ABS and Non-ABS Braking Distance Comparison in Four-Wheelers: Simulation and Experimental Study

Abstract

Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS) is an important safety feature on vehicles that prevent the skidding during emergency braking and helps improve the stability and braking distance. Numerous studies present how well the ABS maintain the slip around optimal value (i.e. 0.2), using mainly the quarter car model. Existing research lack on providing the full vehicle model with the physical experiment to proof how well ABS reduce the braking distance. This paper researched the braking performance of the ABS and CBS systems under different speed and road condition by means of theoretical modeling and experimental testing. The theoretical modeling was carried out in MATLAB/Simulink and CARSIM, whereas the real car used for experimental validation was a Ford Figo 2014 model driving at the speed of 40, 50 and 60 km/hr. A quarter car model was developed to assess braking performance across different surfaces. The study utilizes PID and Bang-Bang controllers to optimize ABS functionality, ensuring effective braking force modulation. CarSim had used to create real world scenario for testing with the full vehicle model as per the specification of the Ford Figo 2014 model. The simulation and experimental results confirm that the ABS had significantly reduce the braking distance. Simulation results from MATLAB/Simulink using PID controller showed that at 60km/hr, braking distances for an ABS- equipped vehicle were 16.8 m on dry asphalt, 25.13 m on wet asphalt, 17.14 m on dry concrete, and 27.3 m on dry grass. CARSIM showed that at 60 km/h, braking distances for an ABS-equipped vehicle were 17.5 m on dry asphalt, 26.4 m on wet asphalt, 17.47 m on dry concrete, and 28.3 m on dry grass. Experimental tests yielded comparable results, with braking distances recorded as 16.9 m on dry asphalt and 24.4 m on wet asphalt. To sum up, it can be inferred that ABS reduce the braking distance during emergency baking with better precision and stability on wet surface.