STEERING SYSTEM

1. INTRODUCTION:
Steering is the collection of components, linkages, etc. which allow vehicle (car, motorcycle,
bicycle) to follow the desired course. The most conventional steering arrangement is to turn the
front wheels using a hand operated steering wheel which is positioned in front of the driver, via
the steering column, which may contain universal joints, to allow it to deviate somewhat from a
straight line.
Primary function of the steering system is to achieve angular motion of the front wheels to
negotiate a turn. Secondary functions of steering system are:
1. To provide directional stability of the vehicle when going straight ahead.
2. To provide perfect steering condition, i.e., perfect rolling motion of the road wheels at all
times.
3. To facilitate straight ahead recovery after completing a tur
4. To minimise tyre wear.

Till recently all vehicles were steered by turning the front wheels in the desired direction, with
the rear wheels following. However, lately all-wheel-steering has been designed and employed
in some selected vehicles. The requirements of a good steering system are:

1. The steering mechanism should be very accurate and easy to handle.

2. The effort required to steer should be minimal and must not be tiresome to the driver.
3. The steering mechanism should also provide directional stability. This implies that the
vehicle should have a tendency to return to its straight ahead position after truning.

Front axle:
Dead axle: The axle that carries a wheel conventionally the front axle is a dead axle. However these days
this is true of heavy vehicles only. For four wheel drive vehicles and most of the cars, it is a live axle.

Figure : Dead Axle

The axle has to take bending loads due to weight of the vehicle and also torque loads to braking of the
wheels. For this reason, front axle is made of I-section in the central portion, while the ends are made
either circular of elliptical. A downward sweep is given to centre portion of axle to keep a low chassis
height.
 Figure : I section beam axle

The main axle beam is connected to the stub axle by means of King pin.

Figure : Stub Axle

Stub axle can have any of the four types:

i. Elliot
ii. Reversed Elliot
iii. Lamoine
iv. Reversed lamoine

Figure : Types of stub axle

Wheel alignment:
Wheel alignment means that while moving straight ahead the wheels should be parallel. If the
wheels are pointing inward, they are said to toe in and if the wheels are pointing outward they are said
to toe out. During both these condition, while the wheel roll forward, each wheel will be simultaneously
slipping laterally due to which a continuous cross-tread scrubbing would take place.

If we examine such wheel, the leading side of the tread blocks is heavily worn and the trailing side
having a feather like appearance. Due to net toe-in or toe-out of the wheels, excessive tread wear,
heavy steering and also greater fuel consumption takes place. Excessive wear in wheel occur due to
incorrect wheel alignment. So wheel alignment is very necessary for:

i. Directional stability during straight ahead position.

ii. Perfect rolling condition on steering.
iii. Recovery after complete turn.

Three different types of wheel alignment are:

i. Front-end alignment
ii. Thrust angle alignment
iii. Four wheel alignment

Steering geometry:
i. Camber: It is the tilt of the vehicle wheels from the vertical when viewed from front at the
wheel. Camber is positive if the tilt is outward at the top.

Fig: camber
 The tyres should roll on the ground vertically so that the wear is uniform. If while running, the
tyres are inclined from the vertical either inward (toe in) or outward (toe out), they will wear
more on the inclined side.

In case of positive camber, as the vehicle turns, the outside suspension tends to rise on the wheel. When
the wheel returns to straight ahead position the weight of vehicle presses down on the steering axis and
this helps straighten the wheel. Thus positive camber aids steering wheel return after completing the
turn, i.e., it increases straight ahead stability. Negative camber, on the other hand, resists the tendency
of the wheel to slip sideways during cornering but also increases the steering effort.

The positive camber in running condition tries to toe out the wheel which causes the tyre wear more on
the outer side of the wheel. In the same manner a negative camber will cause the front wheel to toe in
and wear more on the inside. So obviously the tyre life will be maximum when the camber angle in
running condition is zero with average load. A positive camber causes the wheel to toe out. So, if the
camber on the two front wheels is not equal, the vehicle will try to pull towards the side where the
camber is higher.

On the conventional rigid axle, the camber remains almost fixed. But in independent suspension usually
the change of spring height changes the camber. When the camber is zero, slight irregularities on the
road may cause the wheel load to change from one bearing to the other, also changing the direction of
the camber effect. This situation may thus cause a phenomenon called 'wander'.

Note: Camber should not generally exceed 2 0. However with the highway speed increasing and taking
into consideration the effects that the:

i. Camber may change with different road speeds and

ii. The specifications are set for the stationary car, the vehicle stability and improve handling.

Rear wheel usually have zero camber, but some independent rear suspensions are designer with some
amount of camber, usually negative.

