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posted by hubie on Thursday May 12 2022, @12:08AM   Printer-friendly
from the that's-the-brakes dept.

No more brakes for cars of the future:

Electric cars of the future could be able to ditch conventional brake technology in favour of powerful regeneration by battery-powered motors.

[...] Electric cars already use a combination of conventional friction braking and brake regeneration. The latter slows down vehicles using resistance from the same electric motor that propels the car, feeding that energy into the car's battery to extend its range.

DS, Citroen's luxury arm, said it is "exploring whether regenerative braking alone could eventually be the sole method to slow cars down, helping to better recharge the battery in the process, and doing away with conventional brake discs and pads".

[...] [Conventional brake pads and drums] produce "brake dust", fine particles of metallic material that separates from the pad and disc as part of the braking process.

[...] Dr Asma Beji, a non-exhaust particles expert, said in June 2021 that "the impact on health of brake wear particles is undeniable and cannot be neglected".

[...] Environmental researcher Dr Liza Selley, published a paper for the MRC Centre for Environment and Health at King's College London and Imperial College London in 2020 that suggested "diesel fumes and brake dust appear to be as bad as each other in terms of toxicity in macrophages".

[...] "Macrophages protect the lung from microbes and infections and regulate inflammation, but we found that when they're exposed to brake dust they can no longer take up bacteria.

"Worryingly, this means that brake dust could be contributing to what I call 'London throat' – the constant froggy feeling and string of coughs and colds that city dwellers endure – and more serious infections like pneumonia or bronchitis which we already know to be influenced by diesel exhaust exposure."

DS and other manufacturers including Jaguar and Porsche participate in Formula E electric car racing. The series will eliminate rear disc brakes from its next-generation machines in a bid to improve real-world research into the performance potential of purely regenerative braking.


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  • (Score: 2) by bussdriver on Friday May 13 2022, @01:03AM (2 children)

    by bussdriver (6876) Subscriber Badge on Friday May 13 2022, @01:03AM (#1244636)

    I have parking brakes on my rear Nissan Leaf's wheels. It has it's own special pedal which is a bit high up but thankfully exists. It is not quite enough to replace normal brakes but it really should be made to do so.

    Make the parking brakes a bit stronger and easier to trigger and that would be enough of a backup. It doesn't make dust unless there is an emergency and parking with it shouldn't make any. Even now, brakes last incredibly long with regen doing most the work.

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  • (Score: 2) by Immerman on Friday May 13 2022, @02:06AM (1 child)

    by Immerman (3985) on Friday May 13 2022, @02:06AM (#1244643)

    Yeah, a simple mechanical parking brake would get the job done. Even if it's not as powerful as your normal brakes, it's a huge improvement over nothing. Add in a kill switch that physically cuts power to the motor when the parking brake is engaged (in case of any sort of stuck-on malfunction) and you're golden.

    • (Score: 2) by bussdriver on Monday May 30 2022, @05:56PM

      by bussdriver (6876) Subscriber Badge on Monday May 30 2022, @05:56PM (#1249009)

      Yes, a good point-- my electric motor can pretty easily grind past the parking brakes given it's high torque. I'm on my 2nd set of drum brakes because of that; previous owner somehow didn't notice... and after they wear down there is nothing to notice.

      that said, nissan has some funky stuff going on with braking to try to make the regen and disc brakes blend so it's not jarring when it transitions to physical brakes. I've once had the computer mess up and lost brakes and the regen is not strong enough on it's own -- not even close! I figure these newer e-brakes must be sizable and add cost somewhere to replace physical brakes. You've at least got to bulk up the electronics to use the motor to brake because that has to be some huge power spikes you go past generation and start to spend energy to brake. Not just a high power generation positive spike but reversing to a huge negative spike to actively brake.