Road Vehicle Dynamics: Antilock-Braking System (ABS) Control Systems (Literature Review)

Road Vehicle Dynamics: Antilock-Braking System (ABS) Control Systems
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Road Vehicle Dynamics: Antilock-Braking System (ABS) Control Systems (Literature Review)
Introduction
Safety anti-skid braking systems such as anti-lock braking systems (ABS) are installed in most modern vehicles such as buses, trucks, cars, and motorcycles. The systems work based on a simple mechanism of preventing wheels from locking when braking. This maintains the tractive contact between the wheels and the surface of the road thus allowing the driver or operator to have more control over the automobile. Before the widespread of ABS, skilled drivers employed the techniques of cadence braking and threshold braking, which are now a feature in ABS control systems. However, ABS control systems operate faster than skilled drivers and are more effective. While there are many different methods for ABS control, they differ in terms of their performance based on road conditions and theoretical principles. The present research deals with methods used in designing ABS control systems as well as the challenges and latest developments in control techniques. Like fuzzy control, intelligent control systems in ABS control can emulate the qualitative scenarios of human knowledge, although this can be achieved with additional qualities such as universal approximation theorem, robustness, and rule-based algorithms (Aly et al., 2011). In traditional ABSs, pneumatic or hydraulic pressure brakes are often used. Khan, Hussain, and Shah (2019) have proposed the use of magnetic damping to overcome the challenges of the application of friction used in converting kinetic energy to heat in modern ABS. The application of magnetic damping would reduce thermal failures of the ABS during contract movement, reduce limitations of braking performance especially when at high speed, brake, and noise, and decrease the total time it takes to build up pressure. This paper reviews the literature on an effective method of designing ABS control systems using magnetic damping to regulate slip, reduce stopping distance, and ultimately enhance safety. In demonstrating this improvement, the final project will use MATLAB® and Simulink® to model and simulate braking systems under different damping conditions.
Literature Review
Braking converts the kinetic energy of the moving vehicle into thermal energy to produce friction, and this is the most important concern in today’s automobiles. However, the application of braking causes the locking of the wheels and skidding. To prevent this problem, ABS is designed to help the driver to take control of the steering during hard braking. This prevents locking and skidding of the wheels as well as reducing the stopping distance. Without the ABS, it becomes impossible to stop the car from spinning due to the wheel lockup during hard braking conditions, especially on slippery surfaces. It is estimated that 77 percent of accident cases in the world are due to the problem of wheel skidding while 19 percent are caused by stopping distance (Gahtori, Bharti, & Kumar, 2015). Most modern ABS are used with magnetic damping since conventional ABSs apply friction in the conversion of kinetic energy into thermal en...