Brake System With Bmw Integral; Integral Abs; Abs - BMW K 1200 GT Rider's Manual

Apply the brakes in good time
5
until the brakes have been
cleaned.
78
Brake system with
BMW Integral ABS
How does ABS work?
The amount of braking force
that can be transferred to
the road depends on factors
z
that include the coefficient of
friction of the road surface.
Loose stones, ice and snow
or a wet road all have much
lower coefficients of friction
than a clean, dry asphalt sur-
face. The lower the coeffi-
cient of friction, the longer the
stopping distance.
If the rider increases braking
pressure to the extent that
braking force exceeds the
maximum transferrable limit,
the wheels start to lock and
the motorcycle loses its dir-
ectional stability; a fall is im-
minent. Before this situation
can occur, ABS intervenes
and adapts braking pressure
to the maximum transferrable
braking force, so the wheels
continue to rotate and direc-
tional stability is maintained
irrespective of the condition
of the road surface.
What are the effects of
surface irregularities?
Humps and surface irregu-
larities can cause the wheels
to lose contact temporarily
with the road surface; if this
happens the braking force
that can be transmitted to
the road can drop to zero.
If the brakes are applied un-
der these circumstances the
ABS has to reduce braking
force to ensure that direc-
tional stability is maintained
when the wheels regain con-
tact with the road surface.
At this instant, the BMW Mo-
torrad Integral ABS must as-
sume an extremely low coef-
ficient of friction, so that the
wheels will continue to rotate
under all imaginable circum-
stances, because this is the
precondition for ensuring dir-
ectional stability. As soon as
is registers the actual circum-
stances, the system reacts
instantly and adjusts braking
force accordingly to achieve
optimum braking.
How can stopping
distance be minimised?
Each time the brakes are
applied, a load distribution
shift takes place with the load
moving forward from the rear
wheel to the front wheel.
The sharper the motorcycle
decelerates, the more load
is shifted to the front wheel.