ULTRASONIC BRAKING SYSTEM WITH ACCELERATOR PEDAL
DISENGAGEMENT
Avinash M Jacob1, Goutham. M1, Ashish. H1, Hitesh Gowda1, Dr. A.S. Devaraja2
1
Student scholars, 2Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering,
Dayananda Sagar Academy of Technology and Management, Bangalore.
avinashtalo1997@gmail.com, goutham011998@gmail.com, ashishkalburgi90@gmail.com, hitesh.gowda2811@gmail.com
ABSTRACT
Driving in poor weather conditions has always been a
concern. In cold locations, mist and fog are a major cause
for vehicle collisions. 75% of all reported collisions take
place at speeds of up to 35km/hr. In most of the cases,
drivers fail to notice the presence of obstacles ahead.
Application of brakes needs a driver’s response to operate
thus increasing the response time, thereby increasing the
probability of collision. There are a variety of
technologies that are available in the market including
various levels of autonomous driving techniques, but they
are mostly ridiculously expensive and designed for
vehicles which belong to the luxury car segment. The
common man cannot afford the technology or the
advanced automobile. Using ultrasonic sensors, a
microcontroller and solenoids an automatic braking
system can be developed. This paper is based on
ultrasonic automatic braking system with accelerator
pedal disengagement for collision avoidance.
KEYWORDS
Automatic brake actuation, Pedal Disengagement
Mechanism, Ultrasonic sensors, Detection pulse, PIC,
Solenoid and Drum Brakes.
1. INTRODUCTION
Bad weather conditions are one of the major causes
behind the intersectional accident. In a recent study, it has
been reported that nearly 36% of the accidents in India
occur due to bad weather conditions. Here, bad weather
refers to dense fog, heavy rain, snowfall or poor light.
Under these circumstances, it is extremely difficult to
drive, thereby exponentially increasing the chances of an
accident. Therefore, using this paper, we propose a
systematic architecture to reduce the accidents occurring
due to adverse bad weather conditions.
Approaches to automobile crash avoidance systems have
been based on controlling the steering maneuvering
system and on car warning systems that interferes with the
vehicle drivers to activate braking systems. Many of those
systems are very costly and make it very expensive for
middle income earners to own such vehicles. In addition,
these approaches do not take into consideration the safety
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distance to stoppage of the automobile. This always
provides a room for human error.
The concept of this project is to design a Smart and
Automatic Braking system that will help the driver in
detecting any stationary or moving object under severe
weather conditions and automatically engage the brakes
while simultaneously disengaging the accelerator pedal if
the driver is unable to initiate the braking system within
the safest range that would be predefined by the control
unit. The control unit is worked by program logic. In this
program logic the safest rage of the object from the
moving vehicle is predefined.
2. LITERATURE SURVEY
The review paper is based on techniques to obtain an
efficient and smart braking system to avoid collision
during bad weather conditions.
2.1 Shival Dubey et al., [1] in this paper, we studied an
Electromagnetic anti-collision device proposed in order to
avoid collision of vehicle that estimates the distance
between the two vehicles running in extreme traffic
condition. It incorporates distance finding between two
vehicles using ultrasonic range finder. The vehicle
collision and its impact emerged as the major problem in
the last two decades when the use of the automobile
increased to a subsequent number. In order to avoid
vehicle collision/ road accidents this system will work in
two stages: - A Range finder will continuously track the
distance between the two vehicles moving and send it to
the ECM using these inputs if it finds the vehicle in the
vicinity of the other it will automatically actuate the
sensor strip for electromagnetic Induction. This system is
reliable and cost-efficient. These characteristics enable the
vehicle anti-collision in adaptive control environment.
2.2 Ahmed Aliyu et al., [2] from this paper, we know that
many approaches to automobile crash avoidance systems
have been proposed in recent time, however, such
approaches mainly concentrate on steering maneuvering
control. In addition, these approaches do not take into
consideration the safety distance to stoppage of the
automobile, more so, many approaches only provide a
warning signal to the driver for activating the automatic
braking. This always provides a room for human error.
From this paper we understood about the development of
an automatic microcontroller based crash avoidance
system that employs obstacle detection and distance
measurement using ultrasonic sensors to detect obstacles
and their distances and applies the brakes at the exact time
needed. Once the obstacle has been detected and safe
separation distance is reached, the automobile performs
safety distance induced braking at that distance to bring
the automobile to a stoppage.
