Brake actuating unit

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9446753-B2
Application number	US-201214238972-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 7, 2012
Priority date	Aug 15, 2011
Publication date	Sep 20, 2016
Grant date	Sep 20, 2016

Abstract

A brake actuating unit ( 1, 1 ′) for a brake-by-wire motor vehicle brake system having a housing ( 10 ), a first hydraulic cylinder/piston arrangement ( 3 ) to which a plurality of wheel brakes connectable. The piston being operable by a push rod ( 2 ) transmitting an actuating force, an electrically controllable pressure supplying device ( 6 ) in the form of a second hydraulic cylinder/piston arrangement ( 12 ), actuated by an electric motor ( 7 ). A number of valves ( 41, 42, 43 ) for setting wheel-individual brake pressures and for disconnecting or connecting the wheel brakes with the first or the second cylinder/piston arrangement ( 3, 12 ). The valves and the second cylinder/piston arrangement are arranged at least partially inside the housing ( 10 ), the axis of the electric motor ( 7 ) being arranged substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis ( 30 ) of the first cylinder/piston arrangement ( 3 ).

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A brake-by-wire actuating unit for a motor vehicle brake system, comprising:
a housing;
a first hydraulic cylinder/piston arrangement having an actuating piston which is guided displaceably in a corresponding housing and delimits a hydraulic pressure chamber to which a plurality of wheel brakes of the motor vehicle are connectable, the actuating piston being operable by a push rod which transmits an actuating force;
an electrically controllable pressure supplying device in the form of a second hydraulic cylinder/piston arrangement, a piston of which can be displaced by an electric motor acting through a rotational-translational gear mechanism; and
a valve arrangement having a number of valves for setting wheel-individual brake pressures and for disconnecting or connecting the wheel brakes with the first cylinder/piston arrangement and with the pressure supplying device;
wherein the valve arrangement and the pressure supplying device are arranged at least partially inside the housing, an axis of the electric motor of the pressure supplying device being arranged substantially perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the first cylinder/piston arrangement; and
wherein the electric motor is arranged on a first face of the housing, and the valve arrangement is arranged on a second face of the housing that is opposite the first face, wherein the first and second faces directly face each other.

2. The brake-by-wire actuating unit as claimed in claim 1 further comprising a brake pedal feel simulator arranged at least partially in the housing, a longitudinal axis of the brake pedal feel simulator being arranged substantially perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the second cylinder/piston arrangement and being arranged offset from the longitudinal axis of the first cylinder/piston arrangement.

3. The brake-by-wire actuating unit as claimed in claim 1 further comprising the electric motor and hydraulic connections of the brake actuating unit, for connecting the wheel brakes, are arranged on the first face of the housing, the first face being a first lateral face of the housing.

4. The brake-by-wire actuating unit as claimed in claim 3 wherein the electronic control and regulating unit includes a control unit housing that is arranged on the second face of the housing, the second face being a second lateral face of the housing opposite the electric motor, the control unit housing extending beyond the second lateral face in at least one direction and, the control unit housing covering at least a portion of the valve arrangement and a brake pedal actuation travel detecting device or a pressure sensor.

5. The brake-by-wire actuating unit as claimed in claim 4 , further comprising at least one electrical connecting element is arranged on the control unit housing, the electrical connecting element extending parallel to the axis of the electric motor, adjacently to a third lateral face of the housing opposite the push rod.

6. The brake-by-wire actuating unit as claimed in claim 4 further comprising an electrical connecting element for supplying electrical energy to the electronic control and regulating unit, is arranged on the control unit housing and extends through the housing or between the housing and the pressure medium reservoir or through a pressure medium reservoir, the electrical connecting element being aligned parallel to the axis of the electric motor.

7. The brake-by-wire actuating unit as claimed in claim 4 further comprising the second hydraulic cylinder/piston arrangement of the pressure supplying device projects at least partially from the housing, the second hydraulic cylinder/piston arrangement being covered by the control unit housing or extending through the control unit housing.

