If you’ve shopped for a new car in the past few years, you’ve probably noticed that most of them come with an anti-lock brake system (ABS). If you’ve ever wondered what that is and how it works, this is a blog post that you will want to read! These brakes systems have been around since the late 1970s, and there have been great strides in advancements to these systems.
First, what it ABS? It is a type of braking system that gives you the ability to stop faster and allows you to continue steering while you stop — mainly in extreme braking situations. This is because ABS helps prevent your tires from skidding while giving you control over the direction of your tires. Newer ABS enhancements include steering-wheel sensors that match the direction of your car with the position of your steering wheel for even greater control when you need to brake quickly.
There are four main parts that make up ABS:
Sensors
These monitor your speed and let the ABS know when a potential extreme breaking situation might occur. The sensors are usually located at each wheel, but they are sometimes found in the differential (the part that aims the engine’s power to the wheels so they have the ability to spin at different speeds).
Valves
These are found in your hydraulic control unit (HCU) and these valves are in the brake line of each brake that is enabled with ABS. The valves also manage the pressure of how hard you press down on the brake pedal.
Controller
The controller is a computer system in your car, and its job is to monitor the speed sensors and control the valves. Needless to say, it’s very important to the ABS!
Pump
The valves control and release braking pressure, and the pump puts the pressure back into the braking system when needed.
Now, there are various types of anti-lock brake systems available, but I will briefly explain how the most basic version works. While the controller is watching your speed it is monitoring for any unnatural or abrupt deceleration. The controller will release pressure to the brakes until it notices any acceleration, and this helps the tires to slow down at the same speed as the car itself. Without ABS, the wheel would stop way before the car would be able to stop moving forward, and this would make the car skid and possibly lose control.
Having the wheel and the car slow down at the same rate gives you maximum braking power with a lower chance of skidding.
