Control apparatus for vehicles, operating machines or the like, comprising: - at least a feeding line of an operating fluid connectable to a collection tank; - at least a delivery line of the operating fluid connectable to a braking system or to another use point; - at least a pump-brake having: - a containment body which defines a sliding chamber communicating with said feeding line and with said delivery line, and - a main piston slidably housed inside said chamber and moving between an idle position and at least a distribution position in which it is suitable for distributing at least a part of the operating fluid towards said delivery line; - control means, operable by an operator, for controlling the movement of said main piston; - at least a control device for controlling the motion transmission of a vehicle or of an operating machine comprising a fixed part and a moving part suitable for cooperating together, wherein said moving part is suitable for moving through the operation of said control means; - at least an auxiliary piston housed at least partially in said chamber and moving between a reference position and at least a detection position, where said main piston is interposed between said control means and said auxiliary piston and where the main piston and the auxiliary piston are both interposed between said control means and said control device; - mechanical connection means for connecting said auxiliary piston to said main piston, said mechanical connection means comprising main elastic means that are placed, between the main piston and the auxiliary piston, in a portion, of said chamber, containing said operating fluid; and - auxiliary elastic means suitable for pushing the auxiliary piston towards the reference position, said auxiliary elastic means being housed in a chamber, not containing any operating fluid in pressure, defined by said containment body (5, 5a) and adjacent to the extremity of the auxiliary piston opposite the main piston; wherein said auxiliary piston is mechanically connected to said moving part of said control device to move it with respect to said fixed part during the movement of said auxiliary piston between said reference position and said detection position, wherein said auxiliary piston is suitable for moving towards said detection position, in contrast to said auxiliary elastic means, through the increase in the pressure of the operating fluid in the portion of said chamber placed between said main piston and the auxiliary piston itself due to the movement of said main piston towards said distribution position. - at least a feeding line of an operating fluid connectable to a collection tank; - at least a delivery line of the operating fluid connectable to a braking system or to another use point; - at least a pump-brake having: - a containment body which defines a sliding chamber communicating with said feeding line and with said delivery line, and - a main piston slidably housed inside said chamber and moving between an idle position and at least a distribution position in which it is suitable for distributing at least a part of the operating fluid towards said delivery line; - a containment body which defines a sliding chamber communicating with said feeding line and with said delivery line, and - a main piston slidably housed inside said chamber and moving between an idle position and at least a distribution position in which it is suitable for distributing at least a part of the operating fluid towards said delivery line; - control means, operable by an operator, for controlling the movement of said main piston; - at least a control device for controlling the motion transmission of a vehicle or of an operating machine comprising a fixed part and a moving part suitable for cooperating together, wherein said moving part is suitable for moving through the operation of said control means; - at least an auxiliary piston housed at least partially in said chamber and moving between a reference position and at least a detection position, where said main piston is interposed between said control means and said auxiliary piston and where the main piston and the auxiliary piston are both interposed between said control means and said control device; - mechanical connection means for connecting said auxiliary piston to said main piston, said mechanical connection means comprising main elastic means that are placed, between the main piston and the auxiliary piston, in a portion, of said chamber, containing said operating fluid; and - auxiliary elastic means suitable for pushing the auxiliary piston towards the reference position, said auxiliary elastic means being housed in a chamber, not containing any operating fluid in pressure, defined by said containment body (5, 5a) and adjacent to the extremity of the auxiliary piston opposite the main piston;