Brake type - principles

Summary
Drum brakes have a drum attached to the wheel hub, with disc brakes a disc attached to the
wheel hub maybe clamped between two brake pads, and ABS prevents the wheels from locking
while braking.

Drum Brake

Drum brakes have a drum attached to the wheel hub, and braking occurs by means of brake
shoes, expanding against the inside of the drum.

A drum brake is a brake in which the friction is caused by a set of shoes or pads that press
against the inner surface of a rotating drum. The drum is connected to a rotating wheel.

Disc Brake

With disc brakes, a disc attached to the wheel hub maybe clamped between 2 brake pads.
On light vehicles, both of these systems are hydraulically operated. The brake pedal operates a
master cylinder. Hydraulic lines and hoses connect the master cylinder to brake cylinders at the
wheels.

Most modern light vehicles have either disc brakes on the front wheels and drum brakes on the
rear, or, disc brakes on all 4 wheels.

Disc brakes require greater forces to operate them. A brake booster assists the driver by
increasing the force applied to the master cylinder, when the brake is operated.

Antilock Braking System (ABS)

An anti-lock braking system (commonly known as ABS, from the German name
"Antiblockiersystem" given to it by its inventors at Bosch) is a system on motor vehicles which
prevents the wheels from locking while braking. The purpose of this is twofold:

 to allow the driver to maintain steering control; and

 to shorten braking distances.

A typical ABS is composed of:

 a central electronic unit,

 four speed sensors (one for each wheel), and
 two or more hydraulic valves on the brake circuit.

The electronic unit constantly monitors the rotation speed of each wheel. When it senses that one
or more wheel is rotating slower than the others (a condition that will bring it to lock) it moves
the valves to decrease the pressure on the braking circuit, effectively reducing the braking force
on that wheel.