King Pin Inclination (Steering Axis Inclination):

Inclination of the king pin from vertical is called the king pin inclination or king pin rake. In modern cars
where the king pin has been replaced by the ball joints, this term has also been renamed as steering axis
inclination and id defined as the inclination of the ball joint-axis from the vertical. Steering axis is an
imaginary line drawn through the lower and upper steering pivot points. SAI is not adjustable, since it
would change only if the wheel spindle or steering knuckle are bent.
 Fig: king pin angle

Effect:

When the vehicle takes a turn the inclination of king pin causes the vehicle body to move up in relation
to the wheels. So as soon as the steering wheel is left after the turn is completed, the weight of the
vehicle tends to return the wheels to the straight ahead position.

Note: About 70 to 80 steering axis inclinations are allowed.

Combined angle and scrub radius:

Combined angle or included angle is the angle turned in the vertical plane between the wheel centre
line and the king pin centre line (or steering axis).

The forward tractive force acts at the point on the road where the steering axis or the king pin axis
meets when projected. The road resistance acts at the wheel contact point on the road. The distance
between these two points is called scrub radius.
 Fig: combined angle

Effect:

i. If the scrub radius is negative, the wheel tends to toe-in.

ii. If the scrub radius is zero, the wheel keeps its straight position, without any tendency to toe-in
or toe-out. In this position, the steering is called centre point steering. In this case any small
change in the combined angle under variable running conditions will cause the point of
intersection to hover alternately above and below the ground. Thus causing toe in and toe out,
which will become a source of car wander. But high scrub radius will cause greater torque to be
required to turn the wheel which means higher loads on the steering linkage and suspension
components. This will result in greater wear of steering linkage.
iii. If the scrub radius is positive, the wheel tends to toe-out.

Amount: Combined angle may be 90 to 100 and the scrub radius should be up to about 12mm.

CASTOR:
The angle between the king pin centre line (or steering axis) and the vertical, in the plane of the
wheel is called the castor angle. If the king pin centre line meets the ground at a point ahead of the
vertical wheel centre line as shown in figure, it is called positive castor while if it is behind the vertical
wheel centre line, it is called negative castor.
 Fig: Castor angle

EFFECT:

The positive castor on the car wheels provide directional stability, i.e., straight line tracking is
improved. However, positive castor increases the effort required to turn the steering wheel. It may be
noted that in case of negative castor steering would be unstable, i.e. there would be poor directional
control, as the centre of the tyre print leads the steering axis in that case. Extremely negative castor
would cause wheel shimmy and consequently cupped wear of front tyres. However, compared to castor,
the effect of SAI or KPI on directional stability is greater. Therefore, poor stability caused by negative
castor is overcome by using SAI. Positive castor is often used with SAI on automobiles with power
steering to provide the required returnability, since the higher effort required to steer the wheels is
provided by power steering. On the other hand with manual steering, SAI with negative or very small
positive is used. When the vehicle having positive castor takes a turn, the outer side of the vehicle is
lowered while the inner one is raised, i.e., positive castor helps the centrifugal force in rolling out the
vehicle. Negative castor tends to roll-in the vehicle i.e., the effect of centrifugal force is counteracted.

As the change of castor angle result in the change of the other angles of the steering geometry, i.e.,
camber, king pin inclination and toe-in or toe-out, it is very important that this angle is adjusted first of
all, while doing the adjustment job.

Note- About 3⁰ of castor gives good results.

TOE-IN OR TOE-OUT
Toe-in is the amount by which the front wheels are set closer together at the front than at the rear
when the vehicle is stationary.
 On the other hand, the wheel may be set closer at the rear than at the front in which case the
difference of the distances between the front wheel at the front and at the rear is called toe-out.

Fig: Toe-in

Effect:
In a rear-wheel drive vehicle, the rear axle pushes the front axle tyres as they roll along the road. Tyre
rolling resistance produces some drag which results in rearward movement of the suspension arms
against their bushings. Due to his, most rear-wheel drive vehicles are provided with some toe-in to
compensate for the movement so that the tyres run parallel to each other.

The casee of the front-wheel drive vehicles is just the opposite, wherein the front axle pulls the vehicle
through itself ( front axle), resulting in forward movement of the suspension arms against their bushings
to compensate which negative toe-in, i.e. toe-out is provide.

Toe amount also affects the handling characteristics. Increase in toe-in would result in decreased
oversteer and increased directional stability at high speeds, whereas increase in toe-out would result in
reduced understeer and greater ease in steering during cornering.

Amount: Toe-in initially provided generally does not exceed 3 mm.

STEERING LINKAGES:
Steering linkage depends upon the type of the vehicle, whether it is a car which has independent front
suspension or a commercial vehicle having generally a rigid axle type front suspension. Each of these will
now be described.

