Design Process Technical (car breaks) - Research Paper Example

Design Process Technical Research Paper (car breaks) Design Process Technical Research Paper (car breaks) Braking systems for most, if not all modern cars use hydraulic systems. This system transports the required power to make the braking system frictional surfaces to come into contact with individual wheels of the car. In simple terms, the fluid is subjected to pressure transmits a force to all car parts through small pipes and flexible hoses without using large volumes which may pose regular problems.

The process is aided by a great mechanical advantage via the system’s brake pedal. This foot pressure is necessary in order to actuate brakes. Typically, this can be reduced by making the master cylinder pistons’ surface are smaller compared to the surface area of other piston’s in the wheel cylinders or calipers. The braking systems master cylinder has a fluid reservoir, double cylinder, and piston assembly. These double-type master cylinders are designed to separate front braking systems from rear braking systems hydraulically in instances where there is a leakage.

Further, the master cylinder converts mechanical motion originating from the pedal to a hydraulic pressure within the braking lines (Nice, 2010). This hydraulic pressure is then transformed back into mechanical motion at the car wheels either through the drum brakes or the disc brakes. Steel lines are used to ferry the braking fluid to a location on the vehicles frame near the respective wheels. This fluid is then transported to the calipers (disc) or wheel cylinders (drum) using flexible tubes to permit suspension/steering motion (Reuter, 2009).

Figure 1: Car brake system Disc and drum brakes For drum brakes, each of its wheel cylinders is made of two pistons, one at each end. These pistons push outward in opposing directions and bring the brake shoe to come into contact with the drum. However, for the disc brakes, the cylinders are included part of the calipers. At least a single cylinder in the individual calipers is engaged in forcing the brake pads to come into contact with the discs (Nice, 2010). Notably, all pistons use a kind of seal, typically rubber in minimizing leakage of fluid.

Rubber dust boot is used to seals the cylinder’s outer end against dust. The boot s made such that it fits around the piston’s outer end on dis brake calipers while it is made to fit around the actuating rod for the case of wheel cylinders. Braking hydraulic system operation Figure 2: Brake system operation When at a position of rest, the whole braking system ranging from the master cylinder’s pistons to the wheel or caliper pistons are filled with brake fluid. When the pedal is pressed, the fluid contained in the front part of the master cylinder piston(s) is pushed through the transportation lines to the wheel cylinders.

This forces the piston to open outwards for drum brakes and inward for the disc brakes. The piston’s motion acts in opposition to return springs which are mounted to the cylinder’s exterior (drum brakes) and in opposition to spring seals (disc brakes) (Nice, 2010). When the brake pedal is released, the spring forces the master cylinder pistons to return to the default position. The piston’s check valves and master cylinder have drilled compensating ports. The ports are uncovered when the pistons have fully returned to their normal positions.

This piston check valves permit fluid to flow towards the wheel cylinders/calipers as pistons withdraw. As the springs return, they force brake pads/shoe to return to default position. In the process, any leaked fluid is replaced via the compensating ports. Dual circuit master cylinders use double pistons which are located behind each other within the same cylinder. The primary piston is directly actuated via a mechanical linkage from brake pedal to power booster (Tamura, 2011). On the other hand, the fluid trapped between the two pistons; actuate the secondary pistons (Tamura, 2011).

In case there is a leak in the front region of the secondary pistons, the piston moves forward unit the bottom is against the master cylinder’s front. The fluid between the pistons operates the rear brakes. In instances where the rear brakes have a leakage, the primary piston moves forward until it comes into contact with secondary piston, this forces the secondary piston to actuate front brakes. Whatever the case, brake pedals will move further for as long as brakes are applied and there is lesser braking power requirement.

The dual circuits have a switch that is used to warn the driver in case only half the system is operational. The switch is conventionally positioned in a valve body that is mounted on firewall/frame under the master cylinder. In general, a car brake circuit is hydraulically operated. It has a fluid-filled master cylinder and slave cylinders which are connected via pipes. When brake pedal is applied, the piston is depressed and the fluid is forced along the pipes to slave cylinders at the wheels.

The slave cylinders get filled and the pistons are forced to apply the car brakes. References Nice, K. (2010). "How Power Brakes Work". Howstuffworks.com. Retrieved 2011-03-12. Reuter, L. (2009). Hydraulic design considerations. Detroit: SAE World Congress Tamura, M. (2011). Understanding braking system challenges in the modern world. Automotive Journal, 12 (3), pp.341-356.