Hydraulic Energy Efficiency Sweden

Hydraulic Energy Efficiency
of
Concepts on an Articulated Hauler
Design and evaluation of different hydraulic concepts

with focus on energy efficiency
Written by
André Arana Escobedo

Oskar Gunnarsson
Linköping University
Linköping
Master Thesis LIU-IEI-TEK-A--15/02236–SE

Department of Management and Engineering
Fluid and Mechatronic systems
Hydraulic Energy Efficiency
of
Concepts on an Articulated Hauler
Design and evaluation of different hydraulic concepts

with focus on energy efficiency
Written by
André Arana Escobedo

Oskar Gunnarsson
Linköping University
Linköping
Examiner at LiU: Liselott Ericson

Supervisor at LiU: L. Viktor Larsson
Supervisor at Volvo CE: Robert Morelius
Supervisor at Volvo CE: Vilhelm Fredriksson
Master Thesis LIU-IEI-TEK-A--15/02236–SE

Department of Management and Engineering
Fluid and Mechatronic systems
Abstract
This master’s thesis has evaluated different system designs for the hydraulic system on
an articulated hauler at Volvo Construction Equipment (CE). The current system suffers
from great losses when running on low pump displacement settings. This is due to large
installed displacements as a result of regulations and market demands. New system
concepts have been generated and simulations in Matlab and Amesim show that some
of the concepts can be implemented in order to increase energy efficiency up to 65%.
However, increasing efficiency does in most cases also increase cost, making some of the
concepts unrealistic to implement. The suggested solution for Volvo CE is to remove
one pump and allow for the fan pumps to supply oil to the steering and dumping,
as described in the Displacement reduction concept. They should also examine the
possibility to implement clutches further.
V
VI
Acknowledgements
When our time as master students at Volvo CE in Eskilstuna is coming to an end we

feel grateful that we have had this opportunity to do our thesis at a company with
such a great atmosphere between co-workers. In this thesis we have put a lot of the
knowledge achieved during our studies at Linköping University to use and we are proud
of the result. We hope that Volvo CE feels the same and that our collaboration has been
worthwhile.
We would like to thank the hydraulics department at Volvo CE for making us feel
welcome and for taking the time to answer our questions. Specifically we would like to
express our gratitude towards our supervisors, Robert Morelius and Vilhelm Fredriksson,
who supported us throughout our work. Another person who has our gratitude is Erik
Norlin who has been a great support when programming in Matlab. We would also like
to thank our supervisor at Linköping University, L. Viktor Larsson. We would like to
thank our friends and family and Oskar would like to thank his girlfriend for her support
and for putting up with him being away all the time.
May 2015
André Arana Escobedo & Oskar Gunnarsson
VII
VIII
Contents
1 Introduction 1
1.1 Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 Aims . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.3 Problem Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.4 Delimitations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.5 System Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.6 Contribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2 Method 7
3 Hydraulic systems 9
3.1 Conventional Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.1.1 Constant Flow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.1.2 Constant Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.2 Load Sensing System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.3 Clutch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3.4 Flow Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
3.5 Digital Hydraulics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
3.5.1 Linear actuators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
3.5.2 Angular actuators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
3.6 Individual Metering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
3.7 Hydraulic Accumulators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
3.8 Valveless Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
3.8.1 Transformers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
3.8.2 Pump Controlled Actuators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
3.8.3 Electro Hydraulic Actuators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
4 Mathematical model 23
4.1 Simulation Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
4.2 Calculations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
4.2.1 Geometry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
4.2.2 Current System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
4.2.3 Conventional Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
IX
4.2.4 Displacement Reduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
4.2.5 Clutches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
4.2.6 Flow control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
4.2.7 Digital pump . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
4.2.8 Individual Metering – Regenerative mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
4.2.9 Accumulators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
4.2.10 Cost . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
5 Concepts 33
5.1 Conventional Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
5.2 Displacement Reduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
5.3 Clutch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
5.3.1 Current system with Clutch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
5.3.2 Displacement Reduction with Clutch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
5.4 Flow Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
5.4.1 Current system with Flow Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
5.4.2 Displacement Reduction with Flow Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
5.4.3 Clutch and Flow Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
5.5 Digital hydraulics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
5.5.1 Linear actuators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
5.5.2 Angular actuators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
5.6 Individual Metering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
5.7 Accumulator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
5.7.1 Accumulator in constant pressure system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
5.7.2 Accumulator to reduce auxiliary steering pump . . . . . . . . . . . 37
5.7.3 Dump using accumulators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
5.8 Valveless Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
5.9 Fan Circuits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
6 Results 41
6.1 Current System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
6.2 Simulation Result . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
6.2.1 Constant Flow and Constant Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
6.2.2 Displacement reduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
6.2.3 Clutches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
6.2.4 Flow control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
6.2.5 Digital Pump . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
6.2.6 Individual Metering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
6.2.7 Accumulators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
6.2.8 Fan Circuits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
6.3 Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
7 Conclusions and Discussion 59
X
Bibliography 62
A Simulation models 65
B Displacement Variation 69
C System Cost & Payback Time 77
XI
XII
List of Figures
1.1 Figure showing when the ”Over Center” function is needed. . . . . . . . . 3

1.2 A simplified schematic of the hydraulics on the Volvo A40. . . . . . . . . . 4
3.1 Principle sketch of a constant flow and constant pressure system. . . . . . 10

3.2 Principle of a load sensing system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3.3 Principal figures of different clutch types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
3.4 Pump pressure margin as a function of the flow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
3.5 Schematic view of a flow sharing pressure compensator valve. . . . . . . . 13
3.6 Principle for the force and pressure levels of a digital piston. . . . . . . . . 14
®
3.7 The principle of a multi camber cylinder. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
3.8 Artemis Digital Displacement Pump. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
3.9 Mathers Fuel Saving Vane, FSV, Pump . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
3.10 Different operational modes when using individual metering. . . . . . . . 18
3.11 Different type of hydraulic accumulators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
3.12 A conventional hydraulic transformer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
3.13 Simplified schematic of a pump controlled actuator . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
3.14 Principle sketch of an electro hydraulic actuator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
4.1 A typical Volvo test track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

4.2 Flow Chart showing the calculation process. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
4.3 Geometry for the hydraulic functions on the hauler. . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
5.1 Clutch placement in the system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

5.2 Alternative steering configuration and accumulator size . . . . . . . . . . 38
6.1 Distribution of inserted energy with the Current system. . . . . . . . . . . 42

6.2 Displacement settings with the Current system. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
6.3 Distribution of inserted energy with a Constant flow concept . . . . . . . 45
6.4 Engaged displacement for a Constant flow concept with clutches. . . . . . 46
6.5 Distribution of inserted energy with a Constant pressure concept . . . . . 48
6.6 Distribution of inserted energy with the Displacement reduction concept . 48
6.7 Displacement settings for the Displacement reduction concept . . . . . . . 49
6.8 Distribution of inserted energy during a drive cycle using clutches. . . . . 50
6.9 Energy distribution of the best Displacement reduction concept . . . . . . 51
XIII
6.10 Distribution of inserted energy during a drive cycle using flow control. . . 51
6.11 Results with an Artemis Digital Displacement Pump . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
6.12 Results with a Mathers Fuel Saving Vane Pump . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
6.13 Piston rod diameter vs. Pressure and Pump Displacement . . . . . . . . . 53
A.1 AMESim model of the steering circuit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

A.2 Simulink model to calculate the valve opening to achieve the correct flow. 67
XIV
List of Tables
6.1 Sensitivity analysis of the constant flow system. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

6.2 Steering system with accumulators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
6.3 The current system with different sizes of the auxiliary steering pump. . . 54
6.4 Power savings for different configurations of the fan circuits. . . . . . . . . 55
6.5 Cost for different concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
B.1 Different pump displacement setting in a constant flow system . . . . . . 70

B.1 Different pump displacement setting in a constant flow system . . . . . . 71
B.2 Different pump displacement setting in a constant pressure system . . . . 72
B.2 Different pump displacement setting in a constant pressure system . . . . 73
B.3 Displacement reduction w. clutch and various displacement combinations
– auxiliary steering pump always engaged . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
B.4 Displacement reduction w. clutch and various displacement combinations
– auxiliary steering pump engaged when needed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
C.1 Component price . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

C.2 Concept cost compared to Displacement reduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
XV
XVI
Nomenclature
α Steering angle rad
γ Angle between right cylinder attachments rad
κ Turn speed deg/

s
µ Angle between left cylinder attachment rad
ω Angular velocity rad/

s
θ Dumping angle rad
$ Price SEK
A Length between front cylinder attachments and steering joint mm
Api Cylinder area on piston side mm2
Apr Cylinder area on piston rod side mm2
B Length between rear cylinder attachments and steering joint mm
D Displacement cc
E Energy kWh
L Cylinder length mm
NoP Number of pumps –
NoT Number of Turns –
P Power kW
R Ratio –
T Torque Nm
V Volume l
b Width between steer cylinder attachments mm
XVII
d Diameter mm
l Perpendicular length between steer cylinder attachment and steering joint mm
lcw Width between lower dump cylinder attachments mm
n Number of revolutions per minute rpm
p Pressure bar
q Flow cm3/
s
t Time s
ucw Width between upper dump cylinder attachments mm
v Velocity km/
h
x Distance in x-direction mm
z Distance in z-direction mm
Subscripts
+ Positive direction
– Negative direction
E Combustion engine
G Auxiliary steering pump
Ideal Ideal calculations
PTO Power Take Out
b Trailer unit
cur Current system
ext External
f Pull unit
h Right
hm Hydromechanical
m Hydraulic Motor
max Highest value
min Lowest value
XVIII
otc Length between dump cylinder attachment
p Hydraulic Pump
pi Cylinder
pr Piston rod
req Required
st Steering
tl Length between lower cylinder attachment and body rotational joint
v Left
vol Volymetric
XIX
Abbreviations
Acc Accumulator
CE Construction Equipment
DDP Digital Displacement ® Pump

EHA Electro Hydraulic Actuator
FS Full Suspension system, an optional feature on the Volvo A35/A40
FSV Fuel Saving Vane Pump
LS Load Sensing
NA Not Applicable
PTO Power Take Out
cc Cubic Centimetres
rpm Revolutions per minute
XX
Chapter 1
Introduction
As a result of increased climate awareness, energy efficiency in vehicles has become

more and more important in recent years. Construction vehicles are expected to carry
greater loads and drive faster while consuming less fuel. Studies in the academia have
shown flaws in the hydraulics commonly used in the industry and that there are other
viable options available that can improve both hydraulic systems and components with
regard to fuel efficiency. This thesis focuses on mobile hydraulic systems, exploring and
evaluating different hydraulic concepts on an articulated hauler, namely the Volvo A40.
1.1 Background
Volvo Construction Equipment, Volvo CE, manufactures a large variety of construction
machines. The product range includes wheel loaders, excavators, pipe layers and artic-
ulated haulers. This paper focuses on the haulers which are mainly developed in Braås
and Eskilstuna, Sweden. An articulated hauler is an all wheel drive off-road vehicle. The
assignment on a construction site is mostly to transport goods such as soil and gravel in
rough terrain from a working site to a dump site. The body that the soil and gravel is
loaded into, usually by wheel loaders or excavators, is connected to the frame through
a rotation linkage, usually at the rear end of the vehicle. Two hydraulic cylinders are
used to lift the front of the body when dumping the load, meaning unloading of the soil
and gravel. The hydraulic system also controls steering cylinders that make it possible
to turn with the hauler. It can also provide flow to fan motors, cooling systems and
the brake system. Controlling many functions with hydraulics gives rise to challenges,
such as how to dimension the hydraulic pumps to achieve an energy efficient system.
Functions that are not used often but require much power during a small period of time,
like dumping, can make the system over-dimensioned most of the time. The articulated
hauler used as reference in this project is the Volvo A40. The present Volvo haulers have
load sensing, LS, hydraulic systems installed. The LS system adapts the pump pressure
to the highest active load pressure. This will cause energy losses when simultaneously
using functions that requires widely different pressures, although this rarely occurs on
an articulated hauler. When no load is active there is a minimum pressure equal to
1
Hydraulic Energy Efficiency of Concepts on an Articulated Hauler
the system pressure margin. The losses existing in the system have previously been
identified and located in a master’s thesis carried out at Volvo CE [10].
1.2 Aims
The primary aim of this thesis is to generate new concepts for the hydraulic system on
an articulated hauler in order to increase energy efficiency. All concepts have to keep
the same functionality as in the existing system. The generated concepts also have to
be evaluated with respect to cost and safety.
1.3 Problem Description