1. Axle-beam Suspension Steering System

This steering system shown in figure below incorporates a steering-wheel to impart motion to the
steering-box which transfers the steering effort through the drop-arm and drag-link directly to one of
the two stub-axles pivoting at the ends of the axle-beam. Both the stub-axles are joined together by a
track-rod. Figure 27.47 illustrates the axle beam steering layout in one of its views and the functions of
the components are as follows :
Steering Box:
The steering box uses a reduction gear which provides a much larger force to the steering linkage with
only a small effort. Simultaneously, the degree of stub-axle movement is decreased for a given angular
movement of the steering wheel so that the oversensitivity of the steering with respect to driver’s touch
on the wheel is reduced.

Fig. Axle beam steering linkage with longitudinal located drag link.

Drop-arm:
This forged lever-arm is bolted on to a tapered steering-box output rocker-shaft and it hangs or
drops downwards. It imparts a circular-arc movement to the drag-link through its swing action.
Drag-link:
This tubular rod converts the circular movement of the drop-arm into a linear push or pull motion of
the drag-link arm, attached rigidly to one of the stub-axles. A ball-joint is fitted at each end of the rod so
that a relative movement is provided in planes.
 Figure below shows an alternative transverse drag link layout suitable for cross country applications.
This arm joints the drag-link to one of the stub-axles and provides sufficient leverage to convert the
linear movement of the drag-link to an angular movement about the stub-axle king-pin.

Fig. Axle-beam steering linkage with transverse located drag link.

Drag-link Arm.

Drag-link Suspension and Steering Interaction:

The axle-beam pivots about the fixed front shackle-pins and moves up and down in a circular arc. Also
the drag-link pivots about the drop-arm ball-joint during any vertical movement of the axle. When the
effective arc radius of the axle movement and the drag-link arm end are approximately equal, the
suspension axle movement relative to the chassis is independent of the vehicle’s steered path. If a slight
difference exists during deflection of the suspension, then the drag-link proportionally increases or
decreases the relative angular position of the stub-axle about the kind-pin. This causes the steering to
continuously twitch or jerk when encountering rough surface conditions.

Stub-axles:
The stub-axle is a short axle-shaft to which one steered road-wheel is mounted. It uses two extended
horizontal prongs that fit over the ends of the axle-beam. The king-pin, a short circular bar, passes
vertically through both prongs and the eye of the axle-beam to form the hinge pivot. The stub-axle acts
as the wheel axle as well as the pivot support member in the horizontal plane.

Track-rod Arms:
Each stub-axle uses a forged track-rod arm bolted approximately at right angles to the wheel axis in
the horizontal plane. This arm provides the leverage to rotate the stub-axle about the king-pin. This
rotary movement is transferred to the other stub-axle through the track-rod.

Track-rod:
 A tubular track-rod spans the wheel track and pivots together the two stub-axles. The ends of this rod
carry ball-joints, which in turn are bolted to the track-rod arms of each stub axle. These ball-joints are
allowed to move only in the horizontal plane. The drag-link movement is either a pull or a push action
and rotates one of the stub-axles. This motion is transferred to the other stub-axle through the track-
rod.
2. Independent Suspension Steering System 
In the rigid-beam suspension, the stub-axle is pivoted at each end of the axle-beam. Consequently the
relative movement is permitted only in the horizontal plane due to which effective track-rod length is
not affected by any vertical suspension deflection.
Independent-suspension steering, on the other hand, copes with up a down movement of each stub-
axle independent of the other due to which the distance between track-rod-arm ball-joint centres varies
continually. Therefore, if a single track-rod joins the two stub-axles together, the slightest bump or
rebound tends to pull both stub-axle arms at once and thus interferes with the steering-track toe-in or
toe-out. To overcome the problem of the changing distance between track-rod-arm ball-joint centres, a
three-piece track-rod is used. The centre portion of the track rod may be a relay-rod suspended
between the steering-box drop-arm and an idler arm fixed to the body structure . Also the centre
portion may from the track shaft of a rack-and-pinion steering-box . In both the cases, this part moves
only in the horizontal plane. Movement in the vertical plane is provided by the two outer connecting
rods, known as tie-rods. The tie-rods swing about the ball-joints placed at the end of the middle track
rod member. In earlier designs, independent suspension steering incorporated stub-axles and king-pin
pivots similar to those used with the axle-beam. But current systems use ball-swivel joints for the stub
axle pivot and are also spaced further apart.
Large cars normally use the system shown in . When the steering-wheel is acted, the drop-arm conveys
movement to the relav-rod, which inturn transmits this motion to both

Fig. Split track-rod with relay-rod and idler steering linkage layout. 
tie-rods and stub-axles.The drop-arm and idler-arm relay joints provide movement only in the horizontal
plane. The tie-rod joints provide movement in both the horizontal and vertical planes.
The most popular steering system used for small and medium cars is shown in figure below. This type of
steering box has a rack-and-pinion housing bolted along the body cross-member. The angular
movement of steering wheel is converted to a linear to-and-fro movement of the rack. Each end of the
rack shaft is attached to a tie-rod by means of a ball-and-socket joint. The outer tie-rod ends also use
ball-joints, which are bolted to the stub-axle track-rod arms. The rack shaft thus provides the transverse
steering thrust and the tie-rod ball joints allow pivoting in two planes.
Fig. Rack-and-pinion steering linkage layout. 