2.3 T. U Anand et al., [3] in this paper, we understood
that the objective of this project is to efficiently avoid the
collision of automobile vehicles and to provide a greatest
security to the users in adverse or in bad weather
conditions by using Collision Avoidance System (CAS).
In bad weather conditions, it is very hard to drive
automobiles as smooth as in regular conditions.
Generally, most of the accidents occur due to the bad
weather conditions. From this paper we understand the
systematic architecture that is used to avoid the early
accidents which are mostly possible due to bad weather
conditions and as well as due to asynchronous speed
among the vehicles. In the proposed method, the relative
speed and distance of all the vehicles around a particular
vehicle is estimated using IR sensors and Ultrasonic
sensors and based on those results the speed of that
particular vehicle is controlled to avoid early collisions.
2.4 G. V Sai ram et al., [4] in this paper, we saw that
vehicles are often equipped with active safety systems to
reduce the risk of accidents, many of which occur in the
urban environments. The most popular include Antilock
Braking Systems (ABS), Traction Control and Stability
Control. All these systems employ different types of
sensors to constantly monitor the conditions of the
vehicle, and respond in an emergency situation. In this
paper the use of ultrasonic sensors in safety systems for
controlling the speed of a vehicle is proposed. An
intelligent mechatronic system includes an ultrasonic
wave emitter provided on the front portion of a car
producing and emitting ultrasonic waves frontward in a
predetermined distance. An ultrasonic receiver is also
placed on the front portion of the car operatively receiving
a reflective ultrasonic wave signal. The reflected wave
(detected pulse) gives the distance between the obstacle
and the vehicle. Then a microcontroller is used to control
the speed of the vehicle based on the detection pulse
information to push the brake pedal and apply brake to the
car stupendously for safety purpose. An ultrasonic sensor,
cheaper and less demanding of hardware than other types
of sensors presently used, such as the sensors based on
computer vision or radar, is used to measure the distance
between vehicle and the obstacle. The relative speed of
the vehicle with respect to the obstacle is estimated using
consecutive samples of the distance calculated. These two
quantities are used by the control system to calculate the
actions on both the accelerator and also the brake, thus to
adjust the speed in order to maintain a safe distance to
prevent accidents.
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2.5 Md. Symum Rezwan et al., [5] in this paper, we
studied a smart Automatic Braking System that controls
the speed of a vehicle depending on the distance to an
obstacle and also can initiate emergency braking
automatically if needed. In this project report, the
implementation of a Smart Automatic Braking System is
introduced. A prototype vehicle is designed and
implemented. The System will detect obstacles using
Sonar Sensor and Arduino will execute emergency
braking according to a pre-burnt code in the Arduino. The
system has also speed control features. It will reduce or
increase the speed of the vehicle depending on the
obstacle distance from the moving vehicle to minimize
the damage or collision of an accident. Hence, an
automated collision avoidance system is proposed that can
be affordable to everyone. So, an automated Smart Speed
control and braking system is developed which can be
developed in every car. This project used the software
Proteus to establish simulation model. There is a huge
opportunity to develop systems that has increased
functionality. These included systems capable of
functioning effectively in a wider range of collision
circumstances, including head on and front to side
collisions on straight roads and curves and pedestrian
collisions. This can be achieved using a range of different
sensors such as radar, camera image technology, infra-
red, far infra-red, laser and sensor fusion. However, there
was a substantial quantity of research that suggested ABS
alone would have limited abilities in collisions at
junctions because of restricted line of sight and more
complex situations. This problem can be solved by adding
vehicle to vehicle communications to develop the
functions in this collision type. Some full automated
collision avoidance systems can be also developed using
both vehicle sensors and vehicle to vehicle
communication.
3. LITERATURE GAP
All the literature that we have referred to lay emphasis
on the prevention of collision by the use of an ultrasonic
radar setup. We have proposed to use this as an obstacle
detection system which is where all of the similarity ends.
Our project proposes to physically engage the brake and
disengage the accelerator pedal which no other project has
proposed. We plan to achieve this with the use of
powerful solenoids which is again a first of its kind. We
aim at a design that can be implemented on any vehicle
with brake and accelerator pedals, irrespective of the
manufacturer, which in today’s scenario is every vehicle.
The human panicking scenario is real and very
common. It often leads to confusion, anxiety and
unintentional engagement of the wrong pedals (brake and
accelerator), and with the wrong amount of force by
locking the pedals in the positions which we are
preventing from happening.
