BRAKE BY WIRE ELECTRICAL SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE WITH MULTIPLE POWER SOURCES AND CIRCUIT PROTECTION

A brake by wire system provides the capability of both travel and force sensors on a brake apply input member such as a brake pedal and also provides redundancy in sensors by providing the signal from a sensor responsive to travel or position of the brake pedal to a first controller and the signal from a sensor responsive to force applied to the brake pedal to a second controller. The first and second controllers are connected by a bi-directional communication link whereby each controller may communicate its received one of the sensor signals to the other controller. In at least one of the controllers, linearized versions of the signals are combined for the generation of first and second brake apply command signals for communication to brake apply units. If either controller does not receive one of the sensor signals from the other, it nevertheless generates its brake apply command signal on the basis of the sensor signal provided directly to it from the sensor. In a preferred embodiment of the system, a controller combines the linearized signals by choosing the largest in magnitude.