Steering gears:

The steering gear is a device for converting the rotary motion of the steering wheel into straight line
motion of the linkage with a mechanical advantage. If the steering wheel is connected directly to the
steering linkage it would require a great effort to move the front wheels. Therefore, to assist the driver,
a reduction system is used having a steering ratio (the ratio between the turn of the steering wheel in
degrees or handlebars and the turn of the wheels in degrees ) between 10:1 to 24:1 the actual value
depending upon the type and weight of the vehicle.

A higher steering ratio means that you have to turn the steering wheel more, to get the wheels
turning, but it will be easier to turn the steering wheel. A lower steering ratio means that you have to
turn the steering wheel less, to get the wheels turning, but it will be harder to turn the steering wheel.
Larger and heavier vehicles like trucks will often have a higher steering ratio, which will make the
steering wheel easier to turn. In normal and lighter cars, the wheels becomes easier to turn, so the
steering ratio doesnt have to be as high. In race cars the ratio becomes really low, because you want the
vehicle to respond a lot quicker than in normal cars.

The steering gears are enclosed in a box, called the steering gear box. There are many different designs
of steering gear box.They are as follows:

1. Worm and wheel steering gear

2. Worm and sector steering gear

3. Cam and lever / peg steering gear

4.Recirculating ball type steering gear

5.Rack and pinion steering gear.

Worm and Wheel Steering Gear:

The system consists of worm wheel which is carried in bearings in a cast iron case. The case is made in
halves. The outer end of the worm wheel is fixed to a drop arm which is having ball end to connect the
side rod. The side rod is connected to the steering arm which is fixed to the stub axles. The worm which
is keyed on to a steering shaft have a mesh with the worm wheel. The steering wheel is mounted at the
upper end of the steering shaft. When driver rotates the steering wheel then drop arm moves either
backward or forward direction. This motion results in motion of the stub axles.

Worm and Sector Steering Gear:

In this type of steering box, the end of the shaft from the steering wheel has a worm gear attached to
it. It meshes directly with a sector gear (so called because it’s a section of a full gear wheel). When the
steering wheel is turned, the shaft turns the worm gear, and the sector gear pivots around its axis as its
teeth are moved along the worm gear. The sector gear is mounted on the cross shaft which passes
through the steering box and out the bottom where it is splined, and the pitman arm is attached to the
splines. When the sector gear turns, it turns the cross shaft, which turns the pitman arm, giving the
output motion that is fed into the mechanical linkage on the track rod. The box itself is sealed and filled
with grease. In actual case, the worm wheel is not essential as it is having only partial rotation. Hence in
this type only a sector of wheel is used instead of worm wheel.

Fig: worm and sector steering gear

Cam and lever / peg steering gear:

Here a helical groove is formed at the bottom

end of the steering wheel shaft. The helical
groove engages the projected pin of the
drop arm spindle lever. The drop-arm is made
rigid with the lever/peg by a splined spindle. The to and fro motion is obtained at the drop-arm when
the steering wheel shaft is turned. This motion results the turning of the stub axles. The end play of the
steering wheel shaft can be adjusted by putting a suitable washer at the lock nut. The meshing of the
projected pin in helical groove is also adjusted by a screw provided at the end of the lever spindle. In the
recent models, the projected pin is made in the form of a roller. The projected pin may be one or two in
number, accordingly they are referred as cam and single lever or double lever steering gear mechanism.

Fig: cam and lever/ pig steering gear

Recirculating ball type steering gear:

It consists of a worm at the end of steering rod. A nut is mounted on the worm with two sets of balls
is the grooves of the worm, in between the nut and, the worm. The balls reduce the friction during the
movement of the nut on the worm. The nut has a number of teeth on outside, which mesh with the
teeth on a worm wheel sector, on which is further mounted the drop arm. When the steering wheel is
turned, the balls in the worm roll in the grooves and cause the nut to travel along the length of the
worm. The balls, which are in 2 sets, are recirculated through the guides. The movement of the nut
causes the wheel sector to turn at an angle and actuate the link rod through the drop arm, resulting in
the desired steering of the wheels. The end play of the worm can be adjusted by means of the adjuster
nut provided. To compensate for the wear of the teeth on the nut and the worm, the two have to be
brought nearer bodily. To achieve this, the teeth on the nut are made tapered in the plane
perpendicular to the plane of Figure.
 Fig: Recirculating ball type steering gear

Rack and pinion steering gear:

Rack-and-pinion steering is quickly becoming the most common type of steering on cars, small
trucks and SUVs. On most cars, it takes three to four complete revolutions of the steering wheel to make
the wheels turn from lock to lock (from far left to far right). The rack-and-pinion gear set does two
things: It converts the rotational motion of the steering wheel into the linear motion needed to turn the
wheels. It provides a gear reduction, making it easier to turn the wheels. A rack-and-pinion gear set is
enclosed in a metal tube, with each end of the rack protruding from the tube. A rod, called a tie rod,
connects to each end of the rack. The pinion gear is attached to the steering shaft. When you turn the
steering wheel, the gear spins, moving the rack. The tie rod at each end of the rack connects to the
steering arm on the spindle.

