FLUID POWER!

TODAY
Learn some fluid power basics Hands-on project with pneumatic components Some possibilities for your FIRST robot

What is fluid power?

Uses:
Heavy equipment Construction industry Off-road vehicles Manufacturing

WHY FLUID POWER?

STRONG!
LIGHT! EASY!

Fluid Power is Unique Unparalleled torque, power and bandwidth for the same weight or volume.
Example: Power/Weight (kW/kg) Pneumatic Motor 0.3-0.4

Hydraulic Motor
Electric Motor

0.5-1.0
0.03-0.1

Fluid power weight advantage = 10:1

Reference: I. L. Krivts and G. V. Krejnin, Pneumatic Actuating Systems for Automatic Equipment, Taylor and Francis, 2006.
CCEFP

CENTER FOR COMPACT AND EFFICIENT FLUID POWER

100 mpg automobile Efficient off-road equipment Compact and portable

CCEFP

CCEFP testbeds
TB1: Excavator TB2*: Injection molding machine

Existing FP applications

FP enabled breakthroughs in transportation

TB3: small Urban Vehicle (sUV)

TB5*: FP assisted hand tools

TB4: Compact Rescue Crawler

* Reduced or delayed funding

New industries & applications

TB6: FP assisted orthoses & prostheses

CCEFP

Master Pneumatic

National Tube Supply Company

Ralph Rivera

HIGH COUNTRY TEK

Member of the Schaeffler Group

Pneumatics compared to hydraulics

No problems of a spills Compressibility stores energy
Available for your use Dangerous if excessive volumes or pressures

Difficult to control precisely Fluid is readily available

Should be filtered, dry

Safety Must Always Be Considered!

Usually lower forces

Pressure of an ideal Gas

Pressure of a gas is due to the force of gas molecules bouncing off the walls. Pressure increases when molecules are moving faster, heavier, or if there are more molecules. Molecules move faster when they are hot. mR depends on molecule.

Pressure P

P V mR T

Getting Work out of Air

Work is force acting over a distance, ftlbs. Put air in a container under pressure Allow part of the container to expand The expanding part does work

How much energy is in a tank filled with compressed air?

Assume constant temperature:

PV mRT constant
Energy:

E PV ln( P / Patm )
P = pressure in tank (absolute) V = volume of tank Patm= atmospheric pressure = 101,325 Pa or 14.7 psi

How much energy is in a small air tank?

Tank Volume = 150 ml or 9.154 in3 Pressure = 413,700 Pa or 60 psi (over Patm) Patm = 101,325 Pa or 14.7 psi
Answer: Energy = PV ln(P/Patm) = 0.15 x 515025 x ln(74.7/14.7) = 125 kJ
Challenge question: How high could the instructor be lifted using the energy in one tank?

How much energy in your tank can you use?

Line losses: Pressure drop proportional to flow Throttling losses: Pressure drop proportional to flow squared Cylinder friction: Coulomb plus viscous friction, depends on seals

Force available
Pressure x Area = Force Area = pi x Bore2 / 4 For example cylinder:
Bore = 10 mm = .394 in. Area = .122 in2 Force = PxA = 60 psi x .122 in2 = 7 lbs
Pressure P Area AP Force F

CYLINDER FORCE AT 60 PSI

800 700 600

fORCE (LBS)

500 400 300 200 100 0 0 1 2 BORE (IN.) 3 4 5

The Effect of Different Areas

Pressure P Area AP Area AR

Pressure P

Force F Pressure Patmosphere

How much force F is necessary to hold the rod still?

Pneumatic components seen in the FIRST Robotics competition

LET'S BUILD!