DESIGN AND ANALYSIS OF BRAKE ROTOR WITH PARAMETER OPTIMIZATION

Brake fading and thermo-elastic deformation of brake rotor is frequently found problem in custom made rotors. During braking phase, kinetic energy of vehicle is converted into mechanical energy. These high frictional forces lead to higher frictional heat being developed. This heat increases the rotor temperature. Due to combined effect of mechanical forces and temperature rise, the rotor deforms. This problem is very severe in All Terrain Vehicles (ATVs). To avoid this problem, pre-manufacturing analysis of rotor is must. In this study, rotor was analysed for mechanical forces acting on it and heat generated due to friction between caliper pads and rotor surface. Brake rotor dimensions can be optimized for strength with reduction in weight. CFD analysis of rotor should also be done for exact value of film coefficient of convective heat transfer. Rotor under study was modelled, analysed and optimized in ANSYS Workbench 14.0 software package. Rotor dimensions were selected from 42 possible combinations of rotor diameter and thickness within allowable ranges. This sequential approach was adopted for rotor design of BAJA vehicle and proved to be effective.