Fig: Rack and Pinion

Power Steering:

Larger amount of torque is required to be applied by the driver for steering of medium and heavy
vehicles. The power steering provides automatic hydraulic assistance to the turning effort applied to the
manual steering system. The power system is designed to become operative when the effort at wheel
exceeds a predetermined value, say 10N. The system is always so designed that in the event of failure of
the power system, the driver is able to steer the vehicle manually although with increased effort.

COMPONENTS OF HYDRAULIC SYSTEM :

The Hydraulic steering contains the following parts:

- Reservoir

-Pump Control valve

-Relief valve
-Power Cylinder

Fig: Hydraulic Steering System

FUNCTIONS OF HYDRAULIC SYSTEM COMPONENTS:

• Reservoir=It supplies the fluid.

• Pump=Driven by the Engine through belt It transfer the fluid from reservoir to relief valve and than to
the control valve under pressure.

• Relief valve=It provides an escape to the fluid back to the reservoir

• Control valve=It directs the fluid to the Power Cylinder. It is also called heart of hydraulic system.

• Power cylinder=It converts Hydraulic System into mechanical force, which in turn activates Pitman
Arm Shaft and lever.

PRINCIPAL OF WORKING:

• The Hydraulic Steering works on the principal of pressure differences inPower Cylinder
• The difference in pressure affects the position of piston in power supply which in turn affects pitman
arm shaft and lever.

Working Mechanism:

Fig: Schematic diagram of hydraulic power steering system

• The Reservoir supply fluid to Pump

• The Pump transfer it to relief with pressure, than to control valve

• The control valve directs the fluid to power cylinder and than to reservoir.

• When the steering wheel is turned it rotates the steering shaft and steering cam both.

• Steering cam also do up and down moment along with rotation

• The up and down moment of cam Control the control valve through Control valve linkage • It pull or
push the spool to one direction and as a result fluid start flowing to the power cylinder in one direction
as a result pressure difference is created.

• Due to this the piston moves and with its movement it also move pitman arm lever which is
connected through rod. And wheel is moved to the desire direction.

• It this stage the pump still drawn fluid, which is transfer back to the reservoir with the help of relief
valve.
CONSTANT STEERING AND NEUTRALIZATION:

• When the pitman arm lever moves it also moves the cam due to which The spring is compressed in
one direction which applies opposite pressure to the pressure of fluid until it equalize, due to which the
to which the lever is held stationary .

• This phenomena help in constant steering.

• And when the driver leave the torque on the steering due to the spring compression, it forces the
lever and piston to came back to its original position, so after steering the wheels and steering disk come
back to its original position automatically. This is called steering neutralization.

ROAD JERK:

• Like the shock absorbers the hydraulic system also help in steering shocks absorbing. Due to which the
losing control of heavy vehicle stops.

• When the any tire is subjected to road jerk this jerk is transferred to pitman arm lever.

• Pitman lever activates the cam which in turn activates the control valve, the control valve creates the
small pressure difference which is neutralized by the spring compression attached to the cam

• This neutralization is actually the jerk absorbing.

• And in this phenomena the road jerk is absorbed.

ADVANTAGES:

• HPS has no steering wheel torques as compared to mechanical system.

• In HPS no freezing of steering is caused by dried up grease or corrosion in steering tube of vehicle .

• It can be used in big vehicle where electronic system fails.

• It absorbs major part of road shock as compared to mechanical system.

DISADVANTAGES :

• HPS weights usually more than electric system.

• HPS carry fluid for transmission as compared to electric system so need more maintenance.

• Electric system give better response as compared to Hydraulic power steering at different speed.

• HPS has more prone and faults and less durable as compare to electric steering system.

• Electric system will give more mileage with one having hydraulic steering system.
BRAKING SYSTEM
Brakes are required to stop the vehicle within the smallest possible distance and this is done by
converting the kinetic energy of the vehicle into the heat energy which is dissipated into the
atmosphere.

Braking Requirements:

1. The brakes must be strong enough to stop the vehicle within a minimum distance in an
emergency. But this should also be consistent with safety. The driver must have proper control
over the vehicle during emergency braking and the vehicle must not skid.
2. The brakes must have good antifade characteristics i.e. their effectiveness should not decrease
with constant prolonged application e.g., while descending hills. This requirement demands the
cooling of the brakes should be very efficient.

