Fluid Power Systems (ME353)

Fall 2012
Lecture 6

Actuators
Workhorses of the System

Hydraulic Cylinders

Hydraulic Cylinders
Actuators are the components used in a
hydraulic system to provide power to a required
work location
Cylinders are the hydraulic system components
that convert fluid pressure and flow into linear
mechanical force and movement

 A basic cylinder consists of:

Piston
Piston rod
Barrel

 The piston forms sealed, variable-volume chambers in the

cylinder
System fluid forced into the chambers drives the piston and rod
assembly
Linear movement is produced

 Seals prevent leakage between:

Piston and cylinder barrel
Piston rod and head
Barrel and its endpieces
Wiper seal, or scraper, prevents dirt and water from entering the cylinder
during rod retraction

Hydraulic Cylinder
classifications
Cylinders are typically classified by operating
principle or by construction type
Single-acting or double-acting
Tie rod, mill, threaded end, or one piece

 Single- and double-acting cylinders

Single-acting

Double-acting

 Single-acting cylinders
The circuit generates force in the extension only
They require an outside force to complete the second motion

Double-acting cylinders generate force during both extension

and retraction
Directional control valve alternately directs fluid to opposite
sides of the piston
Force output varies between extension and retraction

 Effective piston area is reduced on retraction

due to the rod cross section

 Volume is reduced on retraction

 Classification according to construction Type:

External tie rod bolts are used to secure the ends on the Tie-Rod cylinder
design
Commonly found on heavy industrial machines
External tie rods increase chance of damage and promote accumulation
of dirt

 Mill cylinders

Threaded-end cylinder

One-piece cylinder has the cylinder barrel welded to the ends

Produces a compact actuator
Cost effective to manufacture
Cannot be serviced (throwaway)

Yates Industries, Inc.

 Hydraulic Ram is commonly

used in hand-operated jacks
Rod is basically the same
diameter as the inside of the
cylinder barrel
Large-diameter rod is more rigid
under load, but cylinder can
generate force in only one
direction (no volume for the
hydraulic fluid in the rod side)

 Telescoping cylinders
are available for applications
requiring long extension
distances
Rod is made up of several
tubes of varying size nested
inside of the barrel
Each tube extends,
producing a rod longer than
the cylinder barrel
Typical example is the
actuator that raises the box
on a dump truck

 Cylinders often use Hydraulic Cushions Devices

Provide a controlled approach to the end of the stroke
Reduces the shock of the impact as the piston contacts the
cylinder head

 A variety of mounting configurations are used to attach the cylinder body

and rod end to machinery

Fixed centerline
Fixed-noncenterline
Pivoting centerline (clevis mount or trunnion mount)
Expected cylinder loading is the major factor in the selection of the mounting style

 The force generated by a cylinder is calculated by multiplying

the effective area of the piston by the system pressure

Aext > Aret

Fext > Fret (Constant pressure P)
Vext < Vret (Constant Flow Rate Q)

 Hydraulic cylinder manufacturers provide detailed

specifications concerning:
Construction
Physical size
Load capacity

This information includes basic factors such as:

Bore
Stroke
Pressure rating
Other details, such as service rating, rod end configurations,
and dimensions

 Typical manufacturers catalog page

Limited-Rotation Hydraulic Actuators

Limited-rotation devices are actuators with an output shaft that typically
applies torque through approximately 360 of rotation
Models are available that are limited to less than one revolution, while others
may produce several revolutions
Most common designs of limited-rotation actuators are:
Rack-and-pinion
Vane
Helical piston and rod

 Rack-and-pinion

Vane limited-rotation actuator

Helical piston and rod

 Limited-rotation actuators are used to perform a number of

functions in a variety of industrial situations
Indexing devices on machine tools
Clamping of workpieces
Operation of large valves

Hydraulic Motors

 Hydraulic motors are called rotary actuators

They convert fluid pressure and flow into
torque and rotational movement

 All basic hydraulic motors consist of three

component groups:
Housing
Rotating internal parts
Power output shaft

System fluid enters the housing and applies pressure to the rotating internal
parts
This, in turn, moves the power output shaft and applies torque to rotate a
load

 Primary parts that produce the rotating motion in most hydraulic

motors are either:
Gears
Vanes
Pistons
Four requirements of a motor

 Displacement of a hydraulic motor indicates the volume of

fluid needed to turn the output shaft one revolution
Fixed displacement
Variable displacement
In a fixed-displacement motor:
Internal geometry cannot be changed
Same volume needed per output shaft revolution
In a variable-displacement motor:
Internal geometry can be changed
Displacement per shaft revolution can be adjusted
Motor can operate at variable speeds with a constant input
flow

1- Gear Hydraulic Motors

The external gear hydraulic motor is the most
common and simplest of the basic motor types
Fixed displacement
Unbalanced load on the bearings

 The most common internal gear motor has a

gerotor design

2- Hydraulic Vane Motors

Basic vane motor has a slotted rotor located off center in a circular
chamber and fitted with movable vanes
Space between the vanes creates a number of variable-sized chambers
Forcing fluid into the small-size chambers causes the volume of the
chambers to increase, turning the motor shaft
Basic vane motor is fixed displacement with an unbalanced bearing
load

 Balanced vane motors evenly distribute the load on the bearings

Achieved by operating the rotor and vanes in a slightly oblong chamber
Allows two inlet ports and two outlets ports to be used in the motor
Placing ports opposite each other balances bearing loading

 Vane motors are available as either fixed or variable displacement

The variable-displacement feature allows an operator to change the speed of
a motor without changing the system flow rate

In variable-displacement designs, the chamber in which the rotor and vanes

operate is contained in a moveable ring
When the center point of the rotor and ring are concentric, the
displacement is zero
Moving the ring so the center points are not concentric increases the
motor displacement and changes motor speed

3- Hydraulic Piston Motors

Piston motors are available having either fixed or variable displacements
In variable-displacement designs, the length of the piston stroke is changed
to vary the volume of fluid needed to rotate the motor one revolution
Two basic classifications of piston motors are axial piston and radial piston
An axial piston motor has pistons with centerlines parallel to the axis of
the output shaft
A radial piston motor has pistons with centerlines perpendicular to the
axis of the output shaft

 Axial piston motors are available in two configurations:

Inline
Bent axis
In an inline piston motor:
Centerline of the barrel is concentric with the centerline of the power
output shaft
A swash plate transmits force from the pistons to the shaft

 In a bent-axis piston motor:

Centerline of the barrel is at an angle to the centerline of the output shaft
A universal joint and other fittings are used to transmit force between the
barrel and the output shaft