Losses in the existing system derives from the fans, brakes, steering and dumping. The
main source of energy losses in the hydraulic system is the steering system which has
high drag losses when driving the hauler [10]. This function will therefore be the most
influential when exploring new concepts. The new system will have to fulfil certain
requirements. They are:
Dumping time – The body has to be able to rise in less than 12 seconds in order
to be competitive on the market.
Steering time – A full turn has to be achieved in less than 3.5 seconds at 1200 rpm
on the diesel engine.
Power take-out at engine idle speed – The installed hydraulic power is higher than
what the diesel engine delivers when idling. Therefore stalling has to be prevented
in some way.
Dump modes – If the current dumping valve is removed all existing modes have
to be implemented in a new system. These includes the over center function, a
safety function when dumping downwards a slope. It prevents free fall of the body
when its center of mass move over the rotational point. The principle can be seen
in figure 1.1.
System cost – The cost of the system has to be equal or less than today’s system.
If the cost increases, the payback time has to be one year maximum.
Comfort – The hauler should be comfortable to use.
Safety – All safety legislations have to be fulfilled.
2
Chapter 1. Introduction
Figure 1.1: Figure showing when the ”Over Center” function is needed.
1.4 Delimitations
Due to limited knowledge and the complexity of the system a complete Amesim1 model
will not be produced in this work. Only subsystems will be modelled in order to evaluate
concepts. The full suspension system, an extra feature available on the Volvo A35/A40,
will in no aspect be analysed in this thesis. The differences in dynamic characteristics,
such as stability or damping, between hydraulic concepts will not be analysed. Complete
control strategies for the systems will not be evaluated or produced. Further on the brake
system will not be analysed other than to decide which pump it should be supplied by.
There are no prototype machines built to verify the models of the generated concepts.
1.5 System Description

A simplified schematic of the hydraulics on the Volvo A40 can be seen in figure 1.2. It
consists of six variable displacement pumps. Five of which are connected to the diesel
engine, in the figure represented by the Power Take-Off, PTO. The sixth pump, denoted
8, is an auxiliary steering pump connected to the dropbox. This pump will always rotate
1
LMS Imagine.Lab Amesim - Integrated simulation platform for multi-domain mechatronic systems
simulation
3
when the vehicle is moving. The dropbox is a transmission component whose purpose is
to distribute engine torque to the front and rear axles in all wheel drive vehicles. This
pump makes steering possible even if the engine malfunctions and disables the other
pumps.
Dumping cylinders
LS-block
3. 1.
Dumping valve
PWM
Steering valve
P
MTRV1
T
O
5. 6. 2.
PWM PWM
8.
9. 10.
MTRV2
Steering cylinders
Brake Coolant
System
Figure 1.2: A simplified schematic of the hydraulics on the Volvo A40.
A 63 cc pump, labelled pump 1, with both load sensing and electrical displacement
control exists in the system. The electrical displacement control has been implemented to
avoid stall of the engine. Stalling could otherwise be a problem at low engine speeds since
the hydraulic power demand can be greater than what the engine can deliver. This pump
and two 60 cc load sensing pumps, pump 2 and 3, provide the hydraulic power for the
steering and dumping. The steering 6/3-valve is of open-centre type enabling the steering
to always be functional, even during full dumping. The open-center valve also allows for
a quick steering response. The steering is given priority over the dumping by connecting
the flow through the open-centre steering valve to the inlet of the dumping valve. The
steering valve is mechanically controlled by the operator through the steering wheel. It
has a self compensating hydro-mechanical feedback meaning that a certain movement in
the steering wheel always corresponds to the same steer angle. The dumping 6/4-valve
can except for normal operations also be used to achieve float mode, meaning that the
body is lowered by its own weight without the use of the pumps. The motors in the
system are of an axial piston design with a fixed displacement. Pump 5 of size 28 cc
provides an 11 cc motor with flow to power an intercooler fan. An intercooler is used to
achieve higher engine efficiency by supplying cold air, which has a higher concentration
of oxygen. A radiator fan is powered by a 14 cc motor, receiving flow from pump 6, 45
cc. Pump 6 also supplies the brake cooling system as well as the brake circuit. Pump 5
and 6 are electronically controlled variable displacement pumps.
4
Chapter 1. Introduction
1.6 Contribution
This thesis will bring clearance to the energy efficiency and potential of new hydraulic
systems, as well as their advantages and disadvantages. Raising the knowledge of what
potential upcoming hydraulic systems have, will be of importance for future work in
the field of energy efficiency. There will also be an introduction of alternative ways to
manoeuvre the hydraulic functions. The results and analyses will show what possible
directions Volvo CE can take to further develop and improve their articulated haulers.
5
6
Chapter 2
Method
The purpose of this work is to generate hydraulic concepts that have higher energy
efficiency than the existing system, while in the same economic range. The existing
system will therefore be a point of reference from which all other concepts are compared.
A proper way of comparing one concept to another is crucial to the work. In order to
successfully carry out this project a structural method is needed.
The functionality of the existing system has to be preserved in any new system.
In order to fulfil this demand when generating new concepts it is first important to
understand the functionality of the existing LS-system and its hydraulic components.
This is achieved by studying hydraulic schematics and other material regarding the
functionality and configuration of a hauler, provided by Volvo CE, but also previous
master’s theses work done at Volvo CE [10]. The specifications in those documents are
the basis when creating a mathematical model of the existing system, made in Matlab1 .
This model will serve as the reference point from which the models for all other concepts
originate. The ongoing process after initial modelling is performed in the manner further
described below.
Concept generation To learn about new concepts, theses and publications from
academia are studied. When initially generating concepts no aspects on the func-
tionality is to be taken. This strategy is chosen to encourage new ideas to come
through without criticism stopping or limiting them.
Initial Evaluation All ideas are evaluated to ensure that there is a possibility to fulfil
all requirements. Simple calculations in Matlab and partial models in Amesim are
made to examine the plausibility of all ideas. Ideas found to be inadequate are
eliminated from further studies.
Concept Modelling All the remaining concepts are now to be modelled. The mathe-
matical model for the existing system will be modified according to the principal
differences of the concept, sections in the script are removed for some concepts
1
Matlab - A software and language code used for mathematical computations
7
while other sections are added on other concepts. This process will enable the con-
cepts to be accurately comparable. All models are verified individually to ensure
that they are mathematically correct, meaning that a change in parameter value
should give a predictable model behaviour. All models are verified with equations
found in [6]. Normally a validation of the model would be made. The point of
validating a model is to examine if the model is an accurate representation of a
specific concept. The non existing data of the generated concepts prevents valida-
tion of those models towards collected data. Therefore a validation is only possible
of the initial model. This is done by comparing it against other models previously
made at Volvo CE.
Result Evaluation The result from simulating the models are evaluated to see if they
fulfil the requirements and that the output parameters such as pumps displacement
setting and inserted power are reasonable. The final step in the evaluation is to
include the economical aspect of the concepts.
8
Chapter 3
Hydraulic systems
This section introduces new ways of controlling and design hydraulic systems that has
been researched in the academia. A deeper understanding of load sensing, individual
metering, flow control and valveless systems is to be achieved, as well as the digital
hydraulics. The knowledge of these theories are to form a base when generating new
concepts for the hydraulic system on an articulated hauler.
Removing losses such as the pressure margin, that is needed in a LS-system, and
idle losses are the main objectives when exploring other options. Idle losses, also known
as drag losses, occur when a pump’s displacement setting is turned to zero. The pump
pressure as well as pump speed and size affect how great the power loss is. If the speed
of the pump can be set to zero the idle losses can be fully removed. This since there can
be no losses without an energy input to the system.
3.1 Conventional Systems

The most commonly used mobile hydraulic systems are constant flow and constant pres-
sure systems. These basic systems are considered to be simple but ineffective from a
energy efficiency point of view. The efficiency is reduced further if the hydraulic functions
are rarely used. More detailed description on both systems follows in this section.
3.1.1 Constant Flow

A constant flow system, also called open center system, consists of a fixed displacement
pump delivering a continuous flow. Flow not required by any function is drained, through
an open center in the control valve, to the tank. A simple schematic of this can be seen
in figure 3.1a. The pressure in such system is set to whatever is required by the active
functions including the pressure drop from pump to load [1]. The losses in an open
center system is big at partial flow requirements due to valve losses. The losses can be
described by the equation
PLoss = qpump · ppump − qload · pload (3.1)
9
3.1.2 Constant Pressure

Holding a constant pressure in the system is most commonly done using a variable
displacement pump where the pump displacement is changed to control the system
pressure. In this system the flow delivered is what the active functions require. The
constant pressure causes great losses in the system if the functions require low pressure,
causing a great pressure drop over the valve. The system principle can be seen in
figure 3.1b. As above, the losses can be calculated according to
PLoss = q · (ppump − pload ) (3.2)
qpump, ppump qload, q,

q, ppump
pload pload
(a) Constant flow (b) Constant pressure
Figure 3.1: Principle sketch of a constant flow and constant pressure system.
3.2 Load Sensing System

Combining the constant flow and the constant pressure system will result in a load
sensing system. This system has a higher efficiency than any of the two conventional
systems. A load sensing system consists of a variable displacement pump where the
highest load pressure sets the displacement, resulting in a flow and pressure output. The
principle for such a system can be seen in figure 3.2. This results in a system delivering
the flow required at a pressure just over the pressure required by the highest load. One
downside is that the efficiency is highly reduced if the load difference is great. Another
disadvantage, described in [1], with this concept is that a pressure margin must be added
to compensate for losses in the system, mainly from hoses, valves and compensators. The
margin is set to a constant high value to cover for all operating points, possibly decreasing
efficiency. The idle losses are increased with increased pressure. Therefore the constant
pressure margin will have negative impact on the energy efficiency. LS-systems can in
some implementations have poor hydraulic damping, causing oscillations in the systems
[4]. Load interference might occur on the lighter loads in this system if load pressures
vary [1]. Load interferences is a phenomena that can occur when several functions are
active simultaneously. The pump pressure affects the flow to the loads. Changing the
10
Chapter 3. Hydraulic systems
valve opening on one function will affect the speed of the other [13]. Therefore a load
sensing system has high losses if active load pressures differs widely. A load sensing
system is what can be found in most of the articulated haulers on the market today.
Figure 3.2: Principle of a load sensing system
3.3 Clutch
A clutch is a type of mechanical connector that allows for two axles to be connected or
disconnected to each other while rotating. Enabling this possibility in a system allows
for pumps to be disconnected when the flow is not required and thereby reduce losses.
There are several types of clutches available on the market such as friction clutches,
centrifugal clutches and non-slip clutches. Some clutches are internally controlled as for
example the centrifugal clutch. Others are externally controlled and can be controlled
using hydraulic, mechanic, pneumatic or electronic control. These clutches can be disc
clutches or non-slip clutches. The clutches can be seen in figure 3.3.
Friction Clutch A friction clutch, also called disc clutch, is basically two or more discs
that are forced against each other in order to transfer torque. This type of clutch
is allowed to slip and therefore a smooth engagement of the clutch is possible. A
friction clutch can either be wet or dry. A wet clutch can transfer more energy that
an equally sized dry. This is since the oil is forced in between the friction surfaces
enabling torque to be transferred via viscous shear forces [8]. Other advantages of
the wet clutch is that the oil reduces mechanical wear of the friction plates and
cools the clutch, allowing more energy to be absorbed [8].
Centrifugal Clutch Centrifugal clutches transmits higher torque while the speed of
the input axle increases. This forces the flyweights, held together by springs in
the clutch, to move outwards transferring torque to the output axle. This type
of clutch has no external engagement mechanism and is therefore hard to control
when the output speed should not depend on the input speed.
11
Non-slip Clutch A non-slip clutch is also known as a dog clutch in the automotive
industry. An example of the non-slip clutch is the claw coupling where the claws
are inserted between each other and thereby transferring torque. As the name
implies, this clutch can not slip and therefore a smooth engagement under load is
hard to achieve.
(a) Multi disc friction clutch (b) Centrifugal clutch (c) Non-slip jaw clutch
Figure 3.3: Principal figures of different clutch types
3.4 Flow Control

Flow control of hydraulic actuators is commonly used in applications where control of
velocity is important. Often in these cases the pump is still pressure controlled and
the flow control is achieved by using pressure compensating valves. In a system with
flow controlled valves where the demand from the operator is an electronic signal, e.g.
from a joystick, it would according to Axin make more sense to also control the pump
according to flow demand. This type of control has several benefits but requires a higher
complexity in the controller, [1].
With a flow control system the losses can be reduced at low flow and pressure com-
binations. This since the pressure margin depends on the resistance in the system in
contrast to a LS-system where the pressure margin is constant and has to be set to cover
the worst case. A simplified model for the pressure margin can be expressed with the
square of the flow [2]. The principle for this can be seen in figure 3.4.
Flow control can easily be implemented in an existing LS-system. It requires an
electronically controlled pump and a new controller. All other components can often be
the same [4]. This means that the cost increase when implementing flow control will
be relatively low. Load interference can occur in a flow controlled system in similar
ways as in a LS-system, but it is easily handled using pressure compensators. There are
two types of compensators that can be used, traditional pressure compensators or flow
sharing pressure compensators. Flow sharing pressure compensators, seen in figure 3.5,
12
Load Sensing Flow Control

