Flow-Isolated Valve Arrangement for Multi-Rail Hydraulic Pressure Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing hydraulic architectures in heavy machinery face challenges with energy efficiency and controllability due to shared hydraulic power supplies, leading to power losses and complex cylinder designs, and require a novel approach to achieve precise motion control without significant throttling losses.
Innovation Solution
A valve arrangement and hydraulic circuit that utilizes a combination of proportional valves, on-off valves, and check valves to independently control chamber pressures, isolating flow between pressure rails and minimizing short-circuits, allowing for precise pressure control and reduced throttling losses.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If multiple hydraulic actuators share the same hydraulic power supply, then the system complexity is reduced, but power losses increase due to throttling
Solution Approach 1:
The hydraulic system is segmented into multiple independent pressure rails (first pressure rail, second pressure rail, etc.) instead of using a single shared power supply. Each pressure rail can operate independently at different pressure levels, allowing actuators to be connected to the most appropriate pressure level without throttling, thus reducing power losses while maintaining manageable system complexity through modular organization
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically selects which pressure rail to connect to which actuator based on real-time pressure requirements. The valve arrangement enables dynamic switching between different pressure rails, ensuring that each actuator receives the optimal pressure level without unnecessary throttling, thereby minimizing energy losses while adapting to varying operational demands
2Power
If the supply pressure is increased to meet maximum pressure requirements, then all actuators can be powered, but actuators requiring lower pressure suffer from throttling losses
Solution Approach 1:
The single high-pressure supply is segmented into multiple pressure rails with different pressure levels (first pressure rail at higher pressure, second pressure rail at lower pressure). This segmentation allows actuators to be connected to the pressure rail that best matches their requirements, eliminating the need to throttle high-pressure supply for low-pressure actuators and thus reducing throttling losses
Solution Approach 2:
Different parts of the hydraulic system (different pressure rails) have different pressure qualities tailored to specific actuator needs. The first pressure rail provides high pressure for actuators requiring maximum force, while the second pressure rail provides lower pressure for actuators with lower requirements, ensuring each actuator operates with locally optimized pressure quality without energy-wasting throttling
3Loss of energy
If the number of pressure rails is increased to reduce throttling, then energy efficiency improves, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The valve arrangement is designed with multi-functionality, serving both as a switching mechanism and a pressure regulation mechanism. The same valve components that control flow direction also manage pressure distribution across multiple rails, reducing the need for additional dedicated pressure control devices and thereby limiting the increase in system complexity while maintaining energy efficiency benefits
4Ease of operation
If traditional valve arrangements are used to switch between pressure rails, then flow can be redirected, but short-circuits occur between pressure rails
Solution Approach 1:
The valve arrangement introduces an intermediary control mechanism that manages the transition between pressure rails. The valves are configured to control the timing and sequence of connections, ensuring that one pressure rail connection is established before another is broken, thereby preventing direct short-circuits between pressure rails while maintaining ease of flow control
Data Source
AI summary
A valve arrangement includes a plurality of hydraulic rail ports each configured to be coupled to a pressure rail, a plurality of hydraulic chamber ports each configured to be coupled to a chamber of one or more actuators, a plurality of proportional valves each corresponding to one of the plurality of hydraulic chamber ports, one or more sets of on-off valves and check valves coupling two or more hydraulic rail ports to each of the supply sides of each of the plurality of proportional valves, and one or more sets of on-off valves and check valves coupling two or more hydraulic rail ports to each of the return sides of each of the plurality of proportional valves, wherein electively operating each of the on-off valves and the proportional valves provides selective pressure or flow to each one of the plurality of hydraulic chamber ports.