8. The brake-by-wire actuating unit as claimed in claim 1 further comprising a brake pedal actuation travel detecting device is integrated at least partially in the housing, the brake pedal actuation travel detecting device detecting the travel of the actuating piston.

9. The brake-by-wire actuating unit as claimed in claim 1 further comprising a first pressure sensor which detects the pressure of a hydraulic medium in the first cylinder/piston arrangement, and a second pressure sensor which detects the pressure of the hydraulic medium in the pressure supplying device, wherein the first and the second pressure sensors are integrated at least partially in the housing.

10. The brake-by-wire actuating unit as claimed in claim 1 wherein the electric motor is fastened directly to a first lateral face of the housing, the axis of the electric motor being arranged substantially perpendicular to the first lateral face and the size of the first lateral face enabling the electric motor to be sealed to the housing.

11. The brake-by-wire actuating unit as claimed in claim 1 wherein the first face of the housing is a first lateral face, and the electric motor is arranged on the first lateral face, and the second face of the housing is a second lateral face, and the valve arrangement is arranged on the second lateral face of the housing opposite the electric motor, wherein the first and second lateral faces directly face each other.

12. The brake-by-wire actuating unit as claimed in claim 1 wherein a pressure medium reservoir under atmospheric pressure is arranged directly on a fourth lateral face of the housing, or a hydraulic connection for a pressure medium reservoir under atmospheric pressure is arranged on the fourth lateral face of the housing.

13. The brake-by-wire actuating unit as claimed in claim 1 further comprising the housing includes on a fifth lateral face on the push-rod side a fastening plate, by means of which the housing can be fastened mechanically to a bulkhead of the motor vehicle.

14. A brake system for motor vehicles which, in a brake-by-wire mode, can be activated both by the vehicle driver and independently of the vehicle driver, is normally operated in the brake-by-wire mode and can be operated in at least one fall-back mode in which only operation by the vehicle driver is possible, which brake system has a brake actuating unit as claimed in claim 1 and further comprising a brake pedal for actuating the brake actuating unit.

15. The brake-by-wire actuating unit as claimed in claim 1 wherein the longitudinal axis of the first cylinder/piston arrangement is generally parallel with the longitudinal axis of the motor vehicle.

16. The brake-by-wire actuating unit of claim 1 , wherein a longitudinal axis of the electric motor and a longitudinal axis of the second cylinder/piston arrangement are arranged in alignment.

17. A brake-by-wire actuating unit for a motor vehicle brake system, comprising:
a housing;
a first hydraulic cylinder/piston arrangement having an actuating piston which is guided displaceably in a corresponding housing and delimits a hydraulic pressure chamber to which a plurality of wheel brakes of the motor vehicle are connectable, the actuating piston being operable by a push rod which transmits an actuating force;
an electrically controllable pressure supplying device in the form of a second hydraulic cylinder/piston arrangement, a piston of which can be displaced by an electric motor acting through a rotational-translational gear mechanism;
a valve arrangement having a number of valves for setting wheel-individual brake pressures and for disconnecting or connecting the wheel brakes with the first cylinder/piston arrangement and with the pressure supplying device;
wherein an axis of the electric motor of the pressure supplying device is arr

Assignees

• Feigel Hans-Jörg
• Tarandek Kristjan
• Continental Teves Ag & Co Ohg

Inventors

• Feigel Hans-Jörg
• Tarandek Kristjan

Classifications

• B60T2270/88

  Pressure measurement in brake systems · CPC title

• B60T2270/82

  Brake-by-Wire, EHB · CPC title

• B60T2220/04

  Pedal travel sensor, stroke sensor; Sensing brake request · CPC title

• B60T13/745

  acting on a hydraulic system, e.g. a master cylinder · CPC title

• B60T13/66 Primary

  Electrical control in fluid-pressure brake systems · CPC title