to the
plate. The plates are than
galvanised using
electroplating to prevent
corrosion.

The friction materiel is then

bonded to the packing plate
by a press which also applies
heat to the friction materiel
to improve the strength of
the bond. The friction
materiel as backing plate
assembly are than placed in
an oven where they are
heated at 360 degrees
Celsius for 3 minutes to cure.
The friction materiel is than
ground down to its final
height, a small slot is often
made in the friction materiel
to aid heat dissipation. The
Polymer: EPDM Flexible hydraulic hose  High Elasticity The inner lining of the
 High tensile strength hose which I made of
 High Fatigue resistance EPDM is extruded and
 Low thermal expansion then reinforced by a layer
 Poor thermal of Kevlar. An outer layer is
conductivity
than placed of the inner
lining, the out layer is also
made of EPDM. The
assembly is than cooled in
water and cut to size.
Question 5
Produce an A4 orthogonal section drawing to AS 1100 standards of a single component of the braking friction
mechanism Eg., A Disc Brake Caliper and Brake Disc. The drawing should include at least one nut and be annotated
to show sufficient information to communicate how the brake actually works.
 Conclusion and Recommendations

From the findings presented in this report I have learnt that the best overall braking system is the Disc brake, this is
because of ability to perform in the widest range of conditions, it is simple to maintain, and it also services the
widest range of applications. Going forward I believe that the regenerative brake will become the best braking
system as it is a non-friction brake meaning that no internal components suffer from wear. In the foreseeable future
more cars will become hybridised or electronic meaning that developments in regenerative brakes become more
rapid. This will hopefully lead to the regenerative brake being able to function without an auxiliary friction brake as
the regenerative brake would now be able to safely produce the force necessary in an emergency braking situation.
Currently metallic and organic solutions are the most widely available friction materials. In the imminent future this
will begin to become unsustainable.

Therefore, advances in regenerative brake technology will be necessary. The current design and construction of
braking systems are as efficient as possible, this will only change when an advance in materials or material prices are
made. The most efficient systems are too expensive to implement into everything that needs a braking system, so
making these materials cheaper and easier to access would be a steppingstone to more advanced braking systems.

The focus of this report, the Disc Brake, was found to best be implemented on vehicles that do no often tow loads on
a trailer (such as cars) or systems that operate at extreme altitudes (such as aeroplanes). This is because
implementing a pneumatic system that can be connected via a single pneumatic tube is cheaper, simpler and more
effective than attempting to train a hydraulic system across multiple carriages/trailers. The fluid in a hydraulic
system does not expand nor contract when placed at different altitudes. Therefore, aeroplanes which operate at
varying altitudes use hydraulic systems.
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