Valve Losses Valve Losses
Compensator Losses
Compensator Losses
Unnecessary Losses Energy Saved
pmargin
pmargin
Hose Losses Hose Losses
Flow Flow
Figure 3.4: Pump pressure margin as a function of the flow for a LS system (Left) and
a Flow control system (Right). The dashed red line indicates the margin.
are preferable since they do not require the same accuracy in system components and
control. The reason being that in a system containing more than one function, the flow
from the pump should be the sum of the demand from all functions. The speed of the
functions will be affected if there are deficiencies or excess flow. By using flow sharing
pressure compensators these deficiencies or excess will be split between all functions
affecting them equally. This since the pump pressure and the highest load pressure also
affects the valve position. The use of pressure compensators are however not desired,
since they reduce system efficiency due to added valve losses.
max load
PWM
pressure
Figure 3.5: Schematic view of a flow sharing pressure compensator valve.
3.5 Digital Hydraulics

In recent years new technology in the area of digital hydraulics have evolved. The idea
of digital hydraulics is that the output of the system is discrete. This can be realized
13
for example by the use of on/off-valves with only discrete inputs. Digital solutions have
been presented for linear actuators as well as pumps and motors.
3.5.1 Linear actuators

In [3] a system for linear actuators on an excavator arm containing a four chamber
cylinder and three pressure levels is presented. The idea is that different pressure levels
in the four chambers create different forces on the piston. The force also depends on the
area ratio between the chambers. A piston can be seen in figure 3.7 and an example of
the force steps can be seen in figure 3.6.
Figure 3.6: Principle for the force and pressure levels of a digital piston.
14
B
A
C
D
Figure 3.7: The principle of a multi camber cylinder.
3.5.2 Angular actuators

This section will introduce two types of digital pumps presented by Artemis Intelligent
Power Ltd and Mathers Hydraulics Pty Ltd. Their technology show great potential and
it could be of interest for future implementation.
Artemis Digital Displacement Unit

Artemis Intelligent Power Ltd presents a radial piston machine where the traditional
mechanical valves have been replaced by high speed solenoid valves. Using high speed
valves allows for active selection of when to engage a piston, thereby changing the dis-
placement in a digital way [12]. The pump can be seen in figure 3.8. When the pump
is idling the poppet valve in the end of a cylinder, the cyan valve in figure 3.8, stays
open and the pump suck oil from the low pressure volume and then return it to the
same volume, preforming no output work. This way of idling is according to Artemis
very energy efficient [12]. When a piston is to be used the low pressure poppet valve is
closed and pressure builds up in the cylinder. As the pressure rises the high pressure
®
valve opens letting the oil into the system. In [16] Wadsley presents data with a total
efficiency over 90% when running the Digital Displacement pump on partial loads and
low speeds in a hydraulic transmission. This technology might prove useful and efficient
in a system that has to be dimensioned for a large flow demand that rarely is required.
Mathers Fuel Saving Vane Pump

Mathers Hydraulics Pty Ltd invented a vane pump where the vanes can be retracted into
the rotor thus forming no pumping chambers. This makes it possible to turn the pump
on/off. The vanes are locked in its retracted position using a pilot pressure pushing a
ball into a dent in the vane [5]. When the pump is turned on the pressure is removed
and the vane is released, starting to preform useful work. Retracting the vanes to just
the right point the rotor will be cylindrical with no protruding object, making the idle
losses low. Another advantage is that the vane pump is quiet [13].
15
®
Figure 3.8: The Artemis Digital Displacement Pump. ©Artemis Intelligent Power
Ltd. Used with permission of the copyright holder.
Figure 3.9: Mathers Fuel Saving Vane, FSV, pump. In the left figure the vanes are
retracted and the pump is turned off. In the right figure it is active, working as a regular
vane pump.
16
3.6 Individual Metering

The use of spool valves in conventional systems has a restriction in that the meter-in and
meter-out orifices are mechanically connected, thereby decreasing the degree of flexibility.
Higher flexibility is achieved by controlling the orifices independently. This is called
individual metering. The advantages, presented in [4], of this concept is the possibility
to acquire a higher efficiency by changing the direction of flow during operations and
to reduce valve losses. Functions like float, recuperation and regeneration can be used
to potentially lower the energy consumption. There are different types of individual
metering systems depending on what type of valves are chosen and in which way they
are connected, see [4] for more configurations than what is presented in this thesis. The
four most common modes are normal, recuperation, float and regeneration mode. These
are explained below and can be seen in figure 3.10.
Normal mode
The pump and tank are connected to the meter-in valve and the meter-out valve,
respectively. This is the most common sort of operation since it is how a conven-
tional system operates [1].
Regenerative mode
Losses can be reduced by directing the output chamber to the pump-line, thus
increasing the flow to the actuator without increasing the pump flow. This function
is most useful when manoeuvring light and heavy loads simultaneously.
Floating mode
Also called Energy Neutral Operation is profitable when lowering a load. No pump
flow is delivered while in this mode, the oil to the actuators is moved from one
chamber to the other. The excessive oil is provided by the tank.
Recuperative mode
The cylinder is used as a pump in negative strokes, pressurizing the return oil and
directing it back to the pressure system, thereby producing energy that can be
used on other functions, or stored in an accumulator.
Introducing this concept in to the system will make the controller more complex,
because there must be an input signal for each valve. An additional input signal is
possible to add if an electronically controlled pump is implemented, resulting in more
flexibility. The valves and pump can be controlled either electronically or directly by the
operator. Usually the operator generates one input, for example desired cylinder speed,
pressure or flow. The ability to switch mode, i.e. change the flow direction, during
operations presents further challenges in the controller. Transition between modes must
be managed in a smooth manner. Also, a strategy for when to switch mode must be
made. The ability to divide the flow into several directions with individual metering can
reduce the number of pumps in the system.
17
PWM PWM PWM PWM

PWM
PWM
PWM
PWM
(a) Normal mode (b) Regenerative mode
PWM PWM PWM PWM

PWM
PWM
PWM
PWM
(c) Floating mode (d) Recuperative mode
Figure 3.10: Different operational modes when using individual metering.
18
3.7 Hydraulic Accumulators

A hydraulic accumulator is typically used to store or recover energy in a hydraulic system.
Pump flow or excess flow from a operation can be used to charge the accumulator. The
flow can for example be efficiently used when a cycle consists of high flow demand during
short periods of time. An accumulator can also work as a safety component, providing the
system with flow if other flow sources are disabled. Rapid valve movement or acceleration
of masses can produce pulsations in the system. These can be dampened by the spring
characteristics of an accumulator. An accumulator consists of two different chambers
divided by a flexible ”wall”. One of the chambers working as a spring is filled with gas,
often nitrogen N2 , to a certain pre-charge pressure. The other chamber is connected to
the hydraulic system. When the hydraulic pressure increases the nitrogen is compressed
and the oil flows into the accumulator. When the hydraulic system pressure decreases
the oil flows out from the accumulator as the gas strives to reach the pre-charge pressure,
[13]. There are three different types of accumulators available on the market today. They
are described below and can be seen in figure 3.11.
Figure 3.11: Different types of accumulators. From the left a Bladder accumulator
followed by the Diaphragm accumulator in the middle and a Piston accumulator to the
right.
19
Bladder accumulators, where the gas is stored inside a balloon, bladder. The bladder
is compressed when oil enters the accumulator. This type typically has a fast
output flow and is often used for medium size volumes [14].
Diaphragm accumulators has a membrane that can move back and forth depending
on the pressure on each side. This type of accumulator is usually used when the
accumulator size is small and is often more robust than bladder accumulators.
Piston accumulators is the type of accumulator that can handle the largest volume.
It consists of a light weight piston that separates the gas from the liquid, and moves
inside a well defined cylinder depending on the pressures. The pressure ratio limit
between maximum pressure and pre-charge pressure can be very high [14] [9].
3.8 Valveless Systems

When eliminating the valves in a system, the metering losses caused by the valve is
eliminated as well. This section will present different systems that can be used to control
hydraulic actuators in a system without the use of valves.
3.8.1 Transformers
A hydraulic transformer consists of two hydraulic machines mechanically connected to
each other, see figure 3.12. This allows for a linear actuator to be manoeuvred using
secondary control. A secondary controlled system can according to Heybroek [7] be
described as the hydraulic equivalent of an electric grid. Additional functions and com-
ponents are simple to attach to such a system. The transformer converts an input flow
at a certain pressure to a different output flow at the cost of a pressure change. Compare
with an electric circuit where the current is increased if the voltage is decreased and vice
versa. In order to implement this at least one of the machines must have variable dis-
placement, and therefore may experience low efficiency at certain operating conditions.
The disadvantage for this system is the number of machines used, requiring space and
increasing the system cost. The possibility to recuperate energy and the high efficiency
when operating several functions simultaneously is the advantage. In order to operate
in all four quadrants, that is positive and negative piston velocity and external force,
additional valves are needed causing additional losses.
Figure 3.12: A conventional hydraulic transformer
20
3.8.2 Pump Controlled Actuators

Introducing one bidirectional variable pump for each actuator would eliminate the need
for directional valves and give the possibility to control each actuator by changing the
displacement setting on the pump. In a system as this, see figure 3.13, the system
efficiency highly depends on the pump efficiency at low displacement settings. One
pump for each actuator means that it has to be dimensioned to handle the highest flow
to and from the actuator and for this reason it gets a low displacement setting most
of the time. The installed displacement in a system tends to be unnecessarily high if
the highest flow from each function is not used at the same time but still have to be
dimensioned for. The main advantage for this concept is the efficiency when operating
more than one actuator simultaneously [1].
Figure 3.13: Simplified schematic of a pump controlled actuator
3.8.3 Electro Hydraulic Actuators

Electro hydraulic actuator system, often refereed to as EHA, primarily consists of a
bidirectional fixed displacement pump and an electric motor. It is basically a special
configuration of the Pump Controlled Actuator described in 3.8.2, where each pump
have its own electric motor. By varying the speed of the electric motor the flow and
therefore also the motion of the actuator is controlled. If the actuator is symmetric
there is no need for a tank to the oil. This is because of the fact that the pressurized
area is the same for both positive and negative strokes in such a cylinder, resulting in a
constant system volume regardless of the piston position. In mobile machines however
the actuators are often asymmetric so some adjustments to the traditional concept would
be needed [15]. The overall system efficiency in an EHA system will be high since it runs
only when needed. One other advantage is that it does not require a variable pump,
thereby reducing the pump cost. The main disadvantages are the need of one electric
motor and pump for each actuator, as well an additional energy conversion.
21
Figure 3.14: Principle sketch of an electro hydraulic actuator
22
Chapter 4
Mathematical model
The characteristics of a system and its efficiency must be examined in a manner that
provides accurate and reliable results. This is achieved by simulations of all concepts,
based on mathematical models. Provided data and calculations are presented in this
chapter.
4.1 Simulation Data

The data is collected during tests executed on tracks available for Volvo in Braås. A
typical track can be seen in figure 4.1. The tests were made with different vehicle
conditions, such as speed and load. A test cycle typically consists of two laps on the
same track. One lap is loaded and the other is unloaded and run in the opposite direction
on the track. Data collected when dumping was not available for the same size of the
hauler but have been processed to be usable in these evaluations. The data is stored
with a fix frequency. The time between two data points are refereed to as a time step.
The logged parameters that are used as input in the mathematical models are:
Engine speed rev/
min
Vehicle speed km/

h
Radiator fan speed rev/

min
Intercooler fan speed rev/

min
Pressure in steering cylinders bar

Pressure in dumping cylinders bar
Pressure at radiator fan bar
Pressure at intercooler fan bar
Steering cylinder length mm
Body angle deg
23
Figure 4.1: A typical Volvo test track
4.2 Calculations
In this section the calculations for all concepts found in chapter 5 are presented. First
calculations for the current system are presented and later on the changes that were
made in the initial code to make it valid for the new concepts.
The calculation process can be described in a flow chart, as in figure 4.2, where the
the mathematical model is based on the hydraulic concepts. How the calculations are
made and what changes that are done between different concepts is described in this
chapter. The model is constructed in such a way that the measured data functions as
input and the result is the energy consumption. The result for different concepts can
then be further analysed and compared.
Measurement
Data
Hydraulic Mathematical Comparison /

