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Module – II
Eddy current clutch:

Eddy current clutches (or eddy current slip coupling) are available in a broad range
of sizes and speed up to thousands of kilowatts in both vertical and horizontal
configurations. They are an adjustable speed drive and provide soft starting
capability. They are actually a slip control device. When starting eddy current
clutch operates at 100% slip allow the driver (motor) to accelerate. When the
motor reaches the full speed, the slip is decreased to the desired rate, providing
engagement of the clutch.

An eddy current clutch and an induction machine are identical in working

principle. Fig shows an eddy current clutch. The input shaft directly coupled to the
motor and variable speed output shaft is connected to load. A metallic drum is
connected to driving shaft and field coil system is mounted on the output shaft. The
slip rings used to excite the field system.

The load is initially at rest when the motor reaches the full speed; DC current is
passed through the electromagnets. The resultant magnetic field produced an eddy
current in the metallic drum. The magnetic flux produces a torque that brings the
load to desired speed.

Advantages and disadvantages of Eddy current clutch

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Since there is no contact required to power transmission, they are reliable and have
a long life. The speed and torque can regulate by adjusting the DC. One advantage
of eddy current clutch is that the smooth adjustment of both output torque and
hence the speed control.

The Eddy current clutch is usually tended to the small speed ratio (no more than10-
30% speed reduction) due to consideration of efficiency and cooling. Careful
design consideration must be given to providing adequate cooling of both field coil
and metallic drum.

Application of Eddy current clutch

The Eddy current clutch is suitable where soft starting and speed control is
required. They provide reliable speed control. They are typically used as a speed d
reducer.

Electromagnetic clutch:

The operating principle of the actuator of electromagnetic clutch is an

electromagnetic effect, but torque transmission is mechanical. The difference
between electromagnetic clutch and the regular clutch is in how they control the
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movement of pressure plates. In the normal clutch, a spring used to engage the
clutch whereas in EM clutch an electromagnetic field is used for engagement.

The electromagnetic clutch comes various forms, including magnetic particle

clutch and multi-disc clutch. There are even no-contact clutches such as
hysteresis clutch and eddy current clutch. However, most widely used form is
single face friction clutch.

Working of electromagnetic clutch

The main components of EM clutch are a coil shell, an armature, rotor, and hub.
The armature plate is lined with friction coating. The coil is placed behind the
rotor. When the clutch activated the electric circuit energizes the coil, it generates a
magnetic field. The rotor portion of clutch gets magnetized. When the magnetic
field exceeds the air gap between rotor and armature and then it pulls the armature
toward the rotor. The frictional force generated at the contact surface transfer the
torque. Engagement time depends on the strength of magnetic fields, inertia, and
air gap.
When voltage is removed from the coil, the contact is gone. In most design a
spring is used to hold back the armature to provide an air gap when current is
removed.

Application of electromagnetic clutch

They can be used for remote application because they do not require linkage to
actuate the clutch. They are used in printing machinery, conveyor drives, copier
machines and factory automation. In an automobile, it replaces clutch pedal by a
simple switch button. A smaller EM clutch is used to drive the compressor of air
conditioning system.

Advantage and disadvantage of electromagnetic clutch

Advantage

 The complicated linkage is not required to cont

 rol clutch.

Disadvantage
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 High initial cost.

 Operating temperature is limited because at high-temperature insulation of
the electromagnet gets damaged.
 The risk of overheating during the engagement.
 The brushes used to energize coils are needed a periodic check.

Electronic clutch:

Electronic clutch is and electronically controlled, rather than a hydraulically

controlled clutch. There is not direct connection between the clutch pedal and the
clutch plate itself. A combination of actuators and sensors determine when to
engage a clutch and when to disengage. For example, when you turn the ignition
on, the microprocessors gets a signal about it and disengages the clutch. When you
press the pedal, a potentiometer(or any other sensor which could serve the purpose
of determining it can be used) will send the signal after which the actuator will
engage the clutch.

The driver can still control the clutch as he/she normally would, but he NEED not
as the electronic system is capable of doing it by itself. eClutch is a concept of
Bosch and it has launched it India. Testing are carried out in Honda Brio and will
be launched this year(2016).

