Vehicle brakes

Also known as Automotive brakes, Car brakes, Anti-lock braking system (ABS)

Vehicle brakes have moved from wooden blocks and band brakes to hydraulic, disc and electronically controlled systems over more than a century. Peer-reviewed studies link electronic stability control, which Bosch says reached the market in 1995, to fewer loss-of-control crashes, but the size of the effect is uncertain.

CommercialDemonstratedReviewed 22 Oct 2026
AI illustration · Illustrative scene, not a photograph of the specific device or experiment.

In plain language

A brake slows a vehicle by turning its movement into heat through friction. Early carriages used a wooden block pressed against a wheel. The Louwman Museum reports that when solid rubber tyres replaced iron bands on wagon wheels around 1885, the wooden block gave way to a metal plate.

Most modern car brakes use fluid under pressure to carry force from the pedal to each wheel, and many use disc brakes, which squeeze pads onto a flat disc. Electronic systems were added later. Anti-lock braking (ABS) helps stop a wheel from locking up when the brakes are pressed hard. Electronic stability control (ESC) brakes individual wheels when a car starts to skid. Research on ESC suggests it prevents a large share of crashes where a driver loses control, but the figures are estimates and may be too high.

Technical explanation

Drum brakes press friction shoes outward against the inside of a rotating drum. The Louwman Museum credits Renault with the definitive drum brake of 1902, which had two hinged, curved shoes resting on a cam. Malcolm Loughead's US patent 1,249,143, filed on 22 January 1917 and issued on 4 December 1917, describes an automobile fluid-pressure brake. A split brake ring grips the drum, a cylinder on one side of the ring's gap moves a piston, and a yoke on the other side draws the ring's ends together. The yoke can be adjusted to compensate for wear.

Disc brakes were tried in the early 1900s, but according to the Louwman Museum those attempts failed because suitable disc and pad materials were not yet known. The same article reports that the Citroën DS 19 was the first car in France to use disc brakes, in 1955. The museum says Lockheed's hydraulic system was first used in 1921 on the Duesenberg Model A. This profile has not checked that claim against other sources.

Anti-skid control came later. A Fiat patent (US 3,707,313, Italian priority date 13 January 1970, published 26 December 1972) describes an anti-skid regulator that controls the brake pressure on the first wheel, while a load-sensing valve adjusts the pressure on the second axle. Bosch says it launched ABS in 1978 and that about six million vehicles had Bosch ABS by 1990. Bosch also says ESP reached the market in the Mercedes-Benz S-Class in 1995. Høye's 2011 meta-analysis in Accident Analysis and Prevention estimates that ESC prevents about 40% of all crashes involving loss of control, and states that these figures are likely overestimated, especially for non-fatal crashes. Multi-vehicle crashes were largely unchanged and rear-end collisions were unchanged or possibly increased.

What the evidence says

Each statement is typed by the strength of its evidence and linked to the source that supports it.

Demonstrated Shown in a published experiment, test or shipping product.

US patent 1,249,143, filed on 22 January 1917 and issued on 4 December 1917 to Malcolm Loughead, describes an automobile fluid-pressure brake in which a split brake ring grips a drum, a piston-operated cylinder draws the ring's ends together, and an adjustable yoke compensates for wear.

Sources: [2] · Claims and description

US patent 3,707,313, with Italian priority of 13 January 1970 and published on 26 December 1972, describes an anti-skid regulator that controls the brake pressure on the first wheel, and a load-sensing valve that adjusts the pressure on the second axle.

Sources: [3] · Abstract and claims

A 2011 meta-analysis by Høye estimates that electronic stability control prevents about 40% of all crashes involving loss of control, with more benefit for fatal than non-fatal crashes, and the author states that these estimates are likely overestimated, particularly for non-fatal crashes. Multi-vehicle crashes were largely unchanged, and rear-end collisions were unchanged or possibly increased.

Sources: [6] · Abstract · medium confidence

Reported, unverified Stated by a company or team but not independently confirmed.

The Louwman Museum reports that Renault's drum brake, of 1902, had two hinged, curved shoes resting on a cam.

Sources: [1] · Drum brakes section · medium confidence

The Louwman Museum says Lockheed's hydraulic system was first used in 1921 on the Duesenberg Model A. This profile has not checked that claim against other sources.

Sources: [1] · Hydraulic brakes section · medium confidence

According to the Louwman Museum, early disc brake attempts in the 1900s failed because suitable disc and pad materials were not known, and the Citroën DS 19 was the first car in France to use disc brakes, in 1955.

Sources: [1] · Disc brakes section · medium confidence

Bosch says it was the first supplier to launch anti-lock braking (ABS) on the market, in 1978, and that about six million vehicles had Bosch ABS by 1990. These are company statements that have not been independently checked.

Sources: [4] · Press release text · medium confidence

Erke's 2008 review of empirical studies reports substantial reductions in single-vehicle crashes after electronic stability control was fitted, with results that vary widely between studies.