Results
Concepts Model Evaluation
Figure 4.2: Flow Chart showing the calculation process.
4.2.1 Geometry
The hauler geometry affects the model by influencing the flow demand caused by steering
and dumping during a test cycle. The specific purpose for the geometry calculations will
be to compute the length difference between every time step on both steering cylinders
and dumping cylinder. The geometries can be seen in figure 4.3.
Positive and negative stroke areas on the cylinders will affect the flow demand during
both steering and dumping. The pressurized area can be calculated as shown in equation
(4.1) and (4.2).
24
Chapter 4. Mathematical model
Load unit
bb
xotc
Lh lb rtipp
B α
µ γ
Lv b
β
Lc α2
lf A zotc β
α α1 ztl
a
xtl
bf
Pull unit
(a) Gemoetry for the steering (b) Geometry for the dumping
Figure 4.3: Geometry for the hydraulic functions on the hauler.
d2pi
Api = π (4.1)
4
d2pi − d2pr
Apr =π (4.2)
4
Steering
When calculating the steer angle the values of A and B are needed. They are calculated
according to
s 2
bf
A= + lf2 (4.3)
2
s 2
bb
B= + lb2 (4.4)
2
There is a slight non linearity between the lengths on the steering cylinders, meaning
that a certain change in length on one cylinder will not correspond to the same length
change on the other cylinder. This give rise to compute the right cylinder length from
measured data on the left cylinder length. Begins by calculating the steering angle, α,
which depends on the angle γ which in turn depends on parameters calculated in (4.3)
and (4.4).
arccos(A2 + B 2 − L2v )
γ= (4.5)
2AB
bf bb
α = π − γ − arctan − arctan (4.6)
2lf 2lb
25
The expression for the right steering cylinder length depends on the angle µ that in turn
depends on the previous calculated steering angle, α, (4.3) and (4.4).

bf bb
µ = π + α − arctan − arctan (4.7)
2lf 2lb
p
Lh = A2 + B 2 − 2AB cos(µ) (4.8)
Knowing both the right and left cylinder lengths throughout the test cycle, the flow to
or from the cylinders can be calculated. The flow calculations are further described in
section 4.2.2.
Dumping
The dumping cylinder length expression depends on the angle β, that is the angle be-
tween the upper and lower cylinder attachments measured at the body rotational point.
β is the sum of the tilt angle θ and β0 . Two other parameters used to calculate the
cylinder length is the distances a and b according to

ztl zotc − ztl
β0 = arctan + arctan (4.9)
xtl xtl − xotc
β = θ + β0 (4.10)
q
a = x2tl + ztl2 (4.11)
p
b = (xtl − xotc )2 + (zotc − ztl )2 (4.12)
s 2
ucw − lcw
Lc = a2 + b2 − 2ab cos(β) + (4.13)
2
4.2.2 Current System

The Matlab models used to simulate the current system does also act as a base when
generating models for some of the new concepts. Starting with the measurement data,
calculations are made as described below resulting in an engine input power. These
calculations are made for all data points. Combining these results and knowing the time
step the energy consumed during a simulation can be found.
System pressure is generated by three LS pumps and an auxiliary steering pump,
pump 8 in figure 1.2. The pump pressure is a sum of the pressure in the steering cylinders,
called steering pressure, and the pressure margin which is constant on a LS-system.
pp = pst + pmargin (4.14)
The flow demand from steering and dumping depends on the difference in volume
between each time step, see equation (4.15). It is computed from the cylinder positions
and areas. A leakage flow is included in the model. If the calculated flow demand is
26
below the leakage flow value, the flow demand is set to the leakage flow.
dV
qst = (4.15)
dt
qst (qst 0 qleak ) = qleak (4.16)
The displacement setting, ε, calculations are made under the assumption that all LS
pumps and the auxiliary pump share the same setting. Based on what is known about
the system configuration this assumptions seems valid. The highest ideal flow from each
pump is calculated using (4.17) and setting ε = 1 and ηvol,p = 1. Knowing these flows
the displacement setting can be calculated using (4.18)
np
qp = εp Dp ηvol,p (4.17)
60
qst
ε= (4.18)
qIdeal,E · ηvol,E + qIdeal,G · ηvol,G
where qIdeal,E and qIdeal,G are the ideal flows from the engine mounted pumps and
the auxiliary steering pump respectively. Pump efficiency data provided by the pump
manufacturer serves as the base for interpolating an efficiency, η, for a specific running
condition. The efficiency depend on several parameters and can be described as a η =
η(p, ε, n). Since the displacement setting and the efficiency is a function of each other
the actual displacement setting is iterated to a precision of ∆ε = 1e−4 . If the calculated
displacement setting is greater than 1 the concept can not deliver the flow required.
Torque required by the pumps are calculated using equation (4.19). Knowing the
torque, the engine and vehicle speed the power consumption for each pump can be
calculated using equation (4.20).
εp D p 1
Tin = ∆p ·R (4.19)
2π ηhm,p
P =T ·ω
⇔ (4.20)
n
P = T · 2π
60
Fan circuit calculations require the flow demand from the fan motor to be calculated.
Since the motors have a fixed displacement this is done using equation (4.21).
nm 1
q m = εm D m (4.21)
60 ηvol,m
The flow calculations, resulting in the power consumption, are the same as described
above using equation (4.17)–(4.19).
Useful power is calculated by equation (4.22) with the stored data of the steering
pressure, pst , and the flow demand qst from equations (4.15) and (4.16).
Pusef ul = pst · qst (4.22)
27
The powers from equations (4.22) and (4.20) are thereafter used to calculate the energy
consumption in one test cycle. This makes comparison between simulations with different
time steps possible.
XZ
E= P (t)dt (4.23)
4.2.3 Conventional Systems

Constant flow
The displacement settings, ε, on all pumps are set to 1 in the constant flow concept,
consequently excluding equation (4.18). Since there is no data available showing when
the steering wheel is turned, i.e. the driver wants to change the driving direction, the
available data had to be analysed in an attempt to determine this. It is done using
equation (4.24) where a pressure level, G, is decided based on the data. If the pressure
drops below that value the system is assumed to be idling and the system pressure is set
to the idling pressure, F.
pst (pst < G) = F (4.24)
Constant Pressure
The current system is easily changed to a constant pressure system by modifying equa-
tion (4.14). The pump pressure, pp , is set to the constant pressure desired in the system.
4.2.4 Displacement Reduction

When implementing displacement reduction the displacement of a pump is simply set
to zero in order to eliminate it from the calculations.
4.2.5 Clutches
When implementing clutches into the system some changes to the initial code have to
be made. Now calculations are made to decide what each pump can deliver at all time.
The flow demand from the steering is then compared with these values in a predefined
order until the full required flow can be delivered. It is then known how many pumps
that are required. The check is made using an if-statement like the one presented below.
All other calculations are made in the same way as for the initial system.
for n = 1:data length

if q st(n) > (q8 Ideal(n)* eta vol 8(n) + ...
(q1 Ideal(n) + q2 Ideal(n))* eta vol(n))
NoP(n) = 4; % Auxiliary steering pump, pump 1, 2 and 3
elseif q st(n) > (q8 Ideal(n)* eta vol 8(n) + ...

(q1 Ideal(n))* Pump eta vol(n))
NoP(n) = 3; % Auxiliary steering pump, pump 1 and 2
28
elseif q st(n) > (q8 Ideal(n)* eta vol 8(n))

NoP(n) = 2; % Auxiliary steering pump and pump 1
else
NoP(n) = 1; % Only the Auxiliary steering pump
end
end
4.2.6 Flow control

The reduction of the pressure margin was described in section 3.4, stating that the
margin can be expressed with the square of the flow. A mathematical model according
to equation (4.25) is made where the coefficient k is calculated by a Matlab fit function.
The function requires maximum flow, (4.17), and pressure margin boundaries as inputs.
The pressure margin now depending on the flow is thereafter used in equation 4.14 to
implement flow control.
2
pmargin (qst ) = k · qst (4.25)
4.2.7 Digital pump

Since only the total efficiency is available for the digital pump, changes were made in
the model so that the total efficiency is added after calculating the displacement and
torque of the pump. Since no data for idle losses is available those sections of the code
is removed and the result for this concept is presented without idle losses. Although
the idle losses stands for most of the losses, these calculations determine whether the
concept is reasonable at all.
4.2.8 Individual Metering – Regenerative mode

The advantage of individual metering would be to obtain the regenerative mode. When
the regenerative mode of the individual metering concept is active, both sides of the
piston are connected to the pump line. The external force, Fext , has to be equal to the
force in the current system. The force of the current system can be calculated using the
same initial equations, (4.26) – (4.28), where the pressure is different on both sides. The
force equation for the piston would in this case be
0 = F+ − F− − Fext (4.26)
F =p·A (4.27)
The cylinder area, A, is calculated using equation (4.1) and (4.2). Combining (4.26) and
(4.27) and replacing A with the corresponding area equation, the expression becomes
d2pi d2pi − d2pr
p+ · π − p− · π = Fext (4.28)
4 4
Since the external force has to be the same in the regenerative system as the current
system the force equation, (4.28), for both systems can be set equal to each other. For
29
the current system p is replaced with the known pressures. Assuming that the low
pressure ,p− , is zero. Breaking out the pressure in the regenerative system, preg , results
in
d2pi d2pi − d2pr d2pi d2pi − d2pr

preg · π − preg · π = pcur · π −0·π
4 4 4 4
⇔
preg · dpi − dpi − dpr = pcur · d2pi
2 2 2

(4.29)
⇔
d2pi
preg = pcur ·
d2pr
4.2.9 Accumulators
All systems that includes accumulators were made in co-simulation between Amesim and
Simulink. In these simulations the rest of the system was simplified so that the steering
was modeled as an ON/OFF-valve and only one pump component is used. Despite these
simplifications the model was found accurate. This is verified by comparing flow demand
to the flow in the model. The Amesim and Simulink models can be seen in appendix A.
When looking at replacing the auxiliary steering pump with accumulators as de-
scribed in section 5.7 the required accumulator volume is based on calculations described
in this section. The oil volume needed is calculated from the steering cylinders using
(4.1) and the total stroke length. This volume is then multiplied by the number of turns
that have to be made according to safety standards, resulting in
Vst = N oT · (Lst,max − Lst,min ) · (Api + Apr ) (4.30)
There is also a defined turning speed, κ, in degrees per second and vehicle speed, v,
used to calculate the time it takes to preform a full turn and the angular velocity of the
pump. With these numbers the volume from the pump can be calculated according to
90
Vp = qp N oT (4.31)
κ
Subtracting the flow delivered by the pump from the required flow yields the working
volume needed in the accumulator. Knowing the working volume and assuming the
highest and lowest working pressure needed, the accumulator volume is calculated ac-
cording to equation (4.33). In these calculation both the emptying and filling processes
are assumed to be adiabatic.
∆V = Vst − Vp (4.32)
∆V pp10
V0 = 1 (4.33)
1 − ( pp12 ) n
30
4.2.10 Cost
Cost is an important factor when constructing a system today. Since some systems
are cheap but do not improve the energy efficiency that much while others are more
expensive but improves the efficiency all the more. In order to get a fair comparison
between the concepts a payback time was calculated for each concept. The payback time
is based on the cost of the components and the energy consumption. Some constants
such as fuel price and diesel engine efficiency are also included in the calculation. The
amount of hours accepted as payback time during one year is 1400 hours. This is given
if there are 250 working days with eight hour shifts during one year and the hauler is
driven 70% of that time.
∆Cost
P ayback = (4.34)
∆EConcept 1
EDiesel ·ηEngine · tSimulation · $Diesel
31
32
Chapter 5
Concepts
During this project different concepts have been evaluated with respect to functionality,
cost and safety. The results of evaluating these concepts will be presented here. Con-
cepts which do not fulfil the requirements will be excluded from further evaluation and
modelling of system. The first concepts to be presented are the base concepts, some of
whom will thereafter be combined into different complete system concepts further down
in this section.
5.1 Conventional Systems

A constant flow concept is expected to have great losses since all the flow supplied by
the pumps will often not be required. Most of the flow will then be drained through the
open center during a driving cycle.
The pressure demand when performing a dump is much higher than the pressure
needed for the other functions, this will cause a constant pressure system to have great
losses.
Both conventional systems should be examined to find out how efficient they need to
be in order to compete with the current system. The goal with these calculations is to
find which values for the losses and leakage in equation (4.24) that generates an energy
consumption equal to the current system. As these systems are expected to consume
more energy than the current, a request from Volvo CE was to evaluate if the increased
energy consumption could be motivated by the reduced system cost. A constant flow
concept can for example be upheld with cheaper fixed displacement pumps.
5.2 Displacement Reduction

