ZF has launched a Front Electric Park Brake, which extends the application of Electric Park Brake (EPB) systems to a wider range of vehicles. With this solution – claimed by ZF to be an industry first – car manufacturers can now equip smaller vehicles with an advanced braking system, and design their interiors with a compact switch instead of handbrake levers or parking brake pedals. Series production of the systems has already begun in Korea and China.
Manfred Meyer, senior vice president, engineering for ZF’s Active Safety Division commented, “ZF’s Front EPB technology is a real industry innovation. Even manufacturers of small and very small cars can now use the EPB with all its advantages. Car drivers benefit from enhanced safety and comfort.”
In addition to the standard park brake function, the EPB facilitates functions such as hill starts, for example, through the Auto-Hold function. In city traffic or traffic jams, the stop-and-go function of the braking system also increases driving comfort. In addition, the higher static load distribution on the front axle increases safety when parking a vehicle on slippery slopes.
The front axle EPB eliminates the components needed for manual park brake operation within rear drum- and disc brakes, and requires only small modifications to the front axle calipers to integrate the necessary electronic components and software into an existing ESC control unit. The unit is also often lighter in weight than rear manual park brake systems.
ZF pioneered Electric Park Brake technology on the rear axle in 2001 and has supplied well over 75 million vehicles with EPB for world roadways.
