Simulation and sensitivity analysis of wear on the automotive brake pad

In this paper, an algorithm is proposed for finite element simulation of wear employing the Archard's wear equation. To evaluate the accuracy of a FE model, an experimental test is performed on a standard-sized pin, made of a known brake pad. Comparison of worn masses, obtained by experimental and numerical approaches shows good accuracy of the developed algorithm. As the next step, passenger car single-piston and double-piston brake pad wear cases are simulated using the proposed algorithm. The rotor/pad contact area and worn mass are compared between the two cases. It is shown that usage of a double-piston brake pad over a single-piston one, can improve brake performance. The Taguchi Method with an orthogonal array L9 is then applied to optimize the design parameters, meaning maximization of the ``contact area'' and minimization of the ``worn mass''. The ANOVA method is also used for evaluating the impact of each design parameter on desired outputs. It is shown that the contact area is most likely to be affected by back plate thickness, while the worn mass is more sensitive to the diameter of the piston, closer to the leading edge of the pad.