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Anti-lock braking system
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An anti-lock braking system, or ABS (from the German, Antiblockiersystem) is a safety system which prevents the wheels on a motor vehicle from locking while braking.
A rotating road wheel allows the driver to maintain steering control under heavy braking by preventing a skid and allowing the wheel to continue interacting tractively with the road surface as directed by driver steering inputs. While ABS offers improved vehicle control in some circumstances, it can also present disadvantages including increased braking distance on slippery surfaces such as ice, packed snow, gravel, steel plates and bridges, or anything other than dry pavement.
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Encyclopedia
An anti-lock braking system, or ABS (from the German, Antiblockiersystem) is a safety system which prevents the wheels on a motor vehicle from locking while braking.
A rotating road wheel allows the driver to maintain steering control under heavy braking by preventing a skid and allowing the wheel to continue interacting tractively with the road surface as directed by driver steering inputs. While ABS offers improved vehicle control in some circumstances, it can also present disadvantages including increased braking distance on slippery surfaces such as ice, packed snow, gravel, steel plates and bridges, or anything other than dry pavement. ABS has also been demonstrated to create a false sense of security in drivers, who may drive more aggressively as a result.
Since initial widespread use in production cars, anti-lock braking systems have evolved considerably. Recent versions not only prevent wheel lock under braking, but also electronically control the front-to-rear brake bias. This function, depending on its specific capabilities and implementation, is known as electronic brakeforce distribution (EBD), traction control system (TCS or ASR), emergency brake assist (BA, EBA or HBA), or electronic stability control (ESP, ESC or DSC).
History
Early ABS
Anti-lock braking systems were first developed for aircraft in 1929, by the French automobile and aircraft pioneer, Gabriel Voisin, as threshold braking an airplane is nearly impossible. An early system was Dunlop's Maxaret system, introduced in the 1950s and still in use on some aircraft models.
A fully mechanical system saw limited automobile use in the 1960s in the Ferguson P99 racing car, the Jensen FF and the experimental all wheel drive Ford Zodiac, but saw no further use; the system proved expensive and, in automobile use, somewhat unreliable. However, a limited form of anti-lock braking, utilizing a valve which could adjust front to rear brake force distribution when a wheel locked, was fitted to the 1964 Austin 1800.
Chrysler, together with the Bendix Corporation, introduced a true computerized three-channel all-wheel antilock brake system called "Sure Brake" on the 1971 Imperial. It was available for several years thereafter, functioned as intended, and proved reliable. General Motors introduced the "Trackmaster" rear-wheel (only) ABS as an option on their Rear-wheel drive Cadillac models in 1971.
Modern ABS
In 1975, Robert Bosch took over a European company called Teldix (contraction of Telefunken and Bendix) and all the patents registered by this joint-venture and took advantage out of this acquisition to build the base of the system introduced on the market some years later. The German firms Bosch and Mercedes-Benz had been co-developing anti-lock braking technology since the 1970s, and introduced the first completely electronic 4-wheel multi-channel ABS system in trucks and the Mercedes-Benz S-Class in 1978. ABS Systems based on this more modern Mercedes design were later introduced on other cars and on motorcycles.
In 1988 BMW became the world's first motorcycle manufacturer to introduce an electronic/hydraulic ABS system, this on their BMW K100. In 1992 Honda launched its first ABS system, this on the ST1100 Pan European. In 1997 Suzuki launched its GSF1200SA (Bandit) with ABS.
Operation
The anti-lock brake controller is also known as the CAB (Controller Anti-lock Brake).
A typical ABS is composed of a central electronic control unit (ECU), four wheel speed sensors — one for each wheel — and two or more hydraulic valves within the brake hydraulics. The ECU constantly monitors the rotational speed of each wheel, and when it detects a wheel rotating significantly slower than the others — a condition indicative of impending wheel lock — it actuates the valves to reduce hydraulic pressure to the brake at the affected wheel, thus reducing the braking force on that wheel. The wheel then turns faster; when the ECU detects it is turning significantly faster than the others, brake hydraulic pressure to the wheel is increased so the braking force is reapplied and the wheel slows. This process is repeated continuously, and can be detected by the driver via brake pedal pulsation. A typical anti-lock system can apply and release braking pressure up to 20 times a second.
