When we buy a car, all, or almost all, you look closely in many respects: its design, its color, its power, its breadth, its comfortable leather-seats or luxury wheels … We look up to detail of our acquisition before finally driving through the streets of our city. But generally, hardly anyone asks how the brakes of the car they just bought are. Overlooked we ask the characteristics, operation and maintenance of these brakes, at some point, could save your life.
Speaking of brakes, we are referring to a fundamental part of the composition of a vehicle. Whether it’s high-powered car or a small car: brakes are responsible for stopping the wheels, which transmit forces through friction between them and the pavement where the vehicle is traveling.
It basically functions the brakes are two: slow and stop the vehicle and parking it easy. Are fundamental to active safety, and, therefore, their operation is vital to the safety of the driver and other occupants of a car.
To work the brakes to be effective, you need to have the following components: Make it effective (or stop the vehicle at a time and minimum distance), which is stable (or conserve, in the act of braking, the trajectory vehicle) that is progressive (or proportional to the effort made by the driver) and that is comfortable and almost effortless.
From these premises, the man has devoted years of effort and dedication to improve the system that allows a complete stop. The story tells of an incredible resourcefulness to achieve precise braking system and adjusted to current needs. But at first, it was not all that simple.
A little history
The need to drive a vehicle implicitly carries the need to stop when the driver needs and wants to.
In the late nineteenth century, the brake system used consisted of a car pressing that when operated from the brake pedal, blocking the wheel to secure the arrest of the vehicle. The problem with this system is that the driver must have a lot of force to get the car to stop, which could not always successful. Furthermore, only the back brake was used, it was thought that if a car had brakes in the front, could cause, at the time of arrest, the inevitable tipping.
During these early years, the first traffic accident in history occurred. Henry Wells, a businessman in New York, ran on May 30, 1896 to Evelyn Thomas, who was driving a bicycle. Although the woman was not seriously injured due to the low speed vehicles then yes she was admitted to hospital to heal some wounds. Worst part led Mr. Wells, who was arrested a few days after police discovered that metal and unknown monster not driving alone.
From the 50’s, the brake system changed to make way for booster or boster, a mechanism that works in the vacuum of the engine, injecting a hydraulic system pressure through hoses which in turn powering the brake discs brake vehicles. With this development, and that the driver did not use his power to stop the car, thanks to advances offered by the current water power.
In 1965, Volvo added a pressure relief valve. In 1963, Mercedes began installing brake systems standard with 3 circuits. In the race for best heat dissipation, in 1966 Porsche launched the self-cooled disc. In 1985 began to offer the ABS, as were the beginnings of the application of electronics to braking systems.
Opened as the way, the arrival of more electronic systems to brakes was a matter of time: in 1986 control came drive (ASD and ASR) that works in conjunction with ABS, in 1994, the ESP, in 1996, and then the brake assist.
Current technology has led to modern vehicles are more effective and reliable brakes. But drivers do not seem to pay attention to regular maintenance and normal wear can cause them to fail when we need it.