A New Laboratory Friction and Wear Test for the Characterization of Brake Linings

A compact new laboratory friction and wear test machine has been developed. Test procedures have been established for this machine in a constant output (that is, constant friction force) mode of operation. These procedures have been shown to be particularly well suited for quality control of brake lining materials. The test, designated Friction Assessment Screening Test (FAST), has been shown to yield highly reproducible results which correlate well with vehicle performance. The results are highly sensitive to those variations in brake lining properties which are most significant in brake performance.