The ECU is programmed to disregard differences in wheel rotative speed below a critical threshold, because when the car is turning, the two wheels towards the center of the curve turn slower than the outer two. For this same reason, a differential is used in virtually all roadgoing vehicles.
If a fault develops in any part of the ABS, a warning light will usually be illuminated on the vehicle instrument panel, and the ABS will be disabled until the fault is rectified.
Additional developments
Modern Electronic Stability Control (ESC or ESP) systems are an evolution of the ABS concept. Here, a minimum of two additional sensors are added to help the system work: these are a steering wheel angle sensor, and a gyroscopic sensor. The theory of operation is simple: when the gyroscopic sensor detects that the direction taken by the car does not coincide with what the steering wheel sensor reports, the ESC software will brake the necessary individual wheel(s) (up to three with the most sophisticated systems), so that the vehicle goes the way the driver intends. The steering wheel sensor also helps in the operation of Cornering Brake Control (CBC), since this will tell the ABS that wheels on the inside of the curve should brake more than wheels on the outside, and by how much.
Traction control
The ABS equipment may also be used to implement traction control system (TCS, ASR) on acceleration of the vehicle. If, when accelerating, the tire loses traction, the ABS controller can detect the situation and take suitable action so that traction is regained. Manufacturers often offer this as a separately priced option even though the infrastructure is largely shared with ABS. More sophisticated versions of this can also control throttle levels and brakes simultaneously.
Mercedes-Benz was the first to offer this electronic traction control system in 1985.
Efficacy
A 2003 Australian study by Monash University Accident Research Centre found that ABS:
- Reduced the risk of multiple vehicle crashes by 18 percent,
- Reduced the risk of run-off-road crashes by 35 percent.
On high-traction surfaces such as bitumen, or concrete, many (though not all) ABS-equipped cars are able to attain braking distances better (i.e. shorter) than those that would be easily possible without the benefit of ABS. In real world conditions even an alert, skilled driver without ABS would find it difficult, even through the use of techniques like threshold braking, to match or improve on the performance of a typical driver with a modern ABS-equipped vehicle. ABS reduces chances of crashing, and/or the severity of impact. The recommended technique for non-expert drivers in an ABS-equipped car, in a typical full-braking emergency, is to press the brake pedal as firmly as possible and, where appropriate, to steer around obstructions. In such situations, ABS will significantly reduce the chances of a skid and subsequent loss of control.
In gravel, sand and deep snow, ABS tends to increase braking distances. On these surfaces, locked wheels dig in and stop the vehicle more quickly. ABS prevents this from occurring. Some ABS calibrations reduce this problem by slowing the cycling time, thus letting the wheels repeatedly briefly lock and unlock. The primary benefit of ABS on such surfaces is to increase the ability of the driver to maintain control of the car rather than go into a skid — though loss of control remains more likely on soft surfaces like gravel or slippery surfaces like snow or ice. On a very slippery surface such as sheet ice or gravel, it is possible to lock multiple wheels at once, and this can defeat ABS (which relies on comparing all four wheels, and detecting individual wheels skidding). Availability of ABS relieves most drivers from learning threshold braking.
A June 1999 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) study found that ABS increased stopping distances on loose gravel by an average of 22 percent.
According to the NHTSA, "ABS works with your regular braking system by automatically pumping them. In vehicles not equipped with ABS, the driver has to manually pump the brakes to prevent wheel lockup. In vehicles equipped with ABS, your foot should remain firmly planted on the brake pedal, while ABS pumps the brakes for you so you can concentrate on steering to safety."