This concept is intended to optimize the usage of the pumps in the current LS-system. If
installing valves so that the flow from the fan pumps can be directed to the main control
valve and thereby supply the steering and dumping functions there would be an excess
of available flow. Dimensioning the system to fulfil the demands of today would allow
33
elimination of one pump, thereby reducing the losses in two ways. First the idle loss
for the removed pump would be eliminated, secondly the reduced displacement during
normal driving would increase the displacement setting on the remaining pumps hence
increasing their efficiency. This concept would work under the condition that the fan
pumps are over dimensioned so that the cooling can be shut off for some time, when they
are used for steering or dumping. The fact that the pump is over dimensioned allows for
a higher pump flow when turning the fans on again, resulting in a higher fan speed and
cooling effect. Looking at the measurement data this seems to be the case, see figure
6.2a. This concept would reduce the cost since one pump less is required, however some
extra valves are used to direct the flow from pump 5 and 6 to the main control valve.
The main downside of this concept is that if cooling is required at the same time as
those pumps are wanted for dumping the driver might feel that the function acts slowly.
In this concept the 63 cc pump is removed and the 45 cc fan pump is reduced to 28 cc.
This reduction can be done since the brake cooling is assumed to be removed from the
circuit.
5.3 Clutch
5.3.1 Current system with Clutch
The idle losses have been shown to be the greatest losses in an average driving cycle.
One way to eliminate these would be to add clutches between the PTO and the pumps,
as shown in figure 5.1. Since the clutches are implemented as an interface between the
mechanical and the hydraulic system, and therefore does not require any changes in the
hydraulic circuit, they can be introduced in different kind of systems such as constant
flow, constant pressure, LS or flow control. This would allow disconnection of pumps
during normal driving which would reduce the idle losses. The displacement setting
on the connected pumps would be higher and thus increasing efficiency. Centrifugal
clutches are obviously not applicable in this type of system since the timing of when
to connect a pump is of great importance. The controllability of friction and non-slip
clutches are more suited. Depending on the type of clutch, wet or dry, this would reduce
or completely eliminate the losses when the pumps are not used. As mentioned above
the clutch does not interfere in the hydraulic system. This allows for further system
development and improvements in other operation points. The clutches are assumed to
be ideal in all calculations. The clutches concept is only evaluated on the steering circuit
since it is the part where it will be most useful. They might also be implemented on
pumps in the fan circuits but since the fans are expected to run most of the time they
will not reduce the energy that much.
5.3.2 Displacement Reduction with Clutch

This concept is a combination of Displacement Reduction, section 5.2, and Clutch, section
5.3. The inserted energy is expected to be less than for the current system with clutches
since the idle losses on the downsized radiator pump will be reduced. The first connected
34
Chapter 5. Concepts
3. 1.
PWM
P
T
O
5. 6. 2.
PWM PWM
Figure 5.1: Clutch placement in the system
pump, pump 2, being 60 cc instead of 63 cc should only have a minor effect on the
improvement.
5.4 Flow Control

5.4.1 Current system with Flow Control
Since the hydraulic system constantly runs at low pressure and flow to cover the pressure
margin, this causes a constant loss. In order to reduce this loss Flow Control could be
implemented in the system. With the existing steering valve some problems regarding a
control strategy will exist. Those would however be eliminated if introducing electrically
controlled steering. The losses should with this concept be reduced according to section
3.4.
5.4.2 Displacement Reduction with Flow Control

This concept is a combination of Displacement Reduction, section 5.2, and Flow Control,
section 5.4. The losses are expected to be reduced as much as they are when implement-
ing Flow Control in the current system, improving the system further.
5.4.3 Clutch and Flow Control

This concept is a combination of Clutch, section 5.3, and Flow Control, section 5.4. Flow
control is believed to be the most efficient way of controlling a system that includes
clutches. This since the flow demand and how much flow each pump can deliver at each
moment is known. Then the clutches can be manoeuvred, engaging the appropriate
pump configuration at all time. This concept will be implemented on both the current
system and the Displacement Reduction concept.
35
5.5 Digital hydraulics

5.5.1 Linear actuators
To use a digital linear actuator on the dumping piston will never be desired. The
dumping is to be performed as fast as possible. This is achieved if directing all flow to
one side while keeping the pressure on the other side of the piston as low as possible.
Neither is applying them on the steering an option, because of safety legislations. A
malfunction on any of the numerous valves on a digital linear actuator would potentially
be dangerous. No further evaluation of this concept will be conducted.
5.5.2 Angular actuators

A digital hydraulic pump is a future concept that might prove useful. Such a pump could
®
replace both a clutch and pump. The pumps evaluated here are the Artemis Digital
Displacement radial piston pump and Mathers vane pump. They are said to have
low idle losses, however no data was provided for the Artemis pump so all calculations
assume no idle loss and the efficiency is interpolated from graphs found in [16]. For the
Mathers pump an estimated idle loss was provided by the inventor for one pump size,
1 kW for a 90 cc pump. The digital pumps are implemented on the LS-system in the
evaluated concept. The fan circuits still have the current configurations.
5.6 Individual Metering

Big volumes are in play during dumping and much can be won by taking advantage of
the energy stored in those volumes, which in the existing system goes to waste. The
use of individual metering simplifies the use of regeneration mode. This is believed to
potentially be a good concept to implement on the dumping since it will reduce the flow
needed from the pump and therefore also allow for downsizing of the pumps. Individual
metering raises the flexibility of the hydraulic system, providing more control of the flow
through meter-in and meter-out orifices, this enables less valve losses.
5.7 Accumulator
Accumulators can be used to recover energy. Doing so on a hauler has previously been
evaluated in [10]. This has been further investigated at Volvo and internal reports [11]
shows energy savings no higher than 4%. The cost and weight of these systems are
expected to be too high for implementation.
5.7.1 Accumulator in constant pressure system

Introducing accumulators in the system would result in an extra flow source to assist
during high flow demand. This would allow for downsizing or disconnection of pumps.
The system evaluated here is intended for the steering, allowing for the pumps to be
36
Chapter 5. Concepts
disconnected in intervals. In this concept the accumulators are installed in a system

with pump/clutch units so that the pumps are disconnected when the maximum sys-
tem pressure is reached and connected again when the pressure drops below a pre-set
level. Different pressure levels and sizes of the pumps and accumulators were evalu-
ated. Another advantage when implementing accumulators is its natural characteristic
of damping the hydraulic system, the degree of damping will however not be evaluated
in this thesis.
5.7.2 Accumulator to reduce auxiliary steering pump

The auxiliary steering pump is the largest pump in the whole system, 71 cc, running at
low displacement settings most of the time. If the size of this pump could be reduced and
the additional flow be provided by an accumulator, the losses should be reduced during
normal operations. In figure 5.2b it can be seen what accumulator size that is required
for each pump size. This volume will also depend on what pressures that are allowed
in the accumulator or system. Accumulators are preferably used in a constant pressure
system. Implementing the accumulator instead of the auxiliary steering pump in the
current system thus requiring additional valves in order keep the accumulator pressure
high, even when the system pressure is low in normal driving conditions. In this system
configuration the accumulator is to be charged when the hauler is started and the oil in
the accumulator is to be used only in extreme situations such as engine failure.
In order to reduce the maximum flow demand from the pump and consequently the
accumulator size an alternative configuration is possible, placing a valve between the
steering pistons so that only the positive stroke area creates the torque and requires
flow. The principle for this can be seen in figure 5.2a. During normal operation the
system works equally as today, but in case of an engine failure or loss of power to the
valve the valve switches to reduce the flow demand in the system. The downside of
this configuration is the reduced steering torque and the need for a small accumulator,
compensating for the non linearity in the steering geometry.
5.7.3 Dump using accumulators

One question raised at Volvo CE is if it would be possible to perform the dumping using
only accumulators. These accumulators are then to be charged by the engine mounted
pumps while driving, hence increasing the efficiency and allow for pump downsizing. The
volumes needed to achieve a full dump are expected to be large, requiring big expensive
accumulators. This volume will probably be hard to install on the hauler and add weight,
reducing maximum payload.
5.8 Valveless Systems

These concepts require more machines than the other systems evaluated. All valveless
systems will therefore add to the vehicle weight. This disadvantage and the highly
37
Steering valve
Steering cylinders
LS-block
(a) Alternative steering configuration. During normal driving the system
works as today but if the power to the valve is lost the flow demand is
reduced.
(b) Accumulator size requirement for a certain displacement on the auxiliary steering pump.
p1 = 150 bar, p2 = 250 bar and polytropic exponent is 1.4
Figure 5.2: Alternative steering configuration and accumulator size
38
Chapter 5. Concepts
increased cost, that is likely to follow, makes these systems low prioritized and no further
evaluation are made in this thesis.
5.9 Fan Circuits

The fan circuits in the current system are quite luxurious using one pump for each fan
motor. Alternatives for this system in order to reduce cost could be to connect the fans
in series or parallel. Enabling the motors to run independently in a series connection
is possible if implementing bypass valves. A series connection would require only one
of the pumps used today, but increase the pressure delivered by the pump and also the
pump efficiency. Connecting the motors in parallel requires a pump that can deliver the
sum of the flow demands from the motors. To split the flow correctly a variable flow
divider is required.
39
40
Chapter 6
Results
The results aim to clarify which hydraulic systems that are most appropriate to imple-
ment with regard to energy efficiency and functionality, while keeping in mind that the
economical impact on the system also is of great importance. Modifications of concepts
and their difference among each other are presented below. When selecting different
displacement combinations the main objective is to use displacements known to exist
in the same series as the current pumps. In some cases the displacement of the largest
pump is calculated to fulfil given requirements.
6.1 Current System

The current system was modelled in Matlab to use as a reference and base when generat-
ing and evaluating concepts. When analysing the result the data was separated in three
recognizable circuits; intercooler fan, radiator fan and steering/dumping. Further on the
losses where separated into idle losses and other losses. These are distributed as shown
in figure 6.1a. Figure 6.1b shows the energy distribution for a dumping cycle. As seen
the idle losses is the major energy consumer in the driving cycle, while those losses are
not an issue during dumping since all pumps are used with a high displacement setting
during both raising and lowering, this can be seen in figure 6.2b. It can be seen that the
raising stands for most part of the inserted energy as expected during dumping. Figure
6.2a displaying the displacement setting of the pumps demonstrates that the pumps are
over dimensioned. The values at 210 seconds can be disregarded. They originate from
errors in the measurements as a result of combining data from 2 laps at the test track.
During simulations it was found that the auxiliary steering pump was enough for most
of the test cycle. The displacement setting for the pumps can be seen in figure 6.2.
Hydraulic Capacity
The total amount of energy that can be extracted from the PTO is calculated with
equation (4.20) from logged pressure and velocity data. The ratio between the total
amount of energy and the inserted energy for the current system is 7.17 %, meaning that
41
the hydraulics on the hauler stands for approximately 7.17% of the total vehicle energy
consumption. Using ideal waste energy with similar calculations gives a percentage of
5.57. This is the amount of the total consumption that can be improved by implementing
a new hydraulic concept.
(a) Drive cycle (b) Dump cucle
Figure 6.1: Distribution of inserted energy with the Current system.
42
Chapter 6. Results
(a) Drive cycle
(b) Dump cycle. Starting with a raise followed by a lowering.
Figure 6.2: Displacement settings with the Current system.
43
6.2 Simulation Result

The evaluation of a concept has been conducted in different ways for different concepts.
Some hydraulic systems have been excluded from further tests after basic initial calcu-
lations while others are more thoroughly evaluated. Interesting concepts, which show
promising results or are of special interest to examine for Volvo CE, are simulated var-
ious times with different conditions and parameters. Here the energy consumption and
the distribution between different sources are presented, as well as other results essential
for the concepts.
6.2.1 Constant Flow and Constant Pressure

Constant Flow
In the constant flow system the energy consumption highly depends on the pump size
and number of pumps in use. Uncertain factors that have an impact on the efficiency of
this concept is the pressure drop in the system and the pressure at which the system is
assumed idling when below. For these two parameters, parameter F and G in equation
(4.24), a sensitivity analysis was made. The pressure limit is chosen based on visual
evaluation of the data. The pressure drop in the system is chosen arbitrarily and is
expected to be lower than the drop in the current system. The result can be seen in
table 6.1. Values on the parameters giving a good result are, based on the measurement
data, considered to be improbable in the system. Therefore it was decided that proper
values on the pressure drop and pressure limit should be 5 bar and 35 bar, respectively.
The distribution of energy when using this concept can be seen in figure 6.3a. The losses
deriving from steering has increased when comparing with the current system, this due
to that the pumps are now of a fixed displacement type. The consumed energy during
dumping, figure 6.3b, is also higher than the current system.
The results for this concept leaves room for improvements. This system was therefore
also tested with clutches as in section 5.3. The results did improve but it only reached
a similar level as the current system, see table 6.5. To see if further improvements
are possible different combinations of pump displacement were tested. The calculations
deciding what pump to connect are similar to the one presented in section 4.2.5. The
difference being that there is no specific order of engagement. The pumps that best suits
the current demand is the one engaged. The auxiliary pump size is held inactive in this
concept and is only activated as a last resort when the flow that the engine pumps can
provide is not enough. The best result for the steering data was achieved with the pump
displacements D1 = 10 cc, D2 = 18 cc and D3 = 35 cc, resulting in an energy reduction
of 51,82%. The results for other combinations can be seen in appendix B. This result is
however not better than running the current system with clutches, and it is not capable
of fulfilling the demand of dump time, requiring an additional pump to be installed.
The best pump displacement configuration that fulfils all given requirements is D1 =
10 cc, D2 = 28 cc and D3 = 92 cc which reduces the consumed energy with 48,09%.
Figure 6.4a displays how many pumps are in use while figure 6.4b shows which pump
44
Chapter 6. Results
(a) Drive cycle (b) Dump cycle. The useful energy is the same as
in the current system.
Figure 6.3: Distribution of inserted energy with a Constant flow concept
displacement configuration the controller has chosen. Observe that D3 is only activated
when combinations of D1 and D2 are insufficient.
45
(a) Number of pumps in use
(b) The pump displacement in use
Figure 6.4: A constant flow concept with clutches implemented on a drive cycle. The
controller can choose the most suitable pumps for the moment.
46
Chapter 6. Results
Table 6.1: Sensitivity analysis of two unknown parameters in the constant flow system.
The pressure drop over the valve and pressure limit which the hydraulics are not used
below. The inserted energy for the fan system is excluded from these results.
Pressure Energy
Drop, F Limit, G Inserted Waste
bar bar % %
5 45 285,94 98,181
5 40 334,92 97,980
0,5 35 355,58 97,877
1 35 358,22 97,855
3 35 368,65 97,918
5 35 378,94 97,949
10 35 404,01 98,014
5 30 429,16 98,023
5 25 469,58 98,119
Constant Pressure
Applying only the constant pressure concept to the system has been shown to generate
great losses with an inserted energy of more than three times higher than the current
system, see figure 6.5a. The pie chart shows major losses occurring during steering.
This occurs because the provided system pressure that is needed to perform a dumping
highly exceeds the steering pressure demand. The inserted energy during, figure 6.5b
dumping is also higher than the current system. Clutches were implemented in an effort
to make the system more effective. The pumps not needed to fulfil the flow demand are
disconnected. Even doing so it was not possible to reduce the energy consumption to
a lower level than the current system. It is believed that the greatest reason for this
is the displacement of the primary active pump being the auxiliary pump. This is why
also this concept was tested with various pump displacements. The controller works as
previously explained where the best possible pump is chosen except for the auxiliary
pump which only activates as a last resort. A hydraulic system with a constant pressure
can achieve a better result than the current system as seen in table 6.5. The best result
is achieved by having the following pump sizes; D1 = 10 cc, D2 = 28 cc and D3 = 92 cc.
The improvement will show to not be more efficient than the Displacement Reduction
concept which are without clutches and therefore cheaper. The resulting reduction
achieved in inserted energy will probably not justify the increase in cost made by the
couplings.
47
(a) Drive cycle (b) Dump cycle
Figure 6.5: Distribution of inserted energy with a Constant pressure concept
6.2.2 Displacement reduction

