Electric railway braking system

air-freefor high speed trainsfor locomotives

With the Air-free Brake System, we’re setting new standards for brakes After 150 years, the time was right for the technological leap from conventional air brakes to a genuine innovation in the field of brake systems for rail vehicles: the first friction brake system with fully electric control (“brake-by-wire”). Straightforward system architecture The first friction brake systems on the rail vehicle market with fully electrical control (“brake-by-wire”) eliminates the need for pneumatic components (valves, valve panels, reservoirs, and piping) of conventional air brakes and its limitations. This simplifies the system architecture because the Siemens Air-free Brake System ultimately only consists of the brake control unit (including the wheel slide protection system) and the brake actuator. The brake actuator is an intelligent, compact, closed unit that provides all the elements necessary for pressure build-up and release and executes safety functions like an emergency brake with the highest safety level. Independence from compressed air and fully electrical control offers numerous benefits for the vehicle and its operation.