are an integral safety system to any moving vehicle. Most modern automobiles use disc brake systems at all four wheels because
they are more effective at stopping vehicles than drum brakes are. Disc brakes are considered to be hydraulic systems, which are
engineered to be both extremely reliable and easy to work on. The key ingredient to this design is in its simplicity; the fewer
moving parts, the less there is to go wrong. Let's take a quick look at the main parts in a typical disc brake system.
Components of a Disc Brake System
To offer the easiest explanation of how a modern disc brake system works, let's start at the pedal and work our way down the list. When you need to slow your vehicle, you press the brake pedal pad. The pedal actuates the brake boosters hydraulic cylinder, which draws brake fluid from the brake master cylinder and pushes the fluid through each of the four brake lines. When necessary, the master cylinder can draw additional fluid from the brake reservoir.
Brake fluid is engineered to be as resistant to compression as possible; the more brake fluid compresses, the less effective the brake system will be. Brake fluid is a hydroscopic fluid; this means that the fluid readily attracts and absorbs water. Water dilutes brake fluid, making it a lot more compressible. This is why you need to change out your brake fluid every few years.
In a disc brake system, the brake pads are housed in the calipers. Brake calipers are U shaped and can contain between one and eight cylinders in them. As the master brake cylinder pushes the brake fluid through the lines, a large amount of pressure is built up. The hydraulic cylinders found in the calipers are driven by the pressure created in the brake lines by the master cylinder. As the hydraulics in the caliper extend, they push a brake pad up against the rotor. Since the brake rotors are attached to the axles through a hub, they are spinning at a very high RPM. This causes a large amount of friction to occur between the surface of the rotor and the brake pads, which effectively slows down the vehicle to the desired speed.
The friction that occurs between the pads and the rotors is released in the form of heat. As the heat from braking builds up in the pads and rotors, they become less effective at stopping the vehicle. This effect is known as brake fade and is a big concern for truckers towing heavy loads and professional racers who run laps on the track, but in everyday commuting, your brakes will rarely, if ever, get hot enough for you to experience brake fade.
Common Disc Brake Components
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