Fluid Power Basics

LunchBox Sessions, the Canadian-based online hydraulics training platform, continues to grow, now with 13,000 current users across 97 countries. I recently caught up with Carl Dyke, the longtime Fluid Power World contributor, whose company, CD Industrial Group, created the dynamic sessions. Dyke said that LunchBox Sessions is now being used on a regular basis in more…

By Josh Cosford, Contributing Editor Stainless steel air and hydraulic cylinders are used in applications where corrosion resistance is the utmost priority. Standard cylinders are made from combinations of alloy steel, such as 1018, 1045 and 4140, which are all susceptible to oxidation and rust in humid or wet applications. Even when epoxy painted, carbon…

This week, I visited longtime Fluid Power World contributor Carl Dyke at his Alberta-based business, CD Industrial Group. The company conducts industrial training programs all across North America, and also has developed the popular Lunchbox Sessions, an extensive series of online fluid power learning modules. One of the things that really impressed me was a large…

The base symbol for the hydraulic pump (Figure 1) is actually quite simple. It starts with the standard circle and a directional arrow pointing out one end from within that circle. The solid-filled triangle makes this a hydraulic pump while pneumatic pumps (and most pneumatic symbols) are outlines only. There exist no other options for…

Fluid power systems are noted for their high power density — permitting high force and torque output from relatively small components when compared to electromechanical systems. Microhydraulics makes it feasible to obtain a significant amount of force from a minimal power source within a very restricted space envelope. Thus, it can provide a straightforward solution…

When it comes to hydraulic system maintenance, it is vital that the people involved in recording data, taking samples, using test equipment, etc., are properly trained in the jobs they have to perform and the equipment they have to use. No matter how comprehensive the maintenance procedures are, there will inevitably be occasions when maintenance…

Josh Cosford continues his series on hydraulic symbology, here with an in-depth look at flow control valves, See the rest here. By Josh Cosford, Contributing Editor The words flow control valves broadly describe any hydraulic component capable of diminishing fluid volume downstream of itself relative to upstream. It goes without saying a flow control valve…

Webtec has recently launched a new guide for fluid power technicians entitled, An Introduction to Practical Hydraulic System Maintenance. Co-authored by industry experts Steve Skinner and Webtec’s Managing Director Martin Cuthbert, this guide was written to help educate technicians and engineers new to hydraulic fluid power maintenance and hydraulic engineers embarking on a career in…

In Hydraulic Symbology 101 (read it here first), I covered the basic square used for pressure valves and also showed the most stripped-down versions of the two most commonly used pressure valve symbols, the relief valve and the pressure reducing valve. In this edition of Hydraulic Symbology, I’m going to cover the four primary pressure…

In Hydraulic Symbology 201, I discussed directional valve symbols from basic construction to valve transitions. For the most part, these symbols pertain to industrial stack valves, although cartridge valve symbology is similar. When the stack valve — aka CETOP, ISO or “D-something” valve — is drawn in a circuit, however, it looks much different. Shown…

This article is the third in my series on hydraulic symbology, this time going beyond the basics to discuss symbols in higher detail. If you haven’t read Hydraulic Symbology 101 and Hydraulic Symbology 102, please click the links and read them first to gain the basics required for this article. If your basics are sound,…

In 1999, Carl and Lenore Dyke launched an industrial education and consulting business in Calgary. Carl took his earliest career experiences as a millwright in the sawmill industry and his seven years of teaching welding/fabrication and electronics/robotics at the high school level and sought to create a unique enterprise to help solve learning problems in…

By Josh Cosford, Contributing Editor The machine tool is a machine that uses a guided tool for the shaping of materials, typically by cutting, grinding, drilling, boring or forming, etc. As opposed to hand tools, which require the operator to be fully in control of the metal shaping, a machine tool uses one or more…

Accumulators are pressurized vessels that hold fluid under pressure. This stored energy can be called upon to boost energy to a system when needed, then recharged to store it again. This stored energy can be dangerous; proper care should be taken to ensure pressure and temperatures are kept under control. Several small yet critical accessories…

The history of labor unions dates to the late 1800s when employees worked in often wretched conditions with little or no regard paid by employers for safety, fair wages and reasonable workaday hours. It’s hard to argue the level of productivity achieved prior to the amelioration of unions, and some would wager the great railroads…

MJC Engineering is a custom machine tool builder in Huntington Beach, Calif., specializing in metal-spinning machines for sheet spinning, flow forming, wheel spinning and others. MJC machines typically use large volumes of hydraulic power in operation. About three years ago, the president at MJC, Carl Lorentzen, began investigating the configuration of the hydraulic units used…

By Steve Sonner, Hyspeco Inc. When I first considered writing an article about a typical day in the in the life of a fluid power salesman, my first thought was, “It’s pretty boring!” But as I have dwelled on the idea, it is anything but boring. As I have dedicated over 40 years of my…

By Josh Cosford, Contributing Editor Do you ever find yourself having difficulty with electronics? I was out for dinner with my future father-in-law last night, and during one discussion, he tried to find an email he had previously deleted from his Blackberry (don’t laugh, I have one too). He spent many moments flipping and pinching…

System-oriented thinking and analysis skills are required to keep your industrial hydraulics operations in good working order. By Carl Dyke, CD Industrial Group Inc. In a fluid power