COMPUTER AIDED OPTIMUM DESIGN OF A CAM ACTUATED SHOE BRAKE

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Graduate student.

2 Associate professor, Head of Automobile Dpt., Military Technical College, Cairo, Egypt.

3 Associate professor, Head of Machine design Dpt., Military Technical College, Cairo, Egypt.

Abstract

An optimization model for a cam actuated pivoted shoe brake used in Automobiles is presented. In this model the objective functions are: to minimize the mass of the brake drum, surface area of the brake lining and wear of the brake lining. The first and second objectives reflect the brake assembly weight; whereas the third one represents the service life of the brake. Eleven design variables are considered. Ten of them are related to the dimensions of the wheel brake assembly while the eleventh variable is the maximum air pressure in the brake system. The restrictions imposed on these variables are: the geometric constraints which reflect the size of the car wheel and behavior constraints which restrict the air pressure of the brake system, the lining pressure, the self-locking of shoes, the slip between the surface of lining and the surface of the drum, overheating of the brake assembly and the skidding of the vehicle wheels. A computer program is developed to solve this model. The program allows the designer to participate interactively in the process of seeking an optimum solution which satisfies the conflicting objectives. A numerical example is presented.