Electronic clutch is cheaper than using an automatic transmission and hence a

viable solution for cost effective vehicles. Also the driver feels control on the car
as the manual transmission does not leave it's authenticity.

Antilock Braking System(ABS):

Anti-lock Braking system is a closed loop control device that prevents wheel lock-
up during braking and as a result vehicle stability and steering is maintained.This
system uses the principle of cadence braking and threshold braking.

ANTI-LOCK BRAKING SYSTEM (ABS) AND ITS WORKING

The purpose of Anti-lock Braking system (ABS) is to control the rate at which
individual wheels accelerate and de-accelerate through the regulation of the line
pressure applied to each foundation brake. The control signals, generated by the
controller and applied to the brake pressure modulating unit, are derived from the
analysis of the outputs taken from wheel speed sensors. Thus, when active, the Anti-
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lock Braking System (ABS) makes optimum use of the available friction between
the tyres and the road surface.

Image credits-Hdabob.com

MUST CHECK What Is CRDI OR COMMON RAIL DIRECT FUEL

INJECTION?

COMPONENTS OF ANTI-LOCK BREAKING SYSTEM(ABS)

There are four main components of the ABS:

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 SPEED SENSOR
 VALVES
 PUMP
 CONTROLLER

SPEED SENSOR

The purpose of the speed sensor is to monitor speed of each wheel and then to
determine the acceleration and de-acceleration of the wheels. It consist of exciter(a
ring with notched teeth)and a wire coil/magnet assembly which generates the pulses
of electricity as teeth of exciter pass in front of it.

VALVES

The function of the valves is to regulate the air pressure to brakes during Anti-Lock
Braking System (ABS) action.They are placed in the brake line of the each brake
controlled by the ABS. In most of the cases ,the valve has three positions:

 In position one, the valve is open and the pressure from the master cylinder
is passed through the brake.
 In position two, the valve blocks the line resulting in isolating the brake from
master cylinder.
 In position three, the valve releases some of the pressure from brakes.

PUMP

The purpose of the pump is to regulate or restore the pressure back to the brakes that
has been released by the valves.

CONTROLLER

The controller of the Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS) consists of Electronic

Control Unit(ECU) which processes all the ABS information and signal functions.
The ECU gets the information from all the wheels and then control or limit the brake
force to the each wheel.

BRAKE TYPES

Anti-lock breaking system or ABS has different types of brakes based on number
of channels used.
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FOUR-CHANNEL

This scheme is employed in most of the modern cars like Ferrari’s California T.
In this scheme all the four wheels have there own individual speed sensors and
valves. This gives best result as all the four wheels can be controlled individually
which ensures the maximum braking force.

THREE CHANNEL

Three channel comes with two combination, one is three channel with four sensors
and the other one with three channel and three sensors.

In three channel and four sensor scheme, along with the four sensors on the each
wheel there is a separate valve for each of the front wheels and a common valve for
the rear wheels.

The three channel and three sensor scheme is mostly employed in pickup trucks.
There are individual sensors and valves for both the front wheels with a common
valve and sensor for both of the rear wheel.

TWO CHANNEL

This system works with four sensors and two valves. It uses a speed sensors at
each wheel, with one control valve for both of the front wheels and the other one
for the rear wheels.

ONE CHANNEL

This system is found on pickup trucks which uses rear wheel ABS. It has one valve
and one sensor for both of the rear wheels.This system is not very effective because
as there is a possibility that one of the rear wheel will lock, reducing the effectiveness
of brakes.

WORKING OF ABS OR ANTI-LOCK BRAKING SYSTEM

 When the brakes are applied ,fluid is forced from the master cylinder to the
HCU inlet ports with the help of open solenoid valves that are contained in
the HCU, then through the outlet ports of HCU to the each wheel.
 The rear part of the master cylinder feeds the front brakes and vice-versa.
 After the fluid in inserted in each wheel, the wheel starts locking-up.
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 When the control module senses that wheel is going to lock up, it closes the
normally open solenoid valves for that wheel.
 The anti-lock break control module then looks at anti-lock break sensor
signal from the affected wheel.
 Once the affected wheel comes back up to the speed, then the control
module returns the solenoid valve to there normal condition.

