COMPUTER-AIDED-DESIGN OF A HYDRAULIC BRAKING MECHANISM

This paper presents the application of computer simulation studies in assisting in the design of a hydraulic braking mechanism. This braking mechanism is capable of withstanding an impulsive braking force of up to 40 kN, under an operating time of a few seconds. It uses the ideas of successive compression of an hydraulic oil through varying size fl ow restrictions. These flow restrictions are designed in such a manner that they serve to control the braking characteristics of the system. As compared to conventional design procedures, this exercise proved t o save time and effort in the designing of such a system. It also pave s the way for future computer-aided optimisation studies of such syste ms. The predicted results of the computer model, when compared with th e experimental measurements, confirmed the value of computer-aided des ign in technical applications.