Automotive components supplier PBR International has launched Australia’s first brake-by-wire car at the official opening of the new Research Centre for Advanced By-Wire Technologies (RABiT).
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
The announcement came as a large recall of brake-by-wire-equipped Maybach and Mercedes-Benz models called into question the future of electro-hydraulic technology.
However, the BMW 3 series used as a development vehicle in Australia has been fitted with fully functional electro mechanical brakes.
Incorporating technology developed through the RABiT facility, the PBR eMB system is claimed to be a major breakthrough for the company’s expansion into the development of brake-by-wire technology.
PBR has already developed brake-by-wire park brakes in the form of its ePark electric actuator and the Electric Park Brake Hydraulic Caliper (ePBHC) system, which incorporates a combined hydraulic brake and an electrically actuated park brake.
The eMB system is claimed to increase fuel economy through vehicle weight reduction and provide quieter braking, reduced maintenance costs and the ability to tailor brake response to driver preferences.
PBR expects the automotive industry to begin adopting brake-by-wire technology around 2007/8 by introducing electrically actuated rear brakes followed by full brake-by-wire around 2009/10.