Brake efficiency and stopping distance:

 The maximum retarding force applied by the brake at the wheel F, depends upon the coefficient of
friction between the road and the tyre surface µ, and the component of the weight of the vehicle on the
wheel W, i.e.,

F= µW

If unity coefficient of friction is achieved, the vehicle experiences a deceleration equal to acceleration
due to gravity 'g' and the brakes are said to be 100% efficient. In an actual practice 100% efficient brakes
are not used because highly efficient brakes giving large deceleration might injure the passengers due to
sudden stopping of vehicle. Similarly in the case of roads vehicles, an extra efficient braking system
would cause the load to slide forward when the brakes are applied, tending to break the driver's cabin.
Moreover with very highly efficient brakes, rapid wear of tyres and brake linings takes place. The brake
efficiency in general use varies from 50% to 80%, which enable the vehicle to stop within reasonable
distance. Table gives approximate stopping distances at different vehicle velocities for various conditions
of brakes. The table may vary with the type of the road surface and condition of tyre treads etc.

Table: Stopping Distance

Efficiency % Approximate stopping distance (in metres) from speeds.

30 km/h 50 km/h 80 km/h 100 km/h
100 3.5 9.8 25.2 39.3
80 4.4 12.2 31.5 49.1
60 6 16.3 42 65.5
30 12 32.6 84 131

Wheel skidding:

The force of adhesion between the wheels and road depends upon the vehicle weight acting on the
wheel, the tyre inflation pressure, type of tyre tread pattern and the coefficient of friction between the
tyre and the road. The friction further depends upon the condition of the road surface. For example,
water, oil, mud, etc., on the road reclose the friction between the roads and the tyre.

Drum Brake:

Two important requirements of drum brake are as follows:

• It should provide a surface having good anti-wear qualities.

• It should allow the optimum rate of heat transfer. Heat is generated during each brake application and
it must be dissipated to the atmosphere immediately, because the next brake application would again
produce more heat. Thus the drum should have the heat capacity, as high as possible, which makes the
drum heavier. Any excess heating of the brake would cause the drum to expand resulting in loss of
effective pedal travel, and also fading of brake lining.

• It should have sufficient strength but minimum weight.

• It should be able to accommodate within the wheel space available.

DRUM BRAKE COMPONENTS AND OPERATION:

Fig: Disc Brake

1. Brake drum:

The brake drum is generally made of a special type of cast iron that is heat-conductive and wear-
resistant. It rotates with the wheel and axle. When a driver applies the brakes, the lining pushes radially
against the inner surface of the drum, and the ensuing friction slows or stops rotation of the wheel and
axle, and thus the vehicle. This friction generates substantial heat.

2. Wheel cylinder:

Fig: cylinder

One wheel cylinder operates the brake on each wheel. Two pistons operate the shoes, one at each end
of the wheel cylinder. The leading shoe (closest to the front of the vehicle) is known as the primary shoe. The
trailing shoe is known as the secondary shoe. Hydraulic pressure from the master cylinder acts on the piston
cup, pushing the pistons toward the shoes, forcing them against the drum. When the driver releases the
brakes, the brake shoe springs restore the shoes to their original (disengaged) position.
 3. Brake shoe:
Brake shoes are typically made of two pieces of steel welded together. The friction material is either
riveted to the lining table or attached with adhesive. The crescent-shaped piece is called the Web and
contains holes and slots in different shapes for return springs, hold-down hardware, parking brake
linkage and self-adjusting components. All the application force of the wheel cylinder is applied through
the web to the lining table and brake lining. The edge of the lining table generally has three “V"-shaped
notches or tabs on each side called nibs. The nibs rest against the support pads of the backing plate to
which the shoes are installed. Each brake assembly has two shoes, a primary and secondary. The
primary shoe is located toward the front of the vehicle and has the lining positioned differently from the
secondary shoe. Quite often, the two shoes are interchangeable, so close inspection for any variation is
important.

Advantages of Drum Brake:

• Drum brakes are smaller for the same brake force.

• Drum brakes don't need a hydraulic system for activation.

•Due to simple in construction it can be easiliy repair.

•Due to the fact that a drum brake's friction contact area is at the circumference of the brake, a drum
brake can provide more braking force than an equal diameter disc brake.

Disadvantages of Drum Brake:

•The use of many clips and springs makes overhaul of the brake drum assembly very time-consuming. 

•Another problem with drum brakes is that if a vehicle is driven through water, it takes longer to get the
brakes working effectively.

•When the drums are heated by hard braking, the diameter of the drum increases slightly due to
thermal expansion, this means the brakes shoes have to move farther and the brake pedal has to be
depressed further.