The simulation on the displacement reduction was made in Matlab simply by changing
the displacement on pump 1 and 6 in the calculations. This resulted in a reduced energy
consumption of 22% during the steering cycle, the distribution can be seen in figure
6.6a. The idle losses have as expected been reduced in comparison with the current
system but it is still the main source of losses, whereas the distribution when dumping
hardly changes, see figure 6.6b. Reducing the size of pump 6 has increased the mean
displacement setting, see figure 6.7a. The total displacement of the pumps that are
active when dumping, pump 2 – 6, is a little less than that of the current system. It can
be seen in figure 6.7b that the displacement setting has increased a bit but otherwise it
is quite similar to the current system results.
(a) Drive cycle (b) Dump cycle
Figure 6.6: Distribution of inserted energy with the Displacement reduction concept
48
Chapter 6. Results
(a) Drive cycle
(b) Dump cycle
Figure 6.7: Displacement settings for the Displacement reduction concept
49
6.2.3 Clutches
Implementing clutches has proven to be an efficient way of reducing idle losses in the
steering circuit. Idle losses are not relevant when dumping since all pumps are set on
a high displacement setting. Simulations have been made with clutches on pump 1, 2
and 3. The results can be seen in 6.8a and 6.8b. The inserted energy is almost the
same when implementing clutches on the current system and the reduced displacement
system, the difference lies in the idle losses. It has been reduced on the displacement
reduction system due to reducing the size on the radiator fan pump. Implementing
clutches can further be seen to reduce the energy consumption with about 57 %.
On the reduced displacement version of this concept tests were made implementing
the alternative steering configuration, figure 5.2a, and changing the pump displacements.
The results on various sizes on pumps and different control strategies for when connecting
the clutches is presented in table B.3. The best combination of pump sizes is: D2 = 28 cc,
D3 = 100 cc and D8 = 71 cc. The auxiliary pump and the fan pumps have also been
implemented with clutches in this case. As seen when comparing figure 6.8b and 6.9
doing so reduced the losses another 4%. In all clutch simulations the clutches are assumed
ideal.
(a) Current system. Clutches on pump 1, 2 and 3. (b) Displacement Reduction. Clutches on pump 2
and 3.
Figure 6.8: Distribution of inserted energy during a drive cycle using clutches.
50
Chapter 6. Results
Figure 6.9: Energy distribution of the best Displacement reduction concept with clutches
implemented on a drive cycle.
6.2.4 Flow control
A flow control approach is evaluated to see how much can be gained when changing
from a load sensing system. Changing to Flow Control and thus reducing the pressure
margin on the current system will result in a reduced energy of 10% seen in figure
6.10a. An additional 15 % is reduced when implementing Flow Control on the Reduced
Displacement concept, see figure 6.10b. Combining a system with both clutches and
flow control has naturally improved the system even more. 90% of the idle losses in a
steering cycle is eliminated when implementing it on the current system.
(a) Current system (b) Displacement Reduction
Figure 6.10: Distribution of inserted energy during a drive cycle using flow control.
51
6.2.5 Digital Pump

The digital displacement pump has no data for the idle loss so it is not included. There-
fore the result presented here is as good as it will get in ideal conditions. The system
analysed in Matlab shows an energy reduction of 65%, figure 6.11a. Figure 6.11b displays
what the pump displacement is during the steering cycle.
(a) Energy distribution during a drive cycle (b) Pump displacement during a drive cycle
Figure 6.11: Results with an Artemis Digital Displacement Pump
Implementing Mathers pumps decreases the energy consumption of the system, see
figure 6.12a due to their on/off properties. The chosen sizes for the pumps during these
simulations have been; D2 = 30 cc, D3 = 90 cc and D8 = 71 cc. The sum displacement
of those pumps is presented in figure 6.12b. The Mathers concept reduces the energy
with 27%.
(a) Energy distribution during a drive cycle (b) Pump displacement during a drive cycle
Figure 6.12: Results with a Mathers Fuel Saving Vane Pump
52
Chapter 6. Results
6.2.6 Individual Metering

This concept is not simulated. Only initial calculations where made resulting in non
realizable results. If looking at the regenerative mode equation 4.29 gives that the
system pressure would reach 694 bar with today’s dumping cylinders. This pressure
level is too high to be implemented on a hauler. If increasing the piston rod diameter
the pressure decreases. Decreasing the pressure, the pump size can no longer be reduced
as much and then there is no benefit in introducing this concept into the system. The
pressure level and pump displacement required for different piston rod diameters can be
seen in figure 6.13.
Figure 6.13: Dumping piston rod diameter vs. Required system pressure and displace-
ment of pumps.
6.2.7 Accumulators
Accumulator in constant pressure system
Simulations with accumulators where made in co-simulation using Amesim and Simulink.
This was done in order to get a sufficient model for the accumulator. Three different
cases of this concept were evaluated where the pump size and allowed pressure difference
were modified. They are presented in table 6.2. The size of the pump does not affect the
result as much as expected, instead the pressure difference has a more favourable impact.
However the pressure may not be allowed to drop that low in reality. This concept does
add expensive components to the system without increasing efficiency more than what
the Displacement Reduction does, making this an unsuitable concept to realize.
53
Table 6.2: Results for simulation of the steering system with accumulators and pumps
with clutches. For the inserted energy the current system is used as a reference, repre-
senting 100 %. The waste is presented in % of the inserted energy.
System Pump size Pressure Energy

Min Max Inserted Waste
cc bar bar % %
Acc. Simulation 3 45 150 250 49,40 81,82
Acc. Simulation 2 45 200 250 57,32 84,33
Acc. Simulation 1 100 200 250 57,59 84,41
Accumulators to reduce auxiliary steering pump
Aiding the auxiliary steering pump with an accumulator has not given an satisfactory
result. The inserted energy is reduced to approximately 90% when replacing the 71 cc
pump with an 10 cc. Implementing a 10 cc pump roughly demands a 42 litre accumulator
with the current setup, seen in figure 5.2b. The alternative setup where the flow demand
is reduced requires about a 22 litre accumulator. Table 6.3 presents more results from
simulations with various sizes on the auxiliary pump. Downsizing the pump to a size of
45 cc reduces the inserted energy to 95.85%, 79.39 % of that part becomes waste. The
degree of improvement is not enough to justify the sizes of accumulators needed, in cost
and volume.
Table 6.3: The current system with different sizes of the auxiliary steering pump. For
the inserted energy the current system is used as a reference, representing 100 %. The
waste is presented in % of the inserted energy.
Pump Energy
size Inserted Waste
cc % %
10 90,43 78,15
18 91,59 78,43
28 93,17 78,79
35 94,21 79,04
45 95,85 79,39
60 98,24 79,89
71 100,00 80,24
54
Chapter 6. Results
Dump using accumulators

Initial calculations on the oil volume needed to perform a dump showed a need of approx-
imately 85 litres. Calculating the accumulator size from that and the given pressures
results in a demand of a 250 l accumulator. Simulations in Amesim were later on made
to confirm that number. Such accumulator would if installed as a single unit have a di-
ameter of 350 mm and a length of 3,76 metres. The weight would be just above 800 kg.
Unless the energy can be recovered from braking there is no advantage of this concept.
Doing so seems unlikely if studying data given by Volvo CE.
6.2.8 Fan Circuits

Simulations were made to see if the there could be anything done to increase the per-
formance in the fan circuits. Different displacements in parallel and series connections
have been examined. As seen in table 6.4 connecting the fans in series would result in
the lowest energy consumption, however the pump pressure will increase and at full fan
speed it will be to high. Also the parallel concept perform quite well.
Table 6.4: Power savings for different configurations of the fan circuits.
Displacement
Configuration Motor Pump Power Comment
cc cc %
Current 100,00
Separate 11 28 77,09 Two pumps
Separate 10 28 76,73 Two pumps
Parallel 11 45 66,46
Parallel 10 45 63,57
Parallel 10 28 57,98 Can not fulfil flow demand
Parallel 10 35 57,93 Can not fulfil flow demand
Series 11 28 56,96
Series 11 45 74,81
Series 10 45 74,62
Series 10 28 52,33
Series 10 35 58,79
6.3 Economy
When evaluating the cost of different concepts the prices are estimated and set to what
is considered achievable prices for Volvo CE. The prices can be seen in C.1. They have
been normalised with respect to the price of a variable axial piston pump. To clarify
how to read the table look at the membrane accumulator. The cost per litre is 8% of the
55
cost for a variable axial piston pump. If buying an accumulator with a volume of 12.5 l
the price would be equal to the price of the pump. For those concepts that are evaluated
with different displacements on the pump the best combination that fulfils all demands
have been chosen to be evaluated in a cost perspective. In table 6.5 the payback time
and cost change is in relation to the current system. All concepts do not give relevant
number on the payback time. If the system cost is lower than that of the current system
and the energy consumption is higher, the number would describe how many hours the
concept can be used before it becomes uneconomic. To avoid confusion these number
are replaced with NA. Another case is the negative payback time. This occurs when the
concept is better than the current system in all aspects, meaning that it is economically
feasible from the first hour of use. Since the Displacement reduction is seen as a simple
solution a table showing the payback time and cost reduction in relation to this concept
is also presented, table C.2.
56
Chapter 6. Results
Table 6.5: Cost for different concepts, where a maximum payback time of 1400 hours
is acceptable. Concepts containing a clutch assume claw coupling unless anything else
is said. Changes are calculated using the current system as a reference. * denotes that
the best possible combination of pump displacement where used to calculate energy
consumption.
Cost Energy Payback

