ADR35 Brake Testing

 

Test vehicle fully laden using IBCs as test mass

 

BTT Engineering are a registered test facility and as such hold a TFA under the RVSA legislation. One of the more exciting projects we have recently been involved with is completing ADR35/07 testing for a medium truck looking to undergo a Second Stage of Manufacture (SSM) approval through ROVER. A number of the team have heavy licensing from medium rigid through to multi-combination, allowing us to drive anything including road trains, so we were able to take the test vehicle down to AARC and complete the full ADR brake testing requirements for a commercial vehicle at their test track.

Prior to testing, we configured the vehicle to its desired GVM mass and fitted the necessary data logging equipment such as thermocouples on the disc brake pads to measure temperatures as required in the ADR and a pressure sensor on the brake pedal to measure braking effort. In order to gain the correct masses on the axles and to GVM, IBCs were used and filled with water accordingly.

Upon arrival at AARC the team used the on-site fuel bowser and hydrants to fill the tank and IBCs to the required level for testing, before validating the correct overall and axle masses. Testing was completed using our VBOX 3i data logging hardware, which logs data 100 times per second and can measure braking distance to an accuracy of 1.8cm, making it one of the most accurate products available to test with. Data was recorded live and reviewed after each test run, enabling for instantaneous feedback on a pass/fail result.

ADR35/07 brake testing includes a number of different criteria for testing, which includes

  • Lightly laden and fully laden testing

  • Different methods of brake actuation through primary and secondary brakes

  • Brake fade testing measuring the impact of multiple decelerations on the brakes’ effectiveness

  • Park brake performance on a gradient

  • Performance of the Antilock System (ABS)

Each test involves its own combination of pedal effort, initial speed, minimum deceleration amongst other criteria for a passing result. After a long day testing BTT Engineering had completed all the necessary requirements!

Upon completion of testing the team compiled a comprehensive report for delivery to the client for use in their application for an approval within the ROVER portal.

BTT Engineering’s capabilities regarding ADR testing are not limited to ADR35/.. brake testing, with our TFA approval extending to a number of other ADRs as shown here. We can also provide testing to numerous other standards - to find out more about how we can help you regarding any ADR or other test requirements please contact our team today!

Testing, ROVER, RVSAEddie van den BergTesting