New disc brake models and a new digital control system

With a wide-ranging product offensive, Knorr-Bremse is taking the next steps toward an accident-
free future on the road. Among the products in the spotlight are two new disc brake
models and the company’s new digital brake control platform.
According to Dr. Peter Laier, Executive Board Member of Knorr-Bremse AG responsible for
the Commercial Vehicle Systems division: “A digital, networked braking system equipped
with components that leverage the full technical potential represents the key technology for
the next steps toward a largely accident-free future on our roads. Together, the brake control
system and the wheel brakes form a platform for a wide range of flexibly configurable
safety functions that set new standards. We are currently preparing the ground for additional
potential synergies to be leveraged in terms of vehicle manufacture, operation and
maintenance.”
And as Dr. Laier goes on to say; “Knorr-Bremse has been working on commercial vehicle
driving dynamics for about a century. Some 30 years ago we laid the foundations for the
commercial vehicle disc brake to make its global breakthrough. Now we are presenting a
new generation. In effect, we are making it more and more difficult to have an accident.”
Bernd Spies, Chairman of the Management Board of Knorr-Bremse Commercial Vehicle
Systems, says: “In the past wheel brake development engineers faced a dilemma: should
we optimize for weight or performance? As far as design is concerned, the single-piston
brake offers benefits in terms of weight, but has a clear tendency toward uneven wear that
brings drawbacks on the cost side. In the performance class up to 19 kNm, with our new
NEXXT single-piston brake we have achieved a decisive reduction in this uneven wear
while at the same time maximizing the weight advantages. In the higher performance class
up to 30 kNm, the two-piston design remains the superior option, as intensive testing has
shown.”