Disc Brake:

A disc brake is a type of brake that uses calipers to squeeze pairs of pads against a disc or "rotor" to
create friction. This action retards the rotation of a shaft, such as a vehicle axle, either to reduce its
rotational speed or to hold it stationary. The energy of motion is converted into waste heat which must
be dispersed.
 Fig: Disk Brake

Typically, there are 4 main parts of a system:

• Mounting Bracket

• Rotor

•Caliper

•Pads

•Mounting Brackets:

Mounting Brackets are used to hold the Caliper in place. Other than keeping the surface clean and
free of rust and road grime, there is very little to be done with this part.

Rotors:

Rotors are metal discs supported by the suspension. The Calipers clamp on to them to slow their
rotation, and then slow or stop the car.
 Fig: Rotors

Two types of rotors can be found, which are as follows:

-Vented Rotors:

Vented Rotors have Fins in the spaces between their machined surfaces. These spaces allow air to
pass through, which helps carry heat away.

-Non vented Rotors:

Non vented rotors are used on smaller vehicles, and have no cooling fins.

•Calipers:

Calipers are the housings that contain the pistons and the brake pads. The calipers are connected to
the hydraulic system, and hold the brake pads to the Rotor.

Piston:

The most common brakes use a single hydraulically actuated piston within a cylinder in the caliper.
Some high performance brakes may have as many as eight pistons. The hydraulic pressure acts at the
back of piston. The piston pushes the break pad forward. The piston surface should be smooth and
clean.
Working of Disc Brake:

Fig: Disk brake mechanism

When the driver applies pressure on the brake pedal, hydraulic pressure pushes the pistons out
from their housing. The pistons, in turn, press the brake pads against the moving disc faces, causing
friction and hence slowing it down. Hydraulic pressure is equally applied by the hydraulic fluid to the
floating pistons on either side. When the driver takes his foot off the brake pedal, hydraulic pressure on
the friction pads is released; the pistons move inwards and break their contact with the disc.

Advantages of Disc Brakes over Drum Brakes:

1. Disc brakes provide better stability since these have uniform pressure distribution over the pads than
that of the brake linings in the case of drum brakes.

2. Increased temperature does not affect the disc pads much compared to the brake linings of the drum
brakes.

3. The design of the brake adjusters becomes simple because when hot, the discs expand towards the
pads causing no loss in pedal travel.

4. Maintenance and repairs of disc brakes is easy.

Disadvantages:

1. Disc brake assemblies are costlier than drum brakes.

2. The pads wear off fast compared to brake shoe linings of drum brakes. Disc brakes have higher brake
pressures.

3. Complete protection to the disc from road residue is provided with great difficulty.

4. The high temperature operation of disc brakes causes evaporation of the brake fluid and weakening
of seal.

5. In the case of cars fitted with disc brakes, an external servo mechanism is required because these
have no self energizing effect, Such an arrangement is not required in cars having drum brakes.

6. Handbrakes can be installed on drum brakes because these have self- energizing effect. Disc brakes
offer difficulty in installing hand brakes.

Electric brake:

This type of brakes, though not very popular, as service brakes, have been commonly used on trailers.
The current from the battery is utilized to energize an electromagnet within brake drum, which in turn
actuates the mechanism ( usually a cam) to expand the brake shoes. When current stops, the cam and
brake shoes are returned to the release position by retractor springs. The severity of braking is
controlled by means of a rheostat, which is operated by the driver through the foot pedal.

Power Brakes:

Power Brakes assists in braking when the pedal is pressed. These are the brakes wherein the power
of the engine and/or the battery power is used to enhance the braking effort. These are basically of the
four types, viz., the vacuum brakes, the air brakes, the brakes with hydraulic booster and the ones with
the electro-hydraulic booster.
Air assisted hydraulic brakes:

Fig: Air Assisted Brake

1. In this type, compressed air is converted into hydraulic pressure.

2. It consists of following parts:

– AIR COMPRESSOR

– AIR TANK

– AIR PRESSURE REGULATOR

– FOOT CONTROL VALVE

– LEVER TYPE SERVO

3. The air compressor delivers compressed air to air tank that is connected to lever type servo.

4. When the driver presses the pedal the input rod moves towards right.

5. The lower arm helps to close the exhaust valve but opens the inlet valve.

6. Compressed air flows from the air tank into air chamber.

7. The pressure, forces the piston to move right, so the effort being transferred to master cylinder.

8. The force on the master cylinder piston creates hydraulic pressure for the application of brakes.
9. On release of pedal, pressure movement of lower arm opens the exhaust valve and inlet valve
remains closed.

10. The entire air pressure in the chamber is released into the atmosphere.

Vaccum assisted hydraulic brakes:

In this type, Vaccum system assists in the operation of hydraulic brake. The main parts of the system
are:

– VACCUM BOOSTER

– VACCUM TANK

Here the Vaccum booster helps operating the master cylinder. Vaccum booster has a cylinder. Inside
the cylinder a piston operates a control valve to admit and stop the engine Vaccum and atmospheric
pressure. The atmospheric valve remains closed when the brakes are not applied.

