Brakes – Wheel – Transversely movable
Patent
1996-11-12
1998-04-21
Poon, Peter M.
Brakes
Wheel
Transversely movable
188250G, 188250B, F16D 6900
Patent
active
057408912
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates in general to center brakes, in particular, for medium or large-sized automobiles such as trucks or buses used for temporary parking of the automobile with the engine running or for reliably preventing a parked automobile from rolling when the engine is shut off.
BACKGROUND ART
It is well known to those skilled in the art that automobile brakes are used not only for reducing the speed of automobiles and stopping automobiles but also for preventing parked automobiles from rolling. Automobile brakes typically generate frictional force and convert kinetic energy of a moving automobile into thermal energy and evolve the thermal energy to the atmosphere, thereby providing a braking function for a moving automobile.
Typically, small-sized automobiles use two different types of brakes--a foot brake and a hand brake. A foot brake is for braking a moving automobile in order to reduce the speed of or stop the automobile. A foot brake is actuated by foot manipulation of a brake pedal. A hand brake (also called a side brake or parking brake) is for manually braking the rear wheels of the automobile in order to keep the automobile stationary while it is parked. A hand brake is typically actuated by hand manipulation of a brake lever.
In contrast to the braking systems of small automobiles, medium and large automobiles such as trucks and buses also utilize a center brake. A center brake is typically a hand-operated brake which is adapted for braking a propeller shaft (also called a drive shaft) of an automobile. On common truck designs with aforward-mounted engine and using rear wheel drive, power is transferred from the engine through a transmission and then through an elongated propeller shaft or drive shaft connected to the transmission and to the rear differential. The propeller shaft or drive shaft is thus distinguished from an axle which transmits power from the differential laterally to a wheel of the automobile.
Both center brakes and hand brakes are used for prevention of possible slip or rolling of the automobile while it is parked on a slope. The censer brake is preferably used, in particular, when temporarily parking the automobile while leaving the engine running.
For example, fire engines or the fire trucks should be parked with the engine running when putting out afire. The engine of a fire truck should be left running in order to provide water pumping force or power. The gross weight of a fire truck carrying its load of water is very great. Consequently, a parked fire truck may be unstable and may tend to roll under its own weight when the truck is braked by the hand brake exclusively. Therefore, a center brake should be used in addition to a hand brake in order to securely brake and park a fire truck with the engine running.
However, there may be a problem when parking a fire truck with the engine running on a slope. That is, when the parking place of a fire truck is sloped, only a good center brake can reliably prevent the fire truck from moving. However, when the center brake of the fire truck is worn or malfunctioning, caused, for example, by abrasion of brake lining, the parked truck with the engine running and containing with much water may roll down the slope due to its great weight and may cause a terrible accident.
Of course, the above problem caused by a worn or malfunctioning center brake may occur in other medium or large-sized automobiles, such as a cargo truck or a bus, in addition to fire trucks.
Typically, brakes are classified into two types: drum brakes and disk brakes. In a typical drum brake, two arcuate brake shoes fitted with heat and water-resistant linings are forced against an inner or outer surface of a rotating drum. A drum brake in which the shoes are forced against the inner surface of the drum is referred to simply as an internal forcing type brake. A drum brake in which the shoes are forced against the outer surface of the drum is referred to simply as an external forcing brake. In a typical disk brake, disks attached to a f
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patent: 5310028 (1994-05-01), Sampson
Poon Peter M.
Schwartz Chris
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