of its inclusion. The later emanates from the complex assembly procedures dealing with small tolerances, as well as on-line calibration for performance variability from one clamp force sensor to another. The successful use of a clamp force sensor in an EMB system poses a challenging engineering task. If a clamp force sensor is placed close to a brake pad, then it will be subjected to severe temperature conditions reaching up to 800 Celsius that will challenge its mechanical integrity. Also temperature drifts must be compensated for. This situation can be avoided by embedding a clamp force sensor deep within the caliper. However, embedding this sensor leads to hysteresis that is influenced by friction between the clamp force sensor and the point of contact of an inner pad with the rotor. This hysteresis prevents a true clamp force to be measured. Due to the cost issues and engineering challenges involved with including the clamp force sensor, it might be desirable to eliminate this component from the EMB system. A potential opportunity to achieve this presents itself in accurate estimation of the clamp force based on alternative EMB system sensory measurements leading to the omission of a clamp force sensor. Example of a solution for this problem: Clamp force estimation from actuator position and current measurements using sensor data fusion. Electric parking brakes Brake by wire is now a mature concept in its application to vehicle parking brakes. The electronic parking brake (EPB) was introduced in the early 2000s by BMW and Audi on their top line models (the 7 Series and A8 respectively) to dispense with the traditional cable operated system (operated via a lever between the seats or via a foot pedal) which commonly acted on the rear wheels of a car. EPBs, however, use a motorized mechanism built into the rear disc brake caliper, and is signalled via a switch on the centre console or dashboard. The electric parking brake is normally integrated with the vehicle's other systems via a CAN bus network, and can provide additional functionality such as Automatic release of the parking brake upon moving off Automatic engagement of the parking brake whenever the vehicle is stopped on an incline - known as "Hold Assist" EPB systems afford packaging and manufacturing advances, since it allows for an uncluttered central console in the absence of the traditional handbrake lever (many manufacturers have used the freed up space