The present invention generally relates to machines having multiple functions performed by hydraulic circuits. More particularly, this invention relates to a displacement-controlled (DC) hydraulic system for use on multi-function machines with earthmoving implements whose movements are performed by rotary and linear actuators.
Compact excavators, wheel loaders and skid-steer loaders are examples of multi-function machines whose operations involve controlling movements of various implements of the machines.
On conventional excavators, the control of these functions is accomplished by means of directional control valves. However, throttling flow through control valves is known to waste energy. In some current machines, the rotary functions (rotary hydraulic drive motors for the tracks 103 and rotary hydraulic swing motor for the cabin 101) are realized using displacement control (DC) systems, which notably exhibit lower power losses and allow energy recovery. In contrast, the position and velocity of the linear actuators 20-25 for the blade 104, boom 106, stick 107, bucket 108, and offset functions typically remain controlled with directional control valves. It is also possible to control linear hydraulic actuators directly with hydraulic pumps. Several pump-controlled configurations are known, using both constant and variable displacement pumps. Displacement control of linear actuators with single rod cylinders has been described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,329,767 and German Patents DE000010303360A1, EP000001588057A1 and WO002004067969, and offers the possibility of large reductions in energy requirements for hydraulic actuation systems. Other aspects of using displacement control systems can be better appreciated from further reference to Zimmerman et al., “The Effect of System Pressure Level on the Energy Consumption of Displacement Controlled Actuator Systems,” Proc. of the 5th FPNI PhD Symposium, Cracow, Poland, 77-92 (2008), and Williamson et al., “Efficiency Study of an Excavator Hydraulic System Based on Displacement-Controlled Actuators,” Bath ASME Symposium on Fluid Power and Motion Control (FPMC2008), 291-307 (2008), whose contents are incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention provides a displacement-controlled hydraulic system for installation on a multi-function machine, and multi-function machines equipped with the hydraulic system.
According to a first aspect of the invention, a displacement-controlled hydraulic system is installed on a multi-function machine having means for propelling the machine, at least a first implement, and multiple actuators that perform multiple functions of the machine. The multiple actuators comprise first actuators that control the first implement and second actuators that control the propelling means of the machine. The hydraulic system comprises multiple pumps for controlling the first actuators and optionally for controlling the second actuators, and valve means for enabling at least one of the pumps to sequentially control two of the multiple actuators and a corresponding two functions of the multiple functions performed thereby, wherein none of the pumps sequentially controls the second actuators in combination with any of the first actuators.
According to a second aspect of the invention, a displacement-controlled hydraulic system adapted for installation on a multi-function machine comprises first and second travel actuators for propelling the machine, a plurality of function actuators for performing other functions of the machine, and a plurality of pumps. The first and second travel actuators are associated with oppositely-disposed first and second sides, respectively, of the machine. The plurality of pumps includes a first pump dedicated for powering the first travel actuator, a second pump dedicated for powering the second travel actuator, and multiple pumps for powering the function actuators. At least one of the multiple pumps for powering the function actuators is controllable for powering two or more of the function actuators.
Another aspect of the invention is a multi-function machine, and particularly an excavator, equipped with a displacement-controlled hydraulic system. The excavator comprises means for propelling the excavator, at least a first earthmoving implement, multiple actuators that perform multiple functions of the excavator, a system for controlling and actuating the multiple actuators. The multiple actuators comprise first actuators that control the first earthmoving implement and second actuators that control the propelling means of the excavator. The system comprises multiple pumps for controlling the first actuators and optionally for controlling the second actuators. The excavator further comprises valve means for enabling at least one of the pumps to sequentially control two of the multiple actuators and a corresponding two functions of the multiple functions performed thereby, wherein none of the pumps sequentially controls the second actuators in combination with any of the first actuators.
In view of the above, it can be seen that a significant advantage of this invention is the capability of switching between outputs of individual pumps to sequentially control multiple different machine functions of a multi-function machine, with the result that the machine is capable of using pumps in numbers less than the number of multiple functions of the machine.
Other aspects and advantages of this invention will be better appreciated from the following detailed description.
The present invention provides a displacement-controlled (DC) hydraulic system for use on multi-function machines with implements whose movements are performed by rotary and linear actuators. An example is the excavator 100 represented in
In conventional displacement-controlled circuits, a separate pump is required to individually control each actuator (which may be a rotary or linear hydraulic motor or actuator), and each actuator would perform a single function of the excavator 100. The invention provides “switching” the output of individual pumps to sequentially control two different machine functions, with the result that the excavator 100 is able to use pumps in numbers less than the number of multiple functions of the excavator 100. In a particular example illustrated in
In the configuration shown in
In contrast to the pumps 14 and 19, the pumps 15 and 16 are dedicated to controlling the boom actuator (hydraulic cylinder) 21 and stick actuator (hydraulic cylinder) 20, respectively, and the pumps 17 and 18 as dedicated to controlling the drive/travel motors 26 and 27, respectively (travel function). As such, motion of the boom 106 and stick 107 and travel of the excavator 100 can be performed simultaneously.
As summarized in Table I, alternate configurations to that of
Possible arrangements for implementing switching functions for two of six pumps while maintaining independent control of the travel functions are shown in Table 1, in which functions with an “o” represent two functions controlled by a single pump and those labeled with an “x” represent two functions sharing a different single pump, while those with no label do not share a pump but have one pump for its function. Option 1 is believed to represent the preferred solution for the excavator 100 for the following reasons. The swing function (performed by the swing motor 28) often, though not necessarily, has lower flow rate requirements than the boom, stick, or bucket functions (performed by the actuators 21, 20 and 23, respectively). Thus, the flow losses introduced by the switching valves (29 and 30) will be lower in the swing function than in the boom, stick or bucket functions. Sharing the bucket and the offset functions (performed by the actuators 23 and 22, respectively) allows control of the boom 106 and stick 107 during the operation of the offset function, giving the most control possible of the excavator mechanical arm 105 during operation of the offset function. It is not desirable that the swing and offset functions (performed by the swing motor 28 and actuator 22, respectively) share a pump because they both control the angular orientation of the mechanical arm 105, and simultaneous operation of these functions is often desirable.
In all arrangements, the left and right travel functions (performed by the motors 26 and 27) are always independent of the other six (they never share a pump) to allow the excavator 100 full control while driving. While displacement control of the travel functions as shown in
A pump-controlled (displacement-controlled) hydraulic system as described above eliminates the need for control valves and the large energy losses existing with throttle-based control methods. This consequently reduces the heat generated by the system and thus reduces the cooling requirements of the system. The pump-controlled system also allows energy saving through the recovery of energy through any of the variable displacement pumps 14-19 and redistributing the recovered energy to power simultaneous operations of other functions. Furthermore, the system architecture is simplified, requiring fewer components, generating fewer potential leak points in the system, and minimizing the number of pumps required to have full control of the system using pump-controlled actuation. Finally, the system minimizes the number of pumps required for a pump-controlled multi-function machine while maintaining independent control of the travel motors, for example, a hydrostatic drive.
Other aspects and advantages of this invention will be better appreciated from further reference to
While the invention has been described in terms of a specific embodiment, it is apparent that other forms could be adopted by one skilled in the art. For example, the invention is applicable to a wide variety of multi-function machines with one or more implements whose movements are controlled by multiple actuators. Furthermore, the functions of individual components of the system could be performed by components of different construction but capable of a similar (though not necessarily equivalent) function. Accordingly, it should be understood that the invention is not limited to the specific embodiment illustrated in
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/111,752, filed Nov. 6, 2008, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
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