Brake apparatus

A brake apparatus applied to a vehicle comprising a regenerative braking device to generate regenerative braking force by converting a kinetic energy of a rotating wheel into an electrical energy and collecting the electrical energy to a battery, comprising:

• a master cylinder which outputs a hydraulic pressure of a hydraulic fluid according to a brake operation by a driver,
• a wheel cylinder which is disposed for each wheel and operates a friction member with the hydraulic pressure of the hydraulic fluid to generate friction braking force,
• a first actuator which is disposed in a passage of the hydraulic fluid between said master cylinder and said wheel cylinder and can adjust the hydraulic pressure supplied to said wheel cylinder,
• a first electronic control unit which sets up target hydraulic pressure so that the sum of said regenerative braking force and said friction braking force becomes equal to target total braking force set up according to the amount of a brake operation, and controls an operation of said first actuator so that the outputted hydraulic pressure of said first actuator follows said target hydraulic pressure,
• a second actuator which is disposed in a passage of the hydraulic fluid between said first actuator and said wheel cylinder, supplies the hydraulic pressure outputted from said first actuator to said wheel cylinder as it is when being not in operation, and can individually adjust the hydraulic pressure of each wheel cylinder when being in operation,
• a second electronic control unit which controls an operation of said second actuator to carry out an antilock control for suppressing the lock of a wheel at least, and
• a communication connection means to connect said first electronic control unit and said second electronic control unit so that they can communicate each other, and
• said first electronic control unit changes the control mode into a control mode on the assumption that said second actuator is operating, when said first electronic control unit receives operation information which shows that said second actuator is operating and is transmitted from said second electronic control unit, wherein:
• said first electronic control unit comprises an early control mode changing means for changing the control mode into said control mode on the assumption that said second actuator is operating, without waiting for the reception of said operation information, when the variation of the outputted hydraulic pressure of said first actuator is a value which cannot happen while said second actuator is not operating.