A method for estimating a braking force applicable between pad and brake disc by an electric parking-braking system of a vehicle is described. The method may include detecting, by one or more sensors of electric quantities of an electric motor, an electric current delivered to the electric motor and an instantaneous value of an electric voltage for electrically supplying the electric motor, during a parking-braking operation. The parking-braking operation may have a first non-contact stage between a first pair of pads of a first brake caliper and a first brake disc. The parking-braking operation may also have a second contact stage between the first pair of pads of the first brake caliper and the first brake disc.

A method for operating a parking brake which has an actuator with an actuating element and an electric motor, the electric motor is operatively connected to the actuating element in order to displace the latter, the electric motor is actuated in order to displace the actuating element by a predefined movement travel, and an actual movement travel of the actuating element is monitored in order to actuate the electric motor. The method includes determining the actual movement travel of the actuating element in a manner which is dependent on a motor current and/or a motor voltage of the electric motor.

An anti-rotation sleeve for an electric brake system having a shaft received in and movable relative to a passage of a housing includes a body extending along a centerline from a first end to a second end. An inner surface defines a passage for receiving the shaft and pockets extending radially from the passage configured to provide sliding interfaces with tabs on the shaft. Projections provided on an outer surface of the body and extending parallel to the centerline cooperate with the housing to prevent rotation of the sleeve relative to the housing. Each projection is aligned with a normal direction of one of the interfaces.

An actuator for a motor vehicle functional unit includes a force transmission unit transmitting an actuating force to an actuating member and being displaced by a measuring travel in a force transmission direction. A force measurement device detects an actual value of the actuating force and includes a spring acting in the force transmission direction, having resilient action counter to which the force transmission unit is displaced and being tensioned by the actuating force over a resilient excursion, a micro switch having smaller switching travel than the measuring travel and being actuated upon displacement of the force transmission unit if the actuating force reaches the actual value, and a stop element for actuating the switch. The switch or element are coupled to or fixed relative to the force transmission unit and the switch and/or element are resiliently supported to compensate for a difference between the switching and measuring travels.

A method for the operation a parking brake of a motor vehicle that comprises at least one wheel brake device, wherein the wheel brake device comprises an electric motor that can be activated for its actuation and that drives a spindle for the displacement of a brake piston between a clamping position and a release position, wherein for the calibration of the parking brake the electric motor is activated in order to move the brake piston into the release position in a first step and from the release position into the clamping position in a subsequent second step. It is provided that in the second step a power supply of the electric motor is interrupted during the displacement of the brake piston in a no-load phase (II) and at least one motor parameter of the electric motor is determined depending on a coasting behavior of the electric motor.

A railway vehicle parking brake that can provide the appropriate tension to the braking system using a motor, a brake chain drum interconnected to the motor to take up or release a brake chain, a load arm deflects in response to tension in the brake chain, and a switch that is closed by the load arm when it deflects. A movable sheave interconnects the brake chain and the load arm and is positioned between the brake chain drum and a fixed sheave over which the brake chain is looped. A control method considers the position of the first switch to determine whether to the motor off when applying the brakes and the amount of current being drawn by the motor to determine whether to the motor off because of a system failure.

A park brake system for adjusting a tension in a brake cable that is coupled to a park brake. The park brake system can include a driver that is communicatively coupled to a microcontroller, and an actuator that is rotatably displaceable by operation of the driver. An equalizer assembly can be linearly displaced along the rotating actuator to adjust a tension in the brake cable. The microcontroller can monitor a current being drawn by the driver as the driver is operated, and generate instructions to cease operation of the driver upon the current reaching a predetermined current threshold that corresponds a maximum force that is to be applied by the park brake. The microcontroller can also, when the park brake is being released from a set position, count pulses outputted by an encoder in connection with determining whether the park brake has reached a running clearance position.

In a method for providing the clamping force generated by a parking brake, the roadway incline is measured and in the case that the roadway incline exceeds a threshold value, a reengagement process is carried out after a defined time period has elapsed.

A method and a system for controlling a parking brake of a motor vehicle are described. According to the described method, an ignition signal and an actuation state of the parking brake are detected. An application force of the parking brake is then set to a first value in dependence upon the actuation state of the parking brake if the ignition signal is present. If the parking brake was previously in an applied actuation state, the application force is reduced from a second value to the first value. If the parking brake was previously in a released actuation state, the application force is increased to the first value. The first value is sufficient to hold the motor vehicle in its current position.

A brake device having an electric parking brake function, capable of appropriately performing stepwise increase control for a clamping force. A control unit including a computing circuit (20), a memory (21), and each motor drive circuit (23) of a parking brake control device (19) includes a stepwise increase control unit configured to increase the clamping force generated by brake pads (33) to a disc rotor (4) in a stepwise manner. When start of contact between the disc rotor (4) and the brake pads (33) caused by feeding of power from the parking brake control device (19) to an electric motor (43B) is detected based on a motor current from a current sensor unit (24), the stepwise increase control unit performs control for repeatedly feeding and stopping power to the electric motor (43B) to increase the clamping force in a stepwise manner in accordance with a predefined processing procedure.