Electronic brake-force distribution (EBFD):

Electronic brake-force distribution (EBFD) is an active vehicle safety feature

designed to make braking as efficient as possible. As the name suggests, EBFD
distributes braking power according to which wheels are braking most effectively
at the time. To illustrate, just as heavy braking causes a driver’s body to move
forward, slamming on the brakes also pushes the weight of the vehicle forward so
the front wheels bear the most weight. When this happens, the rear wheels may not
have enough grip on the road. This could cause the rear wheels to spin and
eventually lock up. Locked-up back wheels not only increase the risk of fishtailing,
but also force the front wheels to do all the braking work with only half of the total
brake force available (since the other half is still being applied – uselessly – to the
back wheels). This can result in longer stopping distances and an increased risk of
collision.

EBFD reduces these dangers by automatically balancing the brake force applied to
each wheel according to the overall weight distribution of the vehicle. The safety
systems not only prevents wheel lockage by reducing brake force to spinning
wheels, but can also allocate more brake-force to wheels that it detects are already
braking effectively.

When would EBFD be useful?

While it may seem like all the tires bear the vehicle’s weight evenly, this is rarely
the case. EBFD is useful whenever a driver brakes while the vehicle’s weight is
unevenly distributed across all four tires. As such, EBFD is useful anytime a driver
must slam on the brakes to avoid a collision, for example:

 While braking, one wheel goes over a pothole, making braking less efficient.
 One of the wheels is on ice and threatening to lock up during an episode of
braking.
 A large animal comes out into the road, forcing you to brake and swerve.

How does EBFD work?

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EBFD is always installed with anti-lock braking systems (ABS) and works very
similarly to ABS. The important difference between EBFD and ABS is that while
both systems prevent wheels from locking, EBFD can also redistribute brake-force
according to which wheels are performing better. EBFD systems are usually made
up of several components:

 Speed sensors that monitor the rotational speed of each wheel;

 Brake-force modulators that increase or decrease brake-force to each
wheel;
 An acceleration/deceleration detector that monitors changes in the
vehicle’s forward and side-to-side speed;
 A yaw sensorthat monitors a vehicle’s side-to-side movement, and;
 An electronic control unit (ECU)that compiles information from all the
sensors and gives commands to the brake-force modulators.

As with modern ABS setups, the brake-force modulators and ECU are attached
together, so while they have different functions, they appear as one unit. The ECU
monitors each wheel’s responsiveness to the brake, and then tailors the amount of
brake force applied to each wheel. If the EBFD system senses that one of the
wheels is about to lock, or that the car is swaying too much from side-to-side, it
redistributes brake force to obtain optimal braking power.

How effective is EBFD?

EBFD promises several benefits in addition to improved stability and reduced

stopping distance. EBFD will help a vehicle stop sooner, which lessens the effects
that heavy braking has on the body (i.e., throwing the body forward towards the
steering column). Furthermore by automatically adjusting brake-force to its
optimal distribution, EBFD can reduce the effects of weather, road conditions, total
weight of the vehicle, and the distribution of weight within the vehicle, thereby
making braking more predictable.
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The benefits of EBFD alone have not been widely tested. However, since it
complements ABS, EBFD can be expected to at least match the effectiveness of
ABS. More specifically, EBFD is designed to help drivers stop sooner, while ABS
is designed to help driver retain steering control. When paired together, the odds of
avoiding a crash by either stopping before impact or braking and swerving out of
danger increase.

Does EBFD have any limitations?

Yes. As with most vehicle safety systems, realizing the benefits of EBFD depends
on whether drivers understand its design limits, overall purpose, and interact with
it appropriately. The goal of EBFD is to provide drivers with optimal braking
efficiency. It cannot warn drivers of impending collisions or bad road conditions,
so drivers must remain attentive and responsive to potential hazards. In addition,
EBFD is only useful at speeds under a certain threshold. Beyond a safe speed, it
may be impossible to combine EBFD braking power with safe steering directions.