Concept Inserted Time
% % h
Current 100 100,00
Artemis DDP 204 34,73 1 165
Accumulators & Clutch 559 81,35 17 901
Current Clutch Claw 131 45,15 407
Current Clutch Lamella 137 45,15 496
Current Const. Flow 91 378,94 NA
Current Const. Flow & Clutch 132 90,34 2 413
Current Const. Flow & Clutch* 132 51,91 485
Current Const. Pressure 100 283,78 NA
Current Const. Pressure & Clutch* 141 82,85 1 736
Current Flow Control 127 90,00 1 941
Current Flow Control & Clutch 157 40,83 705
Current NO Aux. Steering Pump 216 88,77 5 186
Mathers FSV 98 73,25 - 61
Displacement Redduction (Red.) 88 77,76 - 393
Red. Clutch Claw 108 39,54 102
Red. Clutch Lamella 113 39,54 155
Red. Const. Flow 81 291,41 NA
Red. Const. Flow & Clutch* 102 51,91 27
Red. Const. Flow Cheap 56 291,41 NA
Red. Const. Pressure 88 218,04 NA
Red. Const. Pressure & Clutch* 108 82,85 359
Red. Flow Control 110 69,88 247
Red. Flow Control & Clutch 131 38,25 362
Red. NO Aux. Steering Pump 172 66,93 1 595
57
58
Chapter 7
Conclusions and Discussion
This master thesis concludes that the displacement reduction concept is an obvious
action. Beyond that there is great insecurity whether the cost per percent improvement
can motivate further exploration of the concepts. It is found that the hydraulic system on
the articulated hauler at Volvo CE is dimensioned to manage conditions rarely occurring.
This results in a low efficiency for the majority of time. Although the current system
was found poor it is hard to increase efficiency without increasing cost and complexity.
Noteworthy is that if looking at the total energy consumption of the hauler the
hydraulic stands for 7,17%. Of these 5,75 percentage points are losses that ideally could
be reduced. Knowing these limits and without further knowledge of the transmission
efficiency it might be a good idea to also evaluate what can be done to improve these
components. Another aspect that has to be considered for all concepts is the price
of complexity. Sure some concepts do improve energy efficiency and might have an
acceptable payback time but the system complexity is highly increased. For such a
system there might be necessary to put a price on the complexity as well. This price has
to cover for hidden costs such as development cost, customer support, education of service
technicians. Another downside of the increased complexity, affecting the customer, is
the increased downtime when troubleshooting that will most likely occur.
The two conventional concepts, constant flow and constant pressure, have some un-
certain parameters but it is clear that they can not compare with the efficiency of the
current system. Even if implementing clutches the constant pressure will never be a vi-
able concept to install. The constant flow concept with clutches performs better, but not
as good as the current system with clutches. Despite this it might be an option since it
might be easier to implement clutches on this system than in the LS-system. This is due
to the variable pumps construction. They do in most cases require a speed in order to
uphold the lubrication. If accelerating the pump fast without proper oil film to lubricate
components the pump might be damaged. Another positive aspect of the constant flow
system is the reduced system cost. When implementing clutches several problems might
evolve. If using wet disc clutches there might be losses of the same magnitude as the
idle losses in the pump, resulting in a more complex system with the same efficiency as
of today. Dog clutches have no losses when disengaged but the speed difference between
59
the shafts needs to be relatively low. To enable the use of jaw clutches when the speed
difference is higher it might be possible to use a wrap-spring clutch to accelerate the
pump shaft so that the jaw can engage.
The flow control concept does improve the energy efficiency of the system but in-
creases the complexity of the system. The payback time is acceptable according to Volvo
CE requirements however it is arguable whether this rather small improvement can be
motivated anyway.
The digital hydraulic technology is interesting and believed to be a reasonable al-
ternative in the future. However it is not developed enough to be implemented at the
current state. Further test by the producers and inventors are necessary to find out
accurate values on losses in the pumps and the reliability of the components. Volvo
CE should of course follow the development in this area of technology and, if it still
shows the same potential, consider implementing technology when it is found reliable
and economically feasible.
The individual metering is believed to be a good and efficient concept however not
on an articulated hauler. The volumes and forces in play on an hauler was to big to
give realistic system parameters. This concept could be implemented on other machines
such as wheel loaders where energy from the working hydraulics could be recovered or
redirected to another function used at the same time. This concept is the only one that
would potentially require a change of dumping valve if implemented. In which case,
consideration for all existing modes and the over center function must be taken into
account when creating the controller software.
All concepts including accumulators as a large energy storage are non-realistic to
implement due to the price and space that is required for such large accumulators.
The reduced energy consumption is not high enough to motivate that extreme rise in
price and weight added to the hauler. Another aspect against accumulators is that the
hydraulics of the hauler are not used that often and not in a well defined drive cycle.
Implementing accumulator requires dimensioning against a certain case but since the
articulated hauler is a versatile vehicle no such case exists. Therefore the accumulators
will be dimensioned to cover an extreme case, making them inefficient. They are more
suited for operations when several functions are used in sequence. The use of small
accumulators could be motivated to cover for instantaneous flow, pressure change when
engaging or disengaging clutches or to handle pressure spikes. They can also be used to
improve the dynamics of the system.
Looking at the fan circuits the current configuration with one pump for each motor is
luxurious and it could be possible to select displacements to make it more efficient than
today. For this purpose some alternative system configurations have been investigated
in this report. Of these the series connection is the one performing best, however it is
believed that this configuration will have a higher cost since several valves are needed if
only one fan is to be used at the time. Another problem seen in the series configuration
is that the pump pressure will be to high at full fan speed. Therefore the parallel concept
is seen preferable if considering a configuration with only one pump. Changes in the fan
circuits should not have highest priority when implementing new concepts.
60
Chapter 7. Conclusions and Discussion
The time requirements which have to be met, both dumping and steering time, are
successfully completed by most hydraulic systems in the concept chapter. This is the case
if the displacement setting in a simulation does not exceed 1. Both time requirements
are fulfilled at approximately the same pump displacement. Since the dumping cycle
requires the most displacement these two requirements are therefore fulfilled if a concept
successfully completes this cycle.
In the current system one pump has electric displacement control implemented. This
feature is needed to prevent stalling of the diesel engine. When removing the pump with
electronic control the hydraulic power is decreased and the engine will no longer stall due
to too high hydraulic demand. A precise limit for when the engine stalls have not been
calculated in this project but since the required displacement can be fulfilled with the
displacement reduction concept this should not be a problem with any of the concepts.
In some concepts rapid flow changes could occur, these have to be handled in some
way to avoid safety issues. Unpredictable rapid flow changes may also generate oscilla-
tions of the hauler. This can cause discomfort and stress for the driver. If this happens
regularly, it can cause sick leave and high staff turnover. Flow changes that occur at
the wrong time can cause an accident and potentially harm the driver or people in the
vicinity.
One of the core values in Volvo CE is environmental care. Therefore decreasing the
fuel consumption should always be strived for when developing new machines. Most of
the concepts presented in this thesis will reduce fuel consumption and thereof also the
environmental impact caused by Volvo CE machines worldwide.
Further Studies
All concepts generated in this thesis requires further studying and practical testing, some
more than other, before they can be implemented and the results can be correctly vali-
dated. The clutches should be investigated to see if it is possible to connect/disconnect
a pump with such a frequency and at such an axle speed difference needed. Different
strategies on how to engage the clutches also needs to be evaluated. This study should
be done carefully considering it can be critical to the safety of the machine, since rapid
flow changes can easily be caused using clutches. It is believed by the authors that a
wet clutch will have losses equal to the idle losses in the pump and is therefore not a
viable alternative. The most realistic option seen is a jaw coupling together with a valve
making it possible to connect the pump without any torque applied. The valve can be
of different types, some alternatives thought of by the authors are a 3/2-valve, directing
flow to tank. The valve could be either ON/OFF or proportional. An other option
could be a 2/2 valve that opens flow to tank. This is possible under the assumption
that there is a check valve installed preventing flow from the rest of the system to enter
this valve. The control strategies for when to engage a pump and what pump to engage
needs further exploring. The two simple strategies tested in this project did not result
in a clear answer to which is the better. It is believed that this highly depends on the
pump displacements and the rotational speed of the pump.
61
Pump efficiencies used on simulations originate from data provided by the manufac-
turer. It would be of interest to examine and further evaluate pumps in-house, especially
in conditions typical for a hauler pump, low displacement setting and differential pres-
sure. This data would further improve and raise the credibility of simulations made on
the hauler.
62
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[1] Mikael Axin. Fluid Power systems for Mobile Applications - With a Focus on Energy
Effieciency and Dynamic Characteristics. Licentiate thesis, Linköping University,
2013.
[2] Mikael Axin, Björn Eriksson, and Petter Krus. Flow versus pressure control of
pumps in mobile hydraulic systems. In Proceedings of the Institution of mechanical
engineers. Part I, journal of systems and control engineering, volume 228, pages
245–256, April 2014.
[3] Alessandro Dell’Amico, Marcus Carlsson, Erik Norlin, and Magnus Sethson. Inves-
tigation of a digital hydraulic actuation system on an excavator arm. In The 13th
Scandinavian International Conference on Fluid Power, SICFP2013, Linköping
Sweden, pages 505–511. Linköping University Electronic Press; Linköpings univer-
sitet, June 2013.
[4] Björn Eriksson. Mobile Fluid Power Systems Design - with a Focus on Energy
Efficiency. PhD thesis, Linköping University, 2010.
[5] Center for Compact & Efficient Fluid Power. Research overview. Presented for
Volvo CE, May 2014.
[6] Instutitionen för Konstruktions-och Produktionsteknik. Formelsamling i hydraulik
och pneumatik, 1995.
[7] Kim Heybroek. Saving Energy in Construction Machinery using Displacement Con-
trol hydraulics - Concept Realization and Validation. Licentiate thesis, Linköping
University, 2008.
[8] Christopher M. Hodge. Industrial wet clutches, fluid couplings and torque convert-
ers. Technical report, PT Tech.
[9] Hydraulic Piston Accumulators. Hydac.
[10] Erik Gustaf Liljebjörn and Robert Morelius. Energy study of the hydraulic system.
Master’s thesis, Linköping University, 2010.
[11] Erik Gustav Lilljebjörn. Articulated hauler hydraulic hybrid concept study. Internal
Clasified, Volvo CE.
63
[12] Artemis Intelligent Power Ltd. http://www.artemisip.com/our-technology,

March 2015.
[13] Olof Olsson and Karl-Erik Rydberg. Kompendium i Hydraulik. Institutionen för
konstruktions- & produktionsteknik, 1993.
[14] Projekthydraulik. Kurs i hydraulik, företagsanpassad. Prited, 1996.
[15] Dale Vanderlaan and Ralf Gomm. Velocity control of unbalanced hydraulic actuator
subject to over-center load conditions, Patent EP2318720, 2009.
[16] Luke Wadsley. Optimal system solutions enabled by digital pumps. Technical
report, Sauer-Danfoss (US) Company, 2011.
64
Appendix A
Simulation models
All models made in co-simulation between Amesim and Simulink uses a model similar to
the one seen in figure A.1. The principle behind these will be further described here. The
flow demand from steering have been previously calculated in Matlab. The proportional
2/2-valve is used to achieve the calculated flow in the simulation. The two pressure
sensors are used to calculate opening area of the valve and the flow sensor is used as a
feedback loop in the valve controller seen in figure A.2. The clutch engage/disengagement
is based on the system pressure and simulated using a trigger. The trigger is set to 1
when the pressure drops below a certain level and set to 0 when the maximum pressure
is reached. The gear between the power sensor and the angular velocity sensor models
the PTO gear ratio. In figure A.2 the Simulink controller for the valve can be seen. This
model is based on the flow equation (A.1) and has a feedback from the actual flow in
the Amesim model compensation for the offset error.
r
2
q = Cq A (p1 − p2 ) (A.1)
ρ
65
Figure A.1: AMESim model of the steering circuit including an accumulator, a pump
and a clutch functionality modelled as trigger with a function of the system pressure as
an input.
66
Appendix A. Simulation models
Figure A.2: Simulink model to calculate the valve opening to achieve the correct flow.
67
68
Appendix B
Displacement Variation
The setup when performing test on different pump displacements in a constant flow
system with clutches is described further here. The constant parameters not presented
in table B.1 are the displacement of the auxiliary steering pump and the useful energy.
The displacement of the auxiliary steering pump is 71 cc and the useful energy is 191.9
Wh. The controller is constructed to select the most favourable pump at all time.
The pumps can connect and disconnect instantaneously. These simulations where made
on the steering data so most of the configurations do not have enough displacement
to be able to dump the load. There are two ways of solving this problem. Either
install an additional pump to use only for dumping or change one of the pumps in the
configuration so that the displacement is enough for dumping. Some of the concepts
with enough displacement to dump instead have an excessive displacement increasing
the system cost. These excessive combinations however performed no good in the tests.
69
Table B.1: Different pump displacement and the corresponding energy consumption in
a constant flow system with clutches. The auxiliary steering pump is engaged only if
needed. The most efficient configuration is 10, 18 and 35 cc. If considering the ability
to dump the best combination is 10, 28 and 92 cc.
Displacement Energy Possible

P1 P2 P3 Inserted Waste to dump
cc cc cc % %
10 10 10 49,88 62,82 NO
10 10 18 48,71 61,92 NO
10 10 28 48,51 61,77 NO
10 10 35 48,90 62,07 NO
10 10 45 50,19 63,05 NO
10 10 60 52,80 64,87 NO
10 10 71 54,77 66,14 NO
10 10 92 58,55 68,32 NO
10 18 18 48,37 61,65 NO
10 18 28 48,26 61,57 NO
10 18 35 48,18 61,50 NO
10 18 45 48,63 61,86 NO
10 18 60 49,95 62,87 NO
10 18 71 50,98 63,61 NO
10 18 92 52,95 64,97 NO
10 28 28 50,63 63,36 NO
10 28 35 50,24 63,08 NO
10 28 45 50,32 63,14 NO
10 28 60 50,76 63,46 NO
10 28 71 51,16 63,74 NO
10 28 92 51,91 64,27 YES
10 35 35 52,96 64,98 NO
10 35 45 52,63 64,76 NO
10 35 60 52,66 64,78 NO
10 35 71 52,75 64,84 NO
10 35 92 52,92 64,95 YES
10 45 45 56,42 67,12 NO
10 45 60 56,41 67,12 NO
10 45 71 56,41 67,12 YES
10 45 92 56,42 67,12 YES
10 60 60 62,75 70,44 YES
10 60 71 62,75 70,44 YES
10 60 92 62,75 70,44 YES
18 18 18 59,97 69,07 NO
70
Appendix B. Displacement Variation
Table B.1: Different pump displacement and the corresponding energy consumption in
a constant flow system with clutches. The auxiliary steering pump is engaged only if
needed. The most efficient configuration is 10, 18 and 35 cc. If considering the ability
to dump the best combination is 10, 28 and 92 cc.

