Independent metering valve systems open up for more flexibility because of the ability to control meter in and meter out flow individually, thus enabling many possibilities to adapt the actuator s behaviour to the user´s needs without altering any hardware. Furthermore, with alternative flow modes significant energy savings are possible. In many applications like excavators smooth switching between flow modes is required, a demand the market does not provide a satisfying solution for yet. Here, an approach using a short circuit path for smooth switching has been developed. The control algorithm hands over the volume flow from one path to another continuously depending on the current actuator load. Due to the flexible software structure the developed control algorithm can be applied to a very broad variety of independent metering valve layouts. Simulation results are promising and currently the solution is undergoing test rig evaluation.

The paper presents a study of a highly integrated hydraulic powertrain for mobile working machines. The highlight of this new concept is the replacement of separated drive and working pumps in conventional systems with only one displacement pump. After a comparison of different system architectures, the appropriate operating and control strategies for the chosen topology were applied and optimized. With the help of simulations in AMESim, a proof of the function of the hydraulic circuit and the controlling has been established. In addition, the energy saving potential of the integrated hydraulic system is also considered, by comparing the energy consumption of the new and the conventional powertrain in different duty cycles.

Modern electronic technologies allow for the design and production of Micro Electro-Mechanical Systems, also called MEMS. These microchips are widely used as sensors in many fields of application, also in embedded systems in heavy-duty and agricultural vehicles and in automotive applications. In addition to the classic uses of these sensors, new architectures and sensor topologies exploit electromechanical principles of great interest for the field of hydraulic applications. This paper presents some examples of the application of a new MEMS architecture based on self-oscillating microresonators, which offer interesting capabilities in the measurement of mechanical deformation of mechanical components. MEMS are applied as non-invasive pressure and oil flow sensors, and represent an interesting option for creating smart components. All the applications described are intended to show the sensor potential and have a qualitative and exemplary character, but they can provide a basis for in-depth studies on the potential and applicability of these sensors.

Proportional valves are widely used in fluid systems for controlling the volume flow rate or fluid pressure. The actuation of this valves is done by PWM-driven proportional solenoids, which enable self-sensing position determination abilities due to air gap-dependent electrical behaviour, e. g. for condition monitoring or position controlling tasks. However, the sensor properties of conventional proportional solenoids are poor due to ambiguities caused by hysteresis effects (magnetic hysteresis, eddy currents) and saturation effects. Thus, a sensor-designed actuator was developed with very low hysteresis effects and unique position determination by using electrical sheet and a particular air gap design. This paper deals with investigations of a novel self-sensing position determination approach on a demonstrator of the sensor-designed solenoid. The advantage of this method is an online consideration of transient effects such as mean current change and armature motion as well as temperature-dependent resistance. For this, a combined evaluation of the differential inductance and flux linkage during PWM periods is proposed.

As is generally known, pressure-resistant solenoids for valves are used in hydraulics and pneumatics. These solenoids, for example, consist of a so-called pole tube with an integrated armature and a separate solenoid coil. Suitable displacement measuring systems are used in order to measure the armature´s as well as valve spool´s position constnatly; these ar directly mounted to the solenoid. Exeamples here are Hall Effect sensors or LVDT transducers. In case of lesser requirements, it is also possible to measure the valve spool´s position directly and in simplified manner. Here, partially standard proximity sensors are employed, which use the valve spool directly as measuring object. In these cases, however, only discrete position measurement is possible. A constant displacement measurement is not necessary. By means of the sensorless position-control developed by MSM, the armature´s position can be executed directly by analyzing the solenoid coil, partly replacing the usual sensors, under adapted basic conditions.

To minimize the complexity of existing process control valves, the authors derived a new control valve design by functional separation and functional integration of functions. One key element of this new valve design is the functional integration of teh actuator into the valve´s throttle. A hydraulic swivel motor is operated with the process fluid, in this case water. The pressure difference to operate the motor comes from the valve itself. Within this paper we present the control valve design and show in detail how we used the Fail-Early design method to develop the hydraulic swivel motor. The construction is discussed using the experience from manufacturing the prototype and the first exp erimental results are shown. The experiments yield, that the swivel motor principle is promising. Finally, the next development issues are discussed.

Two - stage servovalves, despite being widely used in aircraft and industry because of their reliability and high performance, have a few disadvantages that are still unsolved at the state of the art, such as the power consumption caused by the quiescent flow (internal leakage) in the pilot stage, and the complexity and high number of parts of the torque motor assembly of the pilot stage. The solution to these problems can help to reduce costs, weight, power consumption, and to enhance the reliability and producibility as well as the performance of these valves. This paper presents a novel configuration of servovalve, which has the potential to overcome the above-mentioned issues. The proposed servo-valve includes a novel architecture for the pilot stage by using two piezo-electric actuators (ring benders). In this paper, the performance of this novel pilot stage is assessed. To this end, a valve prototype has been constructed and tested; the experimental results are also used to validate a numerical model obtained with the software Simscape Fluids. The results show that, acting on specific parameters, the performance of the piezo-valve can be very competitive, while ensuring very low internal leakage and complexity.

In this paper, a new methodology is presented to estimate the lifetime impact of design changes, called Failure Likelihood Assessment (FLA). The discussion in this paper is on the fatigue lifetime prediction of axial piston units, especially after a design change. The demonstration object is an axial piston pump due to extreme environmental conditions and high specification demands, where the FLA is applied to a manufacturing change in an existing product and delivers an effect on the unit reliability. The resulted reliability imp rovement, if combined with typical calculation methods like Weibull analysis, delivers an increase in predicted lifetime considering the intended modification. As demonstration subje ct, a change of the manufacturing process of the cylinder block hub in an axial piston pump is used. The effect to the lifetime is predicted via the FLA-method and the results are calculated with test data and compared to theoretical results. The paper shows that the methodology delivers highly accurate results providing that the FLA is a powerful tool to analyze design changes as weil as new designs in regard to reliability and lifetime. The benefit for the user of this methodology will hence be more reliable products with optimized designs tobest fulfil customer's performance requirements.

This paper describes the failure detection system of an electro-hydraulic actuator with dual modular redundancy based on a hybrid twin TM concept. Hybrid twin TM is a combination of virtual twin that operates in parallel with the actuator and represents its ideal behaviour, and a digital twin that identifies possible failures using the sensor readings residuals. Simulation-based system reliability analysis helps to generate a dataset for training the digital twin using machine learning algorithms. A systematic failure detection approach based on decision trees and the process of analysing the quality of the result is described.

Eaton created a new safety controller architecture to allow our customers to design implement, verify and maintain a SIL-2 safety certified application for compliance with IEC 61508:2010 and ISO 13849 Functional Safety Standards. The new architecture has been implemented in a line of safety controllers SFX12 and SFX20 that extend the line of existing mobile controllers HFX12 to HFX48. The new controllers are targeted for controlling mobile and stationary machine applications with focus on steer by wire and propel by wire.