How is the brake drum arranged and what is it for?

Despite the fact that the drum brakes were invented much earlier than modern discs, they still remain relevant for manufacturers and car owners. Such popularity was won due to the simplicity of the design. The drum brake is much simpler, and, accordingly, both reliable and unpretentious disc brakes.

Production history

And they were invented in the distant 19th century. The first prototypes of modern brakes were a primitive system of only three components. It was actually a brake drum attached to the wheel, a strong and flexible tape around it, as well as a lever pulling the last piece. Naturally, the service life of such a system was short-lived, besides, various stones and dirt fell into it.

The design was improved only in the beginning of the 20th century. Then engineer Louis Reno invented a new brake drum with more reliable accessories. For the first time it included pads located inside the mechanism. The braking device was well protected against dirt and therefore its service life increased significantly.

Since then, the brake drum has repeatedly changed its design and materials, but its function has remained unchanged. This device still reduced the speed of the car if necessary. It also performed the function of a handbrake.

What is the modern drum disc brake?

The front and rear drums are made exclusively of high-quality and high-strength cast iron steel. The finished element at the outlet is ground from the inside and installed on the car. The part is attached to the support shaft or to the wheel hub.

In addition, the design of the brake drum includes the following elements:

• Brake pads with a special composition of friction material (each manufacturer secretly stores its manufacturing method).
• Hydraulic cylinder (there may be several of them).
• Protective disk.
• Special fixative.
• Tightening springs.
• Self-supply mechanism.
• Shank strut.
• The mechanism of the supply of pads.

How does the brake drum work?

The principle of operation of this mechanism is as follows. The driver presses the brake pedal to create a certain pressure in the working fluid system. It in turn acts on the piston of the brake cylinder. After overcoming the efforts of the tension spring, the last element activates the brake shoe, which spreads out laterally and snugly abuts against the surface of the drum. As a result, the speed of rotation of the part decreases significantly, and at the same time the speed of the car decreases.

Conclusion

As you can see, the composition of the brake drum design has really changed a lot in more than 100 years of existence. All technologies used now, provide the car with the shortest stopping distance on any roadway. By efficiency, they are not a bit inferior to their competitors - disk systems. Therefore, drum brakes are still in high demand among motorists, although recently many motor companies refuse to equip their cars with such devices, preferring disk.