Subject: Automobile Engineering

Topic: Brakes, Steering & Front Axles

Difficulty: Medium

Brakes are required to stop the vehicle within the smallest possible distance & this is done by converting the kinetic energy of the vehicle into the heat energy which is dissipated into the atmosphere.

Requirement of braking system:
i) 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.
ii)The brakes must have good antifade characteristics i.e, their effectiveness should not decrease with constant prolonged application e.g. while descending hills. This requirements demands that coding of the brakes should be very efficient.

Primary function of the steering system is to achieve angular motion of the front wheel to negotiate a turn. Requirement of steering. The steering mechanism should be very accurate & easy to handle. The effort required to steer should be minimal & must not be tiresome to the driver.

The steering mechanism should also provide stability. This implies that the vehicle should have a tendency to return to its straight ahead position after turning.

Types of steering:
i) Power Steering :- It consists of ah engine driven oil pump with the with the reservoir control valve & present surface which assist steering effort.
ii). Adjustable Steering : - In this steering wheel can adjust the steering angle at convenient & move the wheel in desire position.
iii) Collapsible steering :- It is an energy absorbing steering provide safety by collapsing during impact form front end crash. This incorporates with ball bearing fitted between two over lapping tube.
iv) Center point steering - The arrangement of the wheel, front axle & stub axle. When the axis of wheel, King pin axis & vertical axis are interest at same point at the same time the road wheel makes contact with the ground. Then the construction is called as corner points steering.