At this week’s International Fluid Power (IFK) conference, Prof. Jürgen Weber, head of the Institute of Mechatronic Engineering at Technical University Dresden, offered an ambitious and optimistic view of the industry’s future, along with the challenges. In his keynote presentation, “Digital Mobile Machines — From Cloud to Earth,” he predicts what lies ahead for mobile […]
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Control unit for safety-critical applications
The CED1200S is the first component in a new family of control units designed for safety related applications, according to officials at Walvoil, Reggio Emilia, Italy. The unit, compliant with Hardware Category 2, can be used in applications up to Performance Level D/SIL 2. It is programmable according to the IEC 61131-3 standard with PHC […]
Overhung Load Adaptors from Zero-Max for Air seeder/fertilizers application
Plymouth, Minnesota: High-efficiency agricultural air seeders and fertilizer applicators incorporate the latest Zero-Max Overhung Load Adaptors. They handle high speeds and provide impeller support for optimal operation of the hydraulic motor and the system’s blower chamber resulting in ideal seeding and fertilizing application. Engineered for high-rate seed and fertilizer systems with varied application rates, the […]
New excavator has hydraulic ladder
Komatsu America Corp., Rolling Meadows, Ill., has introduced the new PC1250SP-11 and PC1250LC-11 hydraulic excavators, which are said to increase power and productivity over previous versions while maintaining high fuel efficiency. “The PC1250 offers exceptional customer value across a broad range of applications, including sewer and water, general construction, mass excavation, as well as mining, […]
Notes from bauma: Five machines riding the wave of electrification
It seems on every corner at bauma 2019 someone was talking electrification – replacing diesel powered machines with battery powered electric drives. Among the reasons: legislative pressures for zero-emission vehicles in city centers, their suitability for indoor demolition and basement projects, and the preference for low-noise machines required for night-time work and in quiet zones […]
Notes from bauma: Hydraulic hybrid excavator among new introductions
At bauma 2019, Volvo is exhibiting a soon-to-be available hydraulic hybrid excavator that is said to improve fuel efficiency by up to 17%. The EC300E Hybrid excavator’s boom-down motion charges energy-storing accumulators that are used to subsequently power the hydraulic pump. Unlike other systems that capture the swing energy of an excavator’s superstructure to electrically […]
Notes from bauma: Hydraulics faces the digital, sustainable and electrifying
Without a doubt the overriding theme at bauma 2019 among construction-machine builders and component suppliers alike is digitization. Most mobile-hydraulics engineers are well-aware of the possibilities: Digital machine management, data storage in the cloud, telematics, software and apps, electrohydraulic controls, ubiquitous sensors, and so on – these are clearly becoming the new standard building blocks […]
Metal-bellows accumulator handles the extremes
Edge-welded metal bellows accumulators are at the cutting edge of hydro-pneumatic accumulator technology, according to Peter Kloft and Daniel Rau, research and development engineers with HYDAC Technology in Sulzbach/Saar, Germany. Compared with other designs such as diaphragm, bladder and piston accumulators, the gas chamber in metal-bellows units is usually hermetically sealed and the metallic barrier […]
Shift in Motion: An innovative propulsion system for mobile machines
Manufacturers and operators of today’s mobile equipment often want a machine that does double duty: provides high tractive effort in the working mode and high maximum velocities when operating in the transport mode. These drivetrain requirements can be met through a wide array of traditional technological concepts, ranging from simple manual transmissions (shifted at standstill) […]
New-generation valve actuation
Proportional hydraulic valves are key components in mobile agricultural and construction machines, as they control motion for a wide variety of functions via cylinders and hydraulic motors. Electrohydraulic actuation is often used to control valve main-spool movement. For lower flows two solenoids can directly actuate the spool, but such arrangements result in high hysteresis and […]
