CES 2025 ZF announces major order for brake-by-wire systems

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FAULHABER Drive Systems

Almost five million vehicles from one of the world's leading vehicle manufacturers are to be equipped with electromechanical brake technology from the supplier.

ZF today announced a major order for brake-by-wire systems at the CES electronics trade fair. According to the press release, the order from a renowned global vehicle manufacturer underlines the importance of the Chassis Solutions division as an industry leader in chassis technology. This also includes the important by-wire technologies for software-defined vehicles.

The customer order includes the electro-mechanical brake and by-wire technology on the rear wheels, the integrated brake control system "Integrated Brake Control" (IBC) from ZF and traditional brake callipers at the front. This creates a "hybrid" braking system consisting of by-wire and hydraulics, which offers the manufacturer more flexibility. The agreement also includes the supplier's electro-mechanical recirculating ball steering system.

"This significant business gain shows that our strategy is correct and successful," said Peter Holdmann, member of the ZF Board of Management since May 1, 2024 and Head of the Chassis Solutions Division: "With our comprehensive product portfolio, which consists of hardware and software with solutions for vehicle motion control in vertical, lateral and longitudinal dynamics, we provide our customers with system expertise from a single source. In this way, we are actively shaping the transformation to the software-defined vehicle."

The supplier is not commenting on the order volume. The five million units relate to a complete vehicle generation, which usually lasts between six and seven years.

New functions and features

With the electromechanical brake (EMB), which is a key component of brake-by-wire technology, ZF says it is laying the foundations for the software-defined vehicle. This leads to new functions and features for greater safety and driving comfort. One of the functions potentially made possible by the by-wire technology is the vehicle's ability to brake and steer autonomously in a crash situation.

ZF's EMB is located at the center of the "dry" brake system, in which brake fluid is no longer required. The brake pressure is not generated by the pressure of fluids in the hydraulic system, but by electric motors. Brake signals from the pedal to the electric motor are also transmitted purely electrically, which is why the term "dry brake-by-wire" is used.

The EMB works together with the integrated brake control IBC, a vacuum-independent, fully integrated electro-hydraulic system that offers high braking performance for automatic emergency braking, full energy recovery and redundant fallback options through to fully automated driving for passenger cars and light commercial vehicles.

The "hybrid" system consists of an electric brake system on the rear axle and a hydraulic system on the front axle with a ZF Colette brake calliper.

The RCB EPS (Recirculating Ball Steering Electric Power Steering) electromechanical ball steering system is an electrically powered 48-volt solution developed to replace current hydraulic applications. It enables ADAS functions as well as improved steering feel and performance. RCB EPS supports ADAS functions up to level 2/2+ and can be adapted to higher Autonomous Driving (AD) levels.