Sources: [7] · Abstract (read via Europe PMC, summary only) · low confidence

Bosch says electronic stability programme (ESP) was first brought to market in the Mercedes-Benz S-Class in 1995 and entered volume production that year. Bosch also says ESP is now fitted to 82 per cent of new passenger cars worldwide, but the page gives no date for that figure.

Sources: [5] · Timeline and fitment statements · medium confidence

Limitations and open problems

  • Early dates rest on a museum article. The Louwman Museum dates Maybach's early drum brake to 1901, and this profile has not checked that date or the Renault date against primary sources.
  • Patents show what was claimed, not how well the designs worked or how many were built.
  • ESC effect estimates may be overstated, especially for non-fatal crashes, and rear-end collisions were unchanged or possibly increased (Høye, 2011).
  • Bosch's launch dates, fleet totals and the figure that ESP is fitted to 82 per cent of new passenger cars are company statements. The Bosch ESP page gives no date for the 82 per cent figure, and none of these numbers has been independently checked.
  • The 2008 review by Erke reports wide variation between studies. Its abstract was read through Europe PMC, and no figures from it are quoted in this record.
  • The sources reviewed do not give verified cost figures for electronic braking systems in lower-priced cars.

Possible future uses

Speculative

Ideas, not predictions. None of these has been demonstrated.

  • Brake systems that adjust each wheel's braking force from road-surface sensing before a skid starts.
  • Brake-by-wire designs, in which the pedal is linked to the brakes electronically, so that an automated vehicle could brake without a driver's foot on the pedal.
  • Brake pads that report their remaining wear to a vehicle's maintenance system.

Timeline

  1. 1902Renault's drum brake, with two hinged shoes resting on a cam, is credited by the Louwman Museum as the definitive drum brake design. Sources: [1]
  2. 4 Dec 1917US patent 1,249,143, granted to Malcolm Loughead, is issued for an automobile fluid-pressure brake. Sources: [2]
  3. 1955The Citroën DS 19 is reported as the first car in France to use disc brakes. Sources: [1]
  4. 26 Dec 1972US patent 3,707,313, an anti-skid brake system filed by Fiat's inventors, is published. Sources: [3]
  5. 1978Bosch launches anti-lock braking (ABS) on the market, according to Bosch. Sources: [4]
  6. 1995Bosch and Daimler-Benz bring electronic stability programme (ESP) to market in the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, according to Bosch. Sources: [5]

Glossary

Drum brake
A brake in which shoes or a band press against the inside or outside of a rotating drum attached to the wheel.
Disc brake
A brake in which pads squeeze a flat disc attached to the wheel.
Anti-lock braking system (ABS)
A system that uses wheel-speed sensors and valves to release brake pressure on a wheel that is about to lock.
Electronic stability control (ESC)
A system that brakes individual wheels when sensors show that a car is starting to skid.

Sources

  1. other
    The brakes of the automobile
    Alfred Koeten. Louwman Museum, 26 Jun 2015. Accessed 22 Oct 2026.
  2. patent
    Braking apparatus (US patent 1,249,143)
    Malcolm Loughead. United States Patent Office, via Google Patents, 4 Dec 1917. Accessed 22 Oct 2026.
  3. patent
    Anti-skid braking systems (US patent 3,707,313)
    Giancarlo Michellone, Mario Palazzetti, Giovanni Tabasso. United States Patent Office, via Google Patents, 26 Dec 1972. Accessed 22 Oct 2026.
  4. company announcement
    40 years of Bosch ABS anti-lock braking system
    Robert Bosch GmbH, Bosch Media Service, 11 Sept 2018. Accessed 22 Oct 2026.
  5. company announcement
    ESP: paving the way for road safety
    Robert Bosch GmbH, Bosch Mobility, 2026. Accessed 22 Oct 2026.
  6. peer reviewed paper
    The effects of electronic stability control (ESC) on crashes, an update
    A. Høye. Accident Analysis & Prevention, May 2011. DOI: 10.1016/j.aap.2010.12.025. Accessed 22 Oct 2026.
  7. peer reviewed paper
    Effects of electronic stability control (ESC) on accidents: a review of empirical evidence
    A. Erke. Accident Analysis & Prevention, Jan 2008. DOI: 10.1016/j.aap.2007.05.002. Accessed 22 Oct 2026.

Revision history

3 changes since this profile was created.

Changes on 22 Oct 2026
Published on owner instruction (car lineage tech tree, 2026-10-22)165371a
Sources and claims re-checked against originals409337d
Initial profile drafted from primary sourceseaac9eb

What it took to get here

The inventions this technology was built on, oldest foundations at the top. Lines show what each one required.

Built on: Vehicle brakes Unlocked Being researched Locked
  1. 1967Modern systemsCar electronics and engine controlCommercial Unlocked.
  1. 1902Vehicle brakesCommercialRequires: Car electronics and engine control. Unlocked.