Patent ID: 8210329

Claim:
A brake cooling apparatus for use in a disk brake system of a moveable vehicle, the disk brake system having a caliper which includes a hydraulic piston, and a brake pad assembly which includes a brake pad and a backing plate having a first major side to which the brake pad is fixedly attached and a second major side that is opposite from the first major side, the brake pad assembly removably connected to the caliper, the caliper hydraulic piston arranged for contacting the second major side of the backing plate to selectively move the brake pad into a forced contact with a rotor that rotates when the vehicle is moving, where the forced contact between the rotor with the brake pad reduces the rate at which the rotor is rotating to slow the movement of the vehicle and the forced contact generates heat in the brake pad that conducts through the brake pad to the first major side of the backing plate and through the backing plate to the second major side of the backing plate, the cooling apparatus comprising: a thermally conductive sheet including a first major surface configured for positioning in thermal communication against the second major side of the backing plate in a confronting relationship with the second major side to receive heat from the brake pad assembly when the brake pad assembly is installed in the brake caliper, the thermally conductive sheet positioned without any fixed attachment to either the brake pad assembly or the caliper, the conductive sheet including a thermally conductive material for conducting heat away from the brake pad assembly and the conductive sheet including a second major surface that is opposite from the first major surface and which is in confronting relationship with the caliper hydraulic piston when the first major surface is positioned in thermal communication with the backing plate; and a heat dissipating arrangement in thermal communication with said thermally conductive sheet for receiving the heat from the thermally conductive sheet by thermal conduction and, thereafter, for dissipating the heat into a cooling medium.