Annual Report 2010 - Knorr-Bremse AG.

100 RepoR t | CoMMe RCIAL VeHICLe SYSteMS
New lightweight disc brakes
Knorr-Bremse continues to develop its portfolio of pneumatic disc brake products with a view to covering
as wide a range of vehicle applications as possible while at the same time catering for regional
differences. The company’s latest disc brake is much lighter, and can reduce the overall weight of a
truckset by up to 100 kilos, saving fuel and cutting emissions without compromising safety. In the
trailer segment the successor to the SK disc brake – the ST – was also presented in 2010. Specially
designed for trailer applications, this brake is extremely light but offers the same braking performance
as before.
Trailer-EBS further developed
The TEBS trailer electronic braking system specially developed by Knorr-Bremse for trailers ensures
even braking on all wheels of a truck-trailer combination. TEBS receives the driver’s braking signal and
adjusts it to the weight distribution of the trailers, thereby reducing brake wear and cutting vehicle
maintenance costs.
During the year under review Knorr-Bremse added a number of additional functions to the second
generation of TEBS, including ABS configuration for vehicles with more than three axles. This means
that trailer EBS is now available for all vehicle types. Applications for pony trailers were also added.
If combined with the Trailer Roadtrain Module (TRM), electronic transmission of the braking signal to
the trailers also makes it possible to bring extra-long vehicles safely and rapidly to a halt.
AEBS automatic emergency braking system
During the year under review Knorr-Bremse continued to develop the AEBS automatic emergency
braking system for commercial vehicles. At the 2010 IAA Commercial Vehicles it gave an impressive
demonstration of the system during a special session on hazardous goods transportation organized
by the German Association of the Automotive Industry VDA. AEBS involves a radar sensor mounted on
the truck monitoring the distance to the vehicle in front. If this starts to close too quickly, the system
intervenes in the braking system, helping avoid a collision. Combined with an optional video camera,
AEBS can even trigger full emergency braking if it identifies a completely stationary object (for example
the end of a tailback) in front of the vehicle.
In each of these two versions, AEBS initially alerts the driver to the imminent danger with acoustic and
optical signals or a brief application of the brakes. If the driver fails to react within a predefined period
of time, the system triggers partial braking, thereby allowing for a longer driver reaction time. Only
when the system spots an imminent danger of collision is emergency braking triggered. In this way
the system avoids an accident as far as physically possible or at least mitigates its consequences. This
latter effect can be increased by the system continuing to brake even during a collision, thereby enabling
the brakes to absorb some of the energy.
Even when AEBS applies the brakes without the driver’s involvement, he still retains full control over
the vehicle (in line with the Vienna Agreement) and can interrupt AEBS braking at any time by accelerating,
steering etc.