Whether or not EBFD benefits drivers depends on how quickly they react to
hazards and how safely they steer to avoid them. Speeding, driving while
fatigued, driving while distracted, tailgating, and driving in bad weather can all
negatively affect the benefits of EBFD because these behaviours impair a driver’s
ability to react to obstacles and drive safely. The good news is that as long as
drivers continue to drive safely and attentively they will accrue all the safety
benefits EBFD has to offer.

How common is EBFD in today’s vehicles?

EBFD began being installed with ABS in the mid-2000s. Most modern ABS
systems now include EBFD as a standard or optional add-on. In the model year
2010, 89% of cars and 99% of new light trucks had ABS installed; however there
are no data on how many of these ABS systems included EBFD. Since Transport
Canada does not require that ABS be installed on new vehicles, the best way to
find out whether your vehicle has EBFD is to consult the owner’s manual.

Electronic brake force distribution is a system of additional brake controls that can
augment, and improve the functionality of, anti-lock brakes. Since most OEMs
offer at least one model with EBD, there are several different systems out there.
However, EBD systems typically make use of components like:

 speed sensors
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 brake force modulators

 electronic control units
 yaw sensors
 steering wheel angle sensors

Many of these components are also used by other brake-related systems, like
electronic stability control and traction control.

How Does Electronic Brake Force Distribution Work?

Electronic brake force distribution systems look at data from speed sensors to
determine if any of the wheels aren't rotating at the same speed as the others. These
systems can also compare the data from a yaw sensor to the data from a steering
wheel angle sensor to see if the vehicle is over- or understeering. That data is then
processed by the electronic control unit to ascertain the relative load on each
wheel.

If the electronic control unit determines that that one or more wheels is under a
lighter load than the others, it is capable of using brake force modulators to reduce
the brake force to that wheel. This occurs dynamically, so the brake force can be
modulated continuously in response to the prevailing conditions.

What’s the Point of Electronic Brake Force Distribution?

The purpose of EBD is similar to the purposes of related technologies like anti-
lock brakes and traction control. These technologies are all designed to prevent the
wheels of a vehicle from locking up, which can cause a driver to lose control very
quickly.

Unlike other brake systems, EBD is able to dynamically modulate the brake force
that’s applied to each wheel.

The general idea behind electronic brake force distribution is that wheels lock up
more easily when they are under a light load. Traditional proportioning valves deal
with this issue by applying different brake force levels to the front and rear wheels,
but these hydraulic valves aren't capable of reacting to different circumstances and
conditions.

Under normal circumstances, the weight of a vehicle will shift forward as it slows
down. Since that puts a heavier load on the front wheels than the rear ones, EBD
systems can respond to that situation by decreasing the brake force on the rear
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wheels. However, a vehicle that is heavily loaded in the rear will behave
differently. If the trunk is full of luggage, an EBD system is capable of sensing that
increased load and modulating the brake force accordingly.

What’s the Best Way to Drive a Vehicle That has Electronic Brake Force
Distribution?

If you find yourself in a vehicle that includes EBD, you should drive it like any
other vehicle that has anti-lock brakes. These systems work behind the scenes to
automatically adjust for extra weight in the trunk, icy or wet conditions, and other
variables, so no extra effort is needed on your part.

However, it is a good idea to be extra careful when braking and cornering until
you’re familiar with the way that the vehicle handles.

What Happens When Electronic Brake Force Distribution Fails?

In the event of EBD failure, the conventional brake system should continue to
function normally. That means you’ll typically be fine if you have to drive a
vehicle that has a malfunctioning EBD system. However, you’ll need to take extra
care when braking. Since EBD and ABS use many of the same components, your
anti-lock brakes will often fail at the same time as your electronic brake force
distribution system, which means you may need to pump your brakes instead of
applying steady pressure.

Some manufacturers recommend that you check your brake fluid level if you
suspect a malfunctioning EBD system, since some vehicles use the same warning
light for low fluid that is used for other brake issues. If the fluid level is low, you
should avoid driving the vehicle until it has been topped off, and a mechanic
should inspect the system for leaks.