It’s easy to polish some new stuff brake technology is called “Brembo Know. “On the surface, that name doesn’t make much sense. This technology is for the internal brake system new carHowever, nothing is short of a small revolution.
When you fully depress the brake pedal of a modern car, brake pressure is distributed in the same pattern every time. The fluid is pushed out to all four corners by the master cylinder, which in turn compresses the caliper piston(s) and forces the brake pads against the rotor, causing friction. At the surface level, that’s what’s going on – of course, things get a little more complicated when you introduce wire brake technology, but even that’s pretty normal stuff compared to what Brembo Sensify is. As a sign of how revolutionary this will be, brake fluid and the brake line becomes unnecessary with Sensify.
The best way to understand what Sensify does is to give an example. During an emergency stop involving a new car on the road today, you would activate the anti brake system, also known as ABS. It’s a smart technology that was invented decades ago and has improved since then. Purpose is in the name. Instead of you needing to feel and depress the brake pedal below the brake threshold to keep the wheel from locking, the system handles it for you in a series of micro-pulses, applying and reducing brake pressure continuously. above it. individually, bringing you to the most efficient stop and allowing you to maintain some control of the steering wheel. Anyone driving, especially in wet or winter conditions, can feel this. As soon as you activate the ABS system, the pedal begins to vibrate; The ABS system makes the usual noise and you have to stop eventually. Hope.
Whole songs and dances with ABS are completely unnecessary with Brembo’s Sensify brake technology. In fact, cars with Sensify won’t even have systems like ABS or need to take advantage of the traditional systems we’ve used to improve hydraulic brakes over the years like distribution Electronic brake force (EBD). To tell you why as succinctly as possible, it’s because this system is capable of applying and capturing brake pressure to any wheel independently of the other wheel with the actual response i.e. time. It replaces all these improvements – ABS, EBD, etc. – we have made to improve hydraulic based systems with a single new system that can do everything faster.
To use an analogy, Sensify is like the central engine for Electric Car, but instead of acceleration control, Brembo has full deceleration control. In the event of an emergency stop where ABS would not be used, the Sensify system can bring you to a stop using a range of sensors and a combination of new brake hardware including a new caliper, the “bar” “Brake and Start Brake Technology. In the event of a full emergency stop, those sensors can signal the tire’s maximum performance and cause the brakes to apply the correct amount of pressure to provide the fastest stopping distance without ABS pulsation. It’s smooth, quiet, and noiseless from whatever speed you’re at, down to 0 mph.
The mechanism of this system is even very different from the brakes on new cars today, and there are many settings that Brembo is offering. The most advanced setup uses electromechanical calipers on all four corners. These calipers are actuated by small electric motors that force the pads against the rotor when you depress the brake pedal. Your brake pedal is basically just an electrical button in this case, sending a signal to ECU that will tell the brake caliper what to do. There is no traditional brake “line” here, and since the electric motor is used as the actuator, there is no brake fluid either. You might ask, where is the backup system in this setup in case the car loses power? Brembo says cars with a fully electromechanical braking system will come with a backup power source that will be used in such cases.
Only one mixture Brembo Sensify brakes are also available. The system uses electromechanical brakes for the rear, but the front brake is hydraulically actuated. Even this traditional front hydraulic system is different from the usual, though, as each front caliper will have its own master cylinder. That creates two self-contained braking systems for each of the front wheels. Its mechanism closely resembled the brake-by-wire system found in cars today, but Brembo still enjoys independent, complete electrical control on each caliper due to the self-contained systems. As you’d expect, the front brake calipers use brake fluid.
We have to try this system in one Performance Tesla Model 3 to see if all that Brembo has put in over the last 10 years – yes, 10 years of development – is worth it. Brembo has set up several events and obstacles on Michelin Prove Grounds, then put us loose in both Model 3 Performance uses its current brakes, followed by time spent on Performance Model 3 with the Sensor system installed. The difference was shocking.