cc cc cc % %
18 18 28 58,72 68,41 NO
18 18 35 59,75 68,96 NO
18 18 45 59,69 68,93 NO
18 18 60 60,24 69,21 NO
18 18 71 60,74 69,46 NO
18 18 92 61,71 69,94 YES
18 28 28 59,13 68,63 NO
18 28 35 58,63 68,36 NO
18 28 45 59,10 68,61 NO
18 28 60 59,16 68,65 NO
18 28 71 59,24 68,69 NO
18 28 92 59,40 68,78 YES
18 35 35 59,82 68,99 NO
18 35 45 59,48 68,82 NO
18 35 60 59,82 68,99 NO
18 35 71 59,82 68,99 YES
18 35 92 59,83 69,00 YES
18 45 45 61,26 69,72 NO
18 45 60 61,23 69,71 YES
18 45 71 61,26 69,72 YES
18 45 92 61,26 69,72 YES
18 60 60 64,41 71,20 YES
18 60 71 64,41 71,20 YES
18 60 92 64,41 71,20 YES
Similar tests where made on the constant pressure system. The best combination
considering the ability to dump would be 10, 28 and 92 cc. As seen in table B.2 the
result from this concept is more energy efficient than the current system but can not
reach the same level as the displacement reduction concept . Therefore this concept will
never be a viable option to use in the Volvo CE articulated haulers.
71
Table B.2: Constant pressure system with clutches and various displacement combina-
tions. The size of the auxiliary steering pump is 71 cc and it is engaged only when
needed. The best combination considering the possibility to dump is 10, 28 and 92.

cc cc cc % %
10 10 10 82,54 76,07 NO
10 10 18 82,66 76,10 NO
10 10 28 82,73 76,12 NO
10 10 35 82,73 76,12 NO
10 10 45 82,71 76,11 NO
10 10 60 82,87 76,16 NO
10 10 71 83,10 76,23 NO
10 10 92 83,60 76,37 NO
10 18 18 82,70 76,11 NO
10 18 28 82,76 76,13 NO
10 18 35 82,76 76,13 NO
10 18 45 82,68 76,10 NO
10 18 60 82,65 76,10 NO
10 18 71 82,74 76,12 NO
10 18 92 83,00 76,20 YES
10 28 28 82,80 76,14 NO
10 28 35 82,87 76,16 NO
10 28 45 82,85 76,15 NO
10 28 60 82,78 76,13 NO
10 28 71 82,78 76,13 NO
10 28 92 82,85 76,15 YES
10 35 35 85,33 76,85 NO
10 35 45 85,35 76,85 NO
10 35 60 85,34 76,85 NO
10 35 71 85,33 76,85 NO
10 35 92 85,37 76,86 YES
10 45 45 86,20 77,08 NO
10 45 60 86,21 77,08 NO
10 45 71 86,21 77,08 YES
10 45 92 86,20 77,08 YES
10 60 60 87,61 77,45 YES
10 60 71 87,61 77,45 YES
10 60 92 87,61 77,45 YES
18 10 10 82,66 76,10 NO
18 10 18 82,70 76,11 NO
72
Table B.2: Constant pressure system with clutches and various displacement combina-
tions. The size of the auxiliary steering pump is 71 cc and it is engaged only when
needed. The best combination considering the possibility to dump is 10, 28 and 92.

cc cc cc % %
18 10 28 82,76 76,13 NO
18 10 35 82,76 76,13 NO
18 10 45 82,68 76,10 NO
18 10 60 82,65 76,10 NO
18 10 71 82,74 76,12 NO
18 10 92 83,00 76,20 YES
18 18 18 84,47 76,61 NO
18 18 28 84,53 76,63 NO
18 18 35 84,45 76,61 NO
18 18 45 84,49 76,62 NO
18 18 60 84,42 76,60 NO
18 18 71 84,43 76,60 NO
18 18 92 84,54 76,63 YES
18 28 28 84,47 76,61 NO
18 28 35 84,54 76,63 NO
18 28 45 84,47 76,61 NO
18 28 60 84,46 76,61 NO
18 28 71 84,45 76,61 NO
18 28 92 84,44 76,60 YES
18 35 35 84,43 76,60 NO
18 35 45 84,50 76,62 NO
18 35 60 84,44 76,60 NO
18 35 71 84,43 76,60 YES
18 35 92 84,42 76,60 YES
18 45 45 84,54 76,63 NO
18 45 60 84,55 76,63 YES
18 45 71 84,54 76,63 YES
18 45 92 84,54 76,63 YES
18 60 60 84,84 76,71 YES
18 60 71 84,84 76,71 YES
18 60 92 84,84 76,71 YES
Looking at the displacement reduction concept table B.4 and B.3 shows the result
for different combinations of pump displacement and two different order of engagement.
73
Looking at table B.4 it can be seen that in this strategy the energy consumption is
independent of the displacement of the auxiliary steering pump. The two different
strategies regarding the engagement the pumps where simulated in order to see whether
a clutch on the auxiliary steering pump was favourable. No distinct pattern showing
when one or the other alternative is favourable could be found in these simulations.
74
Table B.3: Displacement reduction with clutches and various displacement combinations.
The auxiliary steering pump is always engaged. If additional flow is required first D2
and then D3 is connected.
Energy
Auxiliary Pump D2 D3 D8 Inserted Waste
cc cc cc % %
Always engaged 28 60 28 37,97 47,96
Always engaged 28 60 35 38,65 48,89
Always engaged 28 60 45 39,32 49,75
Always engaged 28 60 60 40,88 51,67
Always engaged 28 60 71 42,39 53,40
Always engaged 28 85 28 38,01 48,03
Always engaged 28 85 35 38,69 48,94
Always engaged 28 85 45 39,34 49,78
Always engaged 28 85 60 40,90 51,69
Always engaged 28 85 71 42,39 53,40
Always engaged 28 100 28 38,04 48,07
Always engaged 28 100 35 38,71 48,96
Always engaged 28 100 45 39,35 49,79
Always engaged 28 100 60 40,90 51,69
Always engaged 28 100 71 42,40 53,41
Always engaged 35 85 28 38,10 48,15
Always engaged 35 85 35 38,79 49,07
Always engaged 35 85 45 39,40 49,85
Always engaged 35 85 60 40,92 51,72
Always engaged 35 85 71 42,42 53,43
Always engaged 60 28 28 38,70 48,95
Always engaged 60 28 35 39,32 49,75
Always engaged 60 28 45 39,77 50,33
Always engaged 60 28 60 41,13 51,96
Always engaged 60 28 71 42,57 53,59
Always engaged 60 60 28 38,70 48,95
Always engaged 60 60 35 39,32 49,75
Always engaged 60 60 45 39,77 50,33
Always engaged 60 60 60 41,13 51,96
Always engaged 60 60 71 42,57 53,59
75
Table B.4: Displacement reduction with clutches and various displacement combinations.
First the most efficient pump of D2 and D3 in selected. If the total flow from D2 and
D3 is insufficient the auxiliary steering pump is engaged to supply an additional flow.
Energy
Auxiliary Pump D2 D3 D8 Inserted Waste
cc cc cc % %
When required 28 60 28 39,41 49,87
When required 28 60 35 39,41 49,87
When required 28 60 45 39,41 49,87
When required 28 60 60 39,41 49,87
When required 28 60 71 39,41 49,87
When required 28 85 28 39,00 49,34
When required 28 85 35 39,00 49,34
When required 28 85 45 39,00 49,34
When required 28 85 60 39,00 49,34
When required 28 85 71 39,00 49,34
When required 28 100 71 38,99 49,33
When required 35 85 71 41,54 52,44
When required 60 60 71 49,50 60,09
76
Appendix C
System Cost & Payback Time
Table C.1: Price in percent of the estimated cost for a variable axial piston pump
Component Type Cost

%
Pump – Axial Variable 100
Pump – Axial Fixed 83
Pump – Gear 57
Electronic Pressure Control 17
Electronic Displacement Control 33
Axial Motor 11 - 18 cc 50
Axial Motor 10 cc 43
Poppet valve for 59 l/min 17
Poppet valve for 126 l/min 33
Pilot/Proportional valve 10
Membrane accumulator 8 per litre
Piston accumulator 13 per litre
Jaw Clutch 33
Disc Clutch 83
Electronic Steering 67
Pump – Artemis DDP 300
Pump – Mathers FSV 100
77
Table C.2: Cost for different concepts. Concepts containing a clutch assume claw cou-
pling unless anything else is said. Changes are calculated using the Displacement re-
duction concept as a reference. * denotes that the best possible combination of pump
displacement where used to calculate energy consumption
Cost Energy Fuel Payback

Concept Change Inserted Cost Time
% % SEK/h h
Displacement Reduction (Red.) 100,00 24,03
Artemis DDP 136 44,66 10,73 2 030
Accululators & Clutch 525 104,61 25,14 NA
Mathers FSV 0 94,20 22,64 0
Red. Clutch Claw* 35 50,14 12,05 576
Red. Clutch Lamella 28 58,06 13,95 556
Red. Const. Flow -8 374,75 90,06 NA
Red. Const. Flow & Clutch* 27 66,76 16,04 676
Red. Const. Flow Cheap -36 374,75 90,06 NA
Red. Const. Pressure 0 280,40 67,38 NA
Red. Const. Pressure & Clutch* 35 106,55 25,60 NA
Red. Flow Control 25 89,87 21,60 2 054
Red. Flow Control & Clutch 48 49,19 11,82 786
Red. NO Aux. Steering Pump 91 86,08 20,69 5 380
78

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Hydraulic Energy Efficiency

Design and evaluation of different hydraulic concepts

André Arana Escobedo

Master Thesis LIU-IEI-TEK-A--15/02236–SE

Design and evaluation of different hydraulic concepts

André Arana Escobedo

Examiner at LiU: Liselott Ericson

Master Thesis LIU-IEI-TEK-A--15/02236–SE

When our time as master students at Volvo CE in Eskilstuna is coming to an end we

7 Conclusions and Discussion 59

C System Cost & Payback Time 77

1.1 Figure showing when the ”Over Center” function is needed. . . . . . . . . 3

3.1 Principle sketch of a constant flow and constant pressure system. . . . . . 10

4.1 A typical Volvo test track . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

5.1 Clutch placement in the system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

6.1 Distribution of inserted energy with the Current system. . . . . . . . . . . 42

A.1 AMESim model of the steering circuit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

6.1 Sensitivity analysis of the constant flow system. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

B.1 Different pump displacement setting in a constant flow system . . . . . . 70

C.1 Component price . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

α Steering angle rad

γ Angle between right cylinder attachments rad

κ Turn speed deg/

µ Angle between left cylinder attachment rad

ω Angular velocity rad/

θ Dumping angle rad

A Length between front cylinder attachments and steering joint mm

Api Cylinder area on piston side mm2

Apr Cylinder area on piston rod side mm2

B Length between rear cylinder attachments and steering joint mm

NoP Number of pumps –

NoT Number of Turns –

b Width between steer cylinder attachments mm

l Perpendicular length between steer cylinder attachment and steering joint mm

lcw Width between lower dump cylinder attachments mm

n Number of revolutions per minute rpm

ucw Width between upper dump cylinder attachments mm

G Auxiliary steering pump

Ideal Ideal calculations

PTO Power Take Out

cur Current system

max Highest value

min Lowest value

tl Length between lower cylinder attachment and body rotational joint

DDP Digital Displacement ® Pump

FS Full Suspension system, an optional feature on the Volvo A35/A40

FSV Fuel Saving Vane Pump

PTO Power Take Out

rpm Revolutions per minute

As a result of increased climate awareness, energy efficiency in vehicles has become

1.3 Problem Description

 Comfort – The hauler should be comfortable to use.

 Safety – All safety legislations have to be fulfilled.

1.5 System Description

Figure 1.2: A simplified schematic of the hydraulics on the Volvo A40.

3.1 Conventional Systems

3.1.1 Constant Flow

PLoss = qpump · ppump − qload · pload (3.1)

3.1.2 Constant Pressure

PLoss = q · (ppump − pload ) (3.2)

qpump, ppump qload, q,

(a) Constant flow (b) Constant pressure

3.2 Load Sensing System

Figure 3.2: Principle of a load sensing system

Comfort – The hauler should be comfortable to use.

Safety – All safety legislations have to be fulfilled.

Vehicle speed km/

Radiator fan speed rev/

Intercooler fan speed rev/

Pressure in steering cylinders bar