Electronic braking system with brake wear measurement and running clearance adjustment

A brake system comprising:

• a brake disk stack;
• a reciprocating ram;
• a motive device operatively connected to the reciprocating ram for selectively moving the reciprocating ram into and out of forceful engagement with the brake disk stack for applying and releasing braking force on a rotatable wheel;
• a controller for controlling the motive device for selective control of the reciprocating ram and regulation of the force applied by the reciprocating ram against the brake disk stack, and
• a position sensor which supplies a position signal representative of the position of the reciprocating ram;
• and
• wherein the controller includes means for effecting displacement of the reciprocating ram to load the brake disk stack by a predetermined amount to obtain from the position sensor a present displacement value of the position signal, and for comparing said present displacement value to a reference value to provide a measurement of wear of the brake disk stack;
• and
• wherein the controller includes means for performing a new brake disk stack measurement routine including the steps of effecting displacement of the reciprocating ram to load the new brake disk stack by a predetermined amount to obtain from the position sensor a new brake disk stack displacement value of the position signal and then storing said new brake disk stack displacement value as the reference value against which subsequently obtained present displacement values are compared to provide a measurement of wear of the brake disk stack.

In combination with an aircraft wheel assembly, a brake system comprising:

• a brake disk stack;
• a reciprocating ram;
• a motive device operatively connected to the reciprocating ram for selectively moving the reciprocating ram into and out of forceful engagement with the brake disk stack for applying and releasing braking force on a rotatable wheel;
• a controller for controlling the motive device for selective control of the reciprocating ram and regulation of the force applied by the reciprocating ram against the brake disk stack, and
• a position sensor which supplies a position signal representative of the position of the reciprocating ram;
• and
• wherein the controller includes means for effecting displacement of the reciprocating ram to load the brake disk stack by a predetermined amount to obtain from the position sensor a present displacement value of the position signal, and for comparing said present displacement value to a reference value to provide a measurement of wear of the brake disk stack.

A method for measuring wear of a brake disk stack in a brake system, the brake system including a servo motor operatively connected to a reciprocating ram for selectively moving the reciprocating ram into and out of forceful engagement with the brake disk stack for applying and releasing braking force on a rotatable member, and a controller for controlling the servo motor for selective control of the reciprocating ram and regulation of the force applied by the reciprocating ram against the brake disk stack, said method comprising the steps of:

• using a position sensor to supply a position signal representative of the position of the reciprocating ram;
• effecting displacement of the reciprocating ram to load the brake disk stack by a predetermined amount to obtain from the position sensor a present displacement value of the position signal;
• and
• then comparing said present displacement value to a reference value to provide a measurement of wear of the brake disk stack.

A method for measuring wear of a brake disk stack in a brake system, the brake system including a motive device operatively connected to a reciprocating ram for selectively moving the reciprocating ram into and out of forceful engagement with the brake disk stack for applying and releasing braking force on a rotatable member, and a controller for controlling the motive device for selective control of the reciprocating ram and regulation of the force applied by the reciprocating ram against the brake disk stack, said method comprising the steps of:

• using a position sensor to supply a position signal representative of the position of the reciprocating ram;
• effecting displacement of the reciprocating ram to load the brake disk stack by a predetermined amount to obtain from the position sensor a present displacement value of the position signal;
• and
• then comparing said present displacement value to a reference value to provide a measurement of wear of the brake disk stack;
• and
• said method further comprising the steps of:
• effecting displacement of the reciprocating ram to load the new brake disk stack by a predetermined amount to obtain from the position sensor a new brake stack displacement value of the position signal, and
• then storing said new brake disk stack displacement value as the reference value against which subsequently obtained present displacement values are compared to provide a measurement of wear of the brake disk stack.

A wheel and brake system comprising:

• a rotatable wheel;
• a brake disk stack operatively connected to said wheel for applying and releasing braking force on the rotatable wheel;
• a reciprocating ram;
• a servo motor operatively connected to the reciprocating ram for selectively moving the reciprocating ram into and out of forceful engagement with the brake disk stack for applying and releasing braking force on the rotatable wheel;
• a controller for controlling the servo motor for selective control of the reciprocating ram and regulation of the force applied by the reciprocating ram against the brake disk stack, and
• a position sensor which supplies a position signal representative of the position of the reciprocating ram;
• and
• wherein the controller includes means for effecting displacement of the reciprocating ram to load the brake disk stack by a predetermined amount to obtain from the position sensor a present displacement value of the position signal, and for comparing said present displacement value to a reference value to provide a measurement of wear of the brake disk stack.