The first emergency stop – and every stop after that – we made in the Sensify car was almost serene. Braking from 0-100% on a car with traditional brakes always results in some squealing, ABS brakes and possibly a slight drift to one side or the other when you try to stop the vehicle. With Sensify, Brembo’s sensors aim to keep brake pressure at the point where you’re using as much grip as the tires can allow without locking the wheels for even a fraction of a second. You simply slow down from the highway to 0 mph as if you were taking a leisurely walk. When Brembo showed us the computer data afterward, the brake pressure graph didn’t lie. Instead of constantly micro-adjusting brake pressure like an ABS system would, brake pressure in the Sensify vehicle is uniform and consistent from start to finish. This is the case on both dry and wet pavement.
Braking in the middle of a corner is the cause of disaster in many cases, and while the ABS system in the Model 3 Performance handles this obstacle with ease, the Sensify system does even better. We were able to continue following our path around corners without any problems, and the computer did a great job making sure the car remained stable and predictable under heavy braking. Even if you’re going fast enough that a bottom touch is the car’s first direction, you can quickly remedy that with steering assisted by brake patterns. Brembo even let us intentionally upset the car by applying full braking at 75 km/h during a bend, then jerking the wheel left and right. Not even the slightest sense of loss of control. Once stopped, Brembo presented data explaining that the car would fluctuate brake pressure on the left and right rear rear brakes individually with each wheel jerk in one direction or another to try. keep the vehicle under control. We will also note that all of these manipulations are done with stability control completely defeated, and in “Model 3 Performance”Track mode. “
The final move Brembo throws at us is a quick left-right hit that is completed when braking sharply from a fairly high speed. Once again, the Sensify vehicle outperforms the traditional Model 3’s Performance in both maneuverability and controllability. Depending on how severe the steering angle you apply when braking, the system will even assist you with the slightest oversteer to help steer the rear through a manageable corner.
Brembo hasn’t shown any quantifiable improvements in braking distance to the wall, but engineers say that’s largely because the system is still in testing. An easier way to get a better stopping distance out of a car is to simply upgrade the tires. However, Sensify comes with a lot of other positives aside from extremely smooth stopping and independent brake control. First, it’s a big win in the packaging space, as it gives OEMs more freedom with their electrical architecture and platform design. You don’t need to run the brake line all over the car anymore and the ABS system can be thrown in the trash. Similar to today’s wire brake systems, you can also adjust the feel and response of the brakes. The “comfort” braking mode will give you a soft and constant pedaling, while the “track” braking mode can give you a super hard and responsive pedal feel.
There are some big innovations here when it comes to efficiency. Brembo has designed a new spring for the electromechanical brake calipers, which it calls “Enesys”, which can completely remove the pad from the rotor when you brake sharply, thus reducing drag. This reduces rolling resistance, which is paramount to the EV range. Best of all, your pads will last longer. A plus for EVs is regenerative braking – Brembo says it can recover more energy with Sensify brakes than with traditional brakes. However, that energy recovery is not without using energy, because you will need to use the battery energy to run the caliper motor.
The total weight of the system is a zero-sum game. The extra weight of the engine, sensors, and other components eliminates the weight lost when clearing the brake lines, master cylinders, and other components of a traditional brake system. That extra weight is also in a place you really don’t want – hanging off the wheels. The stronger thump that doesn’t come off the electromechanical brakes is why Brembo believes the best application for sports car and supercar will be the hybrid setup described earlier to keep the weight from spreading, similar to the traditional braking system.
Finally, and this is where some skepticism is needed, Brembo claims its electromechanical clamps are a lifetime part. Anyone who has used older cars will tell you they’ve used up brake calipers over the years, but Brembo says the only parts you’ll need to replace are the pads and rotors. Of course, a hybrid setup that uses brake fluid and a short front brake line will also require brake fluid maintenance. Brembo says you can use any pads or brake fluid you want.
As the Sensify brake system rolls out and on production cars, Brembo says it can update and “improve” it through ongoing updates. We asked why the brakes needed an update, and Brembo representatives told us it gives OEMs the opportunity to sell access to sled brake package or track brake software package (or whatever package they can dream of) as an after-sale item. If you think we’ve entered signup hell, wait and see what happens next. As for when you should expect Sensify to appear on production cars, Brembo said it is currently working with a number of OEMs and that the earliest examples of it are scheduled to go on sale in 2024. which OEMs and which models, Brembo remains tight-lipped about finalizing Sensify tuning.
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