When activated, some earlier ABS systems caused the brake pedal to pulse noticeably. As most drivers rarely or never brake hard enough to cause brake lock-up, and a significant number rarely bother to read the car's manual, this may not be discovered until an emergency. When drivers do encounter an emergency that causes them to brake hard, and thus encounter this pulsing for the first time, many are believed to reduce pedal pressure, and thus lengthen braking distances, contributing to a higher level of accidents than the superior emergency stopping capabilities of ABS would otherwise promise. Some manufacturers have therefore implemented a brake assist system that determines that the driver is attempting a "panic stop" and the system automatically increases braking force where not enough pressure is applied. Hard or panic braking on bumpy surfaces, because of the bumps causing the speed of the wheel(s) to become erratic may also trigger the ABS. Nevertheless, ABS significantly improves safety and control for drivers in most on-road situations.
Risk compensation
Anti-lock brakes are the subject of some experiments centred around risk compensation theory, which asserts that drivers adapt to the safety benefit of ABS by driving more aggressively. In a Munich study, half a fleet of taxicabs were equipped with anti-lock brakes, while the other half had conventional brake systems. The crash rate was substantially the same for both types of cab, and Wilde concludes this was due to drivers of ABS-equipped cabs taking more risks, assuming that ABS would take care of them, while the non-ABS drivers drove more carefully since ABS would not be there to help in case of a dangerous situation. A similar study was carried out in Oslo, with similar results.
Design and selection of components
Given the required reliability, it is illustrative to see the choices made in the design of the ABS system. Proper functioning of the ABS system is considered of the utmost importance, for safeguarding both the passengers within, and people outside of the car. The system is therefore built with some redundancy, and is designed to monitor its own working and report failures. The entire ABS system is considered to be a hard real-time system, while the sub-system that controls the self diagnosis is considered soft real-time. As stated above, the general working of the ABS system consists of an electronic unit, also known as ECU (electronic control unit), which collects data from the sensors and drives the hydraulic control unit (HCU), mainly consisting of the valves that regulate the braking pressure for the wheels.
The communication between the ECU and the sensors must happen quickly and at real time. A possible solution is the use of the CAN bus system, which has been, and is still in use in many ABS systems today (in fact, this CAN standard was developed by Robert Bosch GmbH, for connecting electronic control units). This allows for an easy combination of multiple signals into one signal, which can be sent to the ECU. The communication with the valves of the HCU is usually not done this way. The ECU and the HCU are generally very close together. The valves, usually solenoid valves, are controlled directly by the ECU. To drive the valves based on signals from the ECU, some circuitry and amplifiers are needed (which would also have been the case if the CAN-bus was used).
The sensors measure the position of the tyres, and are generally placed on the wheel-axis. The sensor should be robust and maintenance free, not to endanger its proper working, for example an inductive sensor. These position measurements are then processed by the ECU to calculate the differential wheel rotation.
The hydraulic control unit is generally integrated with the ECU (or the other way around), and consists of a number of valves that control the pressure in the braking circuits. All these valves are placed closely together, and packed in a solid aluminium alloy block. This makes for a very simple layout, and is thus very robust.
The central control unit generally consists of two microcontrollers, both active simultaneously, to add some redundancy to the system. These two microcontrollers interact, and check each other's proper working. These microcontrollers are also chosen to be power-efficient, to avoid heating of the controller which would reduce durability.
The software which runs in the ECU has a number of functions. Most notably, the algorithms that drive the HCU as a function of the inputs, or control the brakes depending on the recorded wheel spin. This is the obvious main task of the entire ABS-system. Apart from this, the software also needs to process the incoming information, e.g. the signals from the sensors. There is also some software that constantly tests each component of the ABS system for its proper working. Some software for interfacing with an external source to run a complete diagnosis is also added.
As mentioned before the ABS system is considered hard real-time. The control algorithms, and the signal processing software, certainly fall in this category, and get a higher priority than the diagnosis and the testing software. The requirement for the system to be hard real-time can therefore be reduced to stating that the software should be hard real-time. The required calculations to drive the HCU have to be done in time. Choosing a microcontroller that can operate fast enough is therefore the key, preferably with a large margin. The system is then limited by the dynamic ability of the valves and the communication, the latter being noticeably faster. The control system is thus comfortably fast enough, and is limited by the valves.
See also
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