Working of vaccum assisted hydraulic brakes:

When the brake pedal is depressed the atmospheric valve and Vaccum valve also opens. Now the
piston moves by Vaccum created in the Vaccum cylinder. The piston is connected to the control arm.
The open end of the control arm is connected to pushrod of the master cylinder. Which it turns pushes
the piston of the master cylinder. The brake oil pushed to all wheel cylinders under pressure and the
brakes are applied.
HYDRAULIC SERVO BRAKES:

Construction:

1. It consists of pump which forces the fluid from the tank.

2. Through the servo unit, oil back to the tank until the brake pedal is pressed.

3. The inlet pipe is connected at A and the outlet at B to the servo unit.

4. The servo unit consists of a master cylinder with piston which is provided with pipes for brakes.

5. A reservoir is connected to master cylinder for providing brake fluid.

6. A plunger is provided in the right side portion of the unit, which is pivoted with the brake pedal rod.

7. A space S is provided between the master cylinder, piston and plunger for building up the fluid
pressure.

Working:

when the brake pedal is at off position then the plunger rests at its right extreme position there by
flowing the fluid through space S from inlet A to the outlet B of the unit. when the brake pedal is
pressed it results cut-off, the fluid at outlet B. Therefore, the pressure build up in the space S pushes the
master cylinder. The piston moves towards left there by applying the brakes. When the pedal is
released the pressure of fluid in space S is exerted on the left side of the plunger, there by pushing the
plunger toward right and opening the passage at B. When the vehicle is at rest ,the servo system is not
operative and the compete unit functions just as ordinary hydraulic braking system.

VACCUM SERVO BRAKES:

When the Vaccum is obtained from the manifold of the engine or a separate driven exhauster used
to assist the braking effort. This system is called Vaccum servo brakes.

Fig: Vaccum servo brake

construction :

1.The system consists of a Vaccum reservoir connected through a non-return valve to the inlet manifold
of the engine.

2. Two connections from Vaccum reservoir, one on each side of the piston of the servo cylinder is
provided.

3. On left side the connections are through the control unit where as the right side is connected directly.
4. The piston of the servo cylinder is further connected to the piston of the booster cylinder.

5. The control unit consists of a piston to which two valves are attached.

6. The lower valve controls the connection between the reservoir and the right side of the servo cylinder
piston.
7. The upper valve controls the connection between the atmosphere and the left side of servo cylinder
piston. 8. The other side of the piston of the control unit is actuated by the pedal effort through a
master cylinder.

Working:

1. When the brake pedal is at off position, then the lower valve is opened and the upper valve is closed.
2. Under this position the air from the atmosphere is disconnected and the Vaccum from reservoir is
created on the both sides of the piston of the servo cylinder.

3. When the brake pedal is pressed the brake fluid pushes the piston in the control unit.

4. This Acton closes the lower valve and opens the upper valve of the control unit.

5. Thereby exposing the left side of the servo cylinder piston to atmospheric pressure and acting the
Vaccum on the right side.

6. This action of the Vaccum in the right side of the servo piston moves it to the right. 7. There by
utilizing this movement through the mechanical or hydraulic means it the wheel cylinders and applying
the brakes.

Anti-braking system:

Modern antilock brake system not only cause the vehicle to stop without deviating from its straight
line path, these also provide directional stability since there is no skidding of the wheels.

Skidding is avoided by releasing the braking pressure just before the wheels lock up, and then
reapplying same. This releasing and reapplying the brakes in succession is what an antilock system does
and this process is called pressure modulation. These systems can modulate the pressure to the brakes
about 15 times per seconds.

When the front wheels of the vehicle are locked, its maneuverability is reduced, whereas in case of
rear wheel locking. The vehicle stability is reduced. ABS calculates the required slip rate of the wheels
accurately based on the vehicle speed and the speed of the wheels and then controls the brake fluid
pressure to achieve the target slip rate. Although ABS prevents complete locking of the wheels, in
practice it allows some wheel slip in order to attain the best possible braking.

In an emergency stop with ABS, one should apply the brake pedal firmly and hold it while the ABS
does all the work. There would be pulsations of the pedal which may be quite violent, bu this is normal
and the driver must not let off the pedal due to this.

A modern ABS consists of an electronic control unit (ECU), one sensor one each wheel, an electrically
driven hydraulic pump and a pressure accumulator. Accumulator is used to store hydraulic fluid to
maintain high pressure in the braking system and to provide residual pressure for power-assisted
braking. Generally the accumulator is charged with nitrogen gas. ECU monitors and controls the antilock
function when required. Its function is based on inputs from the wheel speed sensors and feedback from
the hydraulic unit to determine whether the ABS is operating precisely and also to decide when the
antilock operation is required.
 In some antilock braking system, a lateral acceleration sensor is also provided to monitor the side
( lateral ) movement of the vehicle while taking a turn. This ensures proper braking during turning.