 1. Ultrasonic Sensor- The distance detection
mechanism is made up of range ultrasonic sensors.
.
The HCSR04 ultrasonic sensor modules are used in
this research. The range sensor uses sonar to
4. SYSTEM DESIGN
determine distance. It is stated that HC-SR04 offers
an excellent range accuracy and stable readings in an
1. FRAME DESIGN easy-to-use Package. Also, the operation of HCSR04
The frame which is being used was first designed on a 3D is not affected by sunlight or black material like IR
modeling software called Fusion 360. The frame was range sensors, the ultrasonic sensor can measure up
designed in such a manner that the pedals, solenoids and
the circuit would be fit into it without any obstruction to
each other. The material used to construct the frame is
mild steel. The main use of the frame is to hold all the
components and to act as the body of the prototype.
Different components like the accelerator and brake
pedals, solenoids, electric circuit and sensor are fitted
onto the frame. The dimensions of the frame are given
below:
 Length- 610mm.
 Width- 410mm.
 Height- 410mm.
 Cross section of the square pipe- 25*25 mm.
 Thickness of the square pipes- 2mm.
 Angle at which accelerator solenoid plate is
fixed- 30 degrees.
 Cross-section of accelerator solenoid plate- to a maximum distance of 4m and a minimum
75*75mm. distance of 3cm. It has an operating frequency of
 Cross-section of brake solenoid plate- 95*65mm. 40KHz and a measuring angle of 15 degrees.
Wire connection for the ultrasonic sensor modules
is described as:

 VCC is connected to 5V Supply.

 Trig, which is Trigger Pulse Input is connected
to microcontroller digital input/output pin.
 Echo which is Echo Pulse Output is connected
to microcontroller digital input/output pin.
 GND is connected to 0V Ground.

2. CIRCUIT DESIGN
The electrical circuit is the heart of the prototype. The
circuit consists of the main electrical components. The
main components of the circuit are discussed below:

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2. Microcontroller- In this work, the Microcontroller
Arduino Nano is used. This controller is based on
the ATMega328. The choice of the controller is
because of the following reasons- Easy to program
with high level language programming using C, C++
and Java, it has relatively 14 digital and 8 analog
pins, thus more inputs and outputs taken, has 6
PWM channels, hence direct output into hazard and
braking subsystems, has high memory capacity and
inbuilt ADCs which makes it easy to interface with
analog inputs band on board encoders. The input
voltage is 7-12 V, operating voltage is 5V, Flash
Memory 32 Kb, Clock speed- 16MHz. This
microcontroller is programmed to take input from
the ultrasonic sensor and compare it with the speed
of the vehicle. After comparing and based on the
requirement, a signal is sent to actuate the solenoids.
3. Power Supply- The power supply system designed in
this research supplies the desired voltages to the
micro-controller, solenoids, sensor, LCD. The
system operates at a voltage of 5V DC and also
220V AC for the solenoids. Therefore, from a
voltage source of (7-12V) DC in this case, 12V
battery will be used to power the prototype, a relay
is used to control the solenoids with 220 volts.
however, the regulated output usually varies
between 4.8-5.2V.
4. Relay- A relay is an electrically operated switch.
Many relays use an electromagnet to mechanically
operate a switch, but other operating principles are
also used, such as solid-state relays. Relays are used
where it is necessary to control a circuit by a
separate low-power signal, or where several circuits
must be controlled by one signal. The main usage of
relay in our project is to actuate the solenoids, which
require a high voltage input. So the low voltage
output given by the microcontroller is used as a
switch on command to the relay to supply the high
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voltage to the solenoids to actuate them.
5. Buttons- A push-button (also spelled pushbutton) or
simply button is a simple switch mechanism for
controlling some aspect of a machine or a process.
Buttons are typically made out of hard material,
usually plastic or metal. The surface is usually flat or
shaped to accommodate the human finger or hand,
so as to be easily depressed or pushed. Buttons are
most often biased switches, although many un-
biased buttons still require a spring to return to their
un-pushed state. Terms for the "pushing" of a button
include pressing, depressing, mashing, slapping, hitti
ng, and punching. The main reason for using push
buttons in our work is to initiate the cases for
distance and speed but in a proper model the buttons
won’t be needed because the code will already be
fed into the system and the speed and the distance
will be automatically taken. The cases for each
button is given below:
 Button 1: Speed > 50kmph and Safe distance -
1.9m.
 Button 2: 30<Speed <=50kmph and Safe
distance – 1.3m.
 Button 3: 20<Speed <=30kmph and Safe
distance -0.7m.
So, if button 1 is pressed the speed and safe distance
limit is set to the respective values. And if the object
is within the safe distance and above the speed, the
solenoids are actuated which leads to actuation of
brakes. The same happens if the button 2 and 3 are
pressed based on the programmed conditions.
3. SOLENOIDS
A solenoid is a long coil of wire wrapped in many turns.
When current passes through it, it creates a nearly
uniform magnetic field inside. Solenoids can convert
electric current to mechanical action, and so are very
commonly used as switches. The solenoids used here are
220V AC. The solenoid model is SA 2502. The
specifications of the solenoid are given below.
 Stroke length – 15mm.
 Pull Force – 1.5Kgf.
 Input Voltage – 220V AC.
The reason for using these solenoids are because of the
powerful nature of these solenoids. They can give out a
great amount of force for braking and disengagement of
accelerator pedal. And they hold the accelerator pedal in a
disengaged position even if the pedal is being pressed.
The speed with which they are actuated is very fast, which
gives less room for error.
4. PEDAL MECHANISM
For this prototype we have come up with our own
solenoid-pedal actuation mechanism that will allow the
brake pedal to be applied further even after actuation and
can be adjusted depending on wear and tear of the brake
shoes and also the required extent of braking. We have
also come up with a simple mechanism that disengages
the accelerator pedal if it is applied and keeps it in that
position even if the pedal is being pressed. The brake
pedal uses a combination of two L shaped plates which
are attached to the solenoid at a particular angle and
distance. The two L plates are joined together with the
help of a screw which can be tightened or loosened based
on the wear of the brake drum.
Similarly, the accelerator pedal is also disengaged by a
simple mechanism in which plates are used. These plates
are attached to the pedal and solenoid in such a way that
during the working condition the accelerator pedal stays
disengaged and in normal condition the pedal can be
pressed manually. The plates used are shown in the figure
5
below.
5. METHODOLOGY
The system uses an ultrasonic module interfaced to the
microcontroller board Arduino Nano. An ultrasonic
transducer comprising of a transmitter and receiver is
used for the project. Arduino Nano sends a trigger pulse
to the Ultrasonic sensor which then transmits ultrasonic
waves. The transmitted waves are reflected back from the
object & received by the transducer again. Ultrasonic
sensor sends echo pulse to the Arduino Nano. The
Ultrasonic sensor converts the sound signal to electrical
signal which is processed in microcontroller to measure
speed and distance. The total time taken from sending the
waves to receiving it is calculated by taking into
consideration the velocity of sound. The speed and the
distance are the two input parameters. There will be a few
cases programmed in the microcontroller. Based on the
speed of the vehicle, any one case will be selected. Each
case will contain a specific distance of safety at which the
solenoids will get activated. These solenoids will be
attached to the accelerating pedal and the brake pedal.
Their function is to lock the accelerator pedal in a position
where there is no supply of fuel. And added to this the
brake pedal will be applied to an extent which will be pre
adjustable mechanically. Since the sensors are faster than
the human reaction, they will save precious seconds and
also prevent the human panicking scenarios. The
flowchart below gives a simple understanding about the
working of the whole project.
 6. CALCULATIONS 7. RESULTS
The following are important calculations involved in the
We have tested the prototype by keeping the prototype
making of the prototype.
stationary and moving the obstacle. All the cases for that
1. Measuring distance we have programed have been tested. The results are
The ultrasonic sensor continuously measures the tabulated below.
distance. To measure the distance, it transmits signal
through chirp and this signal reflect from object and
receive by echo of ultrasonic sensor. Let the whole Sl.No Button Assumed Safe Solenoids
process is occurred in time t. So, if the distance is d speed(kmph) distan
then during time t the transmitted signal travelled 2d ce
distance. The ultrasonic sensor continuously 1 No Speed <=20 NA No
measures the distance. To measure the distance, it button Actuation*
transmits signal through chirp and this signal reflect pressed
from object and receive by echo of ultrasonic sensor. (Defaul
Let the whole process is occurred in time t. So, if the t)
distance is d then during time t the transmitted signal 2 Button 20<Speed<= 0.7m Activated**
1 30 below 0.7m
travelled 2d distance.
Deactivated
It is known that, above 0.7m
3 Button 30<Speed<= 1.3m Activated
S=Vt 2 50 below 1.3m
Deactivated
(1)
above 1.3m
Where, 4 Button Speed >50 1.9m Activated
3 below 1.9m
S= Total distance (2d) Deactivated
above 1.9m
V= Velocity of the sound wave of the sonar
sensor = 340 meters per second
t= Time So, the equation (1) will be, Note: * when solenoids are not actuated, the brake and
accelerator pedals can be operated normally.
2d = Vt
**
when the solenoids are actuated, the brake pedal
(2) will be applied to an extent and can be further applied
manually and the accelerator pedal cannot be applied.
From the equation (2) the object distance from
the vehicle can be measured.
2. Forces exerted on pedals
The forces exerted on the pedals are mainly by the 8. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
solenoids. The brake pedal is acted upon by a pull
2
force to disengage the brakes and the accelerator
pedal is acted upon by a push force to keep the pedal 1.5
in a disengaged position. The formula for calculating
1
the force is
0.5
F = M/L* cos α
0
Where,
0 20 40 60 80
F = Force,
solenoid activation solenoid deactivation
M = Moment,
We would like to thank all the authors of different
L = Perpendicular distance, research papers referred while writing this paper. It was
very knowledge gaining and helpful for the further
α = Angle of inclination.
6
research to be done in future. We are thankful to and
fortunate enough to get constant encouragement, support
and guidance from our guide Dr. A.S Devaraja, Professor,
Mechanical Engineering, Dayananda Sagar Academy of
Technology and Management, Bangalore. Dr. Manohar.
H.S, HOD of Mechanical Department at Dayananda Sagar
Academy of Technology and Management, Bangalore.
9. FUTURE SCOPE
This project is a proper working prototype of smart
braking system. This idea can by implemented on basic,
low-cost cars thereby making safety accessible to the
masses and contributing towards reducing road accidents
caused due harsh weather conditions. This project can be
used with modern pedals as well. With the advancement
in the braking, microcontroller and sensor technology
there can be better implementation of these to bring out a
more effective model.
[4] G.V. Sai ram, B. Suresh, CH. Sai Hemanth and K.
Krishna “Intelligent mechatronic braking system”,
SaiInternational Journal of Emerging Technology
and Advanced Engineering, ISSN 2250-2459, ISO
9001:2008 Certified Journal, Volume 3, Issue 4,
April 13.
[5] Md.Symum Rezwan,Md. Anik Islam, Md.
Mahmudul Islam” Vehicle Braking support system,
3rd International Conference for Convergence in
Technology, Pune, India, April 2018
[6] Eung Soo Kim, International Journal of Control and
Automation “Fabrication of auto braking system for
pre-crash system using sensors”, Volume 2, No. 1,
March 2009.
[7] Dhanya K R and Mrs R Jeyanthi International
Journal of Emerging trends in “Engineering and
Development”, ISSN 2249-6149, Issue 2, Volume 3
(April 2012).

9. CONCLUSION
Through the 5 review papers we studied [1], [2], [3],
[4] and [5] we aim at providing basic information on
assistant braking system.
 The reason of using an ultrasonic sensor is because of
its property of passing through dense medium like
fog, mist and rain.
 The use of accelerator pedal disengagement provides
effective speed reduction which is critical in a
collision situation.
 The simplicity of this design also reduces the cost
which means it can be accessible to a wider range of
automobiles.

10. REFERENCES
[1] Shival Dubey and Abdul Wahid Ansari “Design
and development of vehicle anti-collision system
using electromagnet and ultrasonic sensors”,
International journal on Theoretical and applied
research, ISSN: 2319-3182, Volume 2, Issue-1,
2013, India.
[2] Ahmed Aliyu, Jonathan G. Kolo, Olaniyi O. Mikail,
James Agajo, Buhari Umar, Okechukwu I.
Aguagba “An Ultrasonic Sensor Distance Induced
Automatic Braking Automobile Collision
Avoidance System”, 3rd international conference on
Electro-Technology for National Development
IEEE, Nigeria 2013.
[3] T.U.Anand Santhosh Kumar, J. Mrudula
“Advanced accident avoidance system for
automobiles”, international journal of computer
trends, volume 6 ,Dec-2013.