Permanent magnet type – A permanent magnet holding brake looks very similar to a standard power applied electromagnetic brake. Instead of squeezing a friction disk, via springs, it uses permanent magnets to attract a single face armature. When the brake is engaged, the permanent magnets create magnetic lines of flux, which can in turn attract the armature to the brake housing. To disengage the brake, power is applied to the coil which sets up an alternate magnetic field that cancels out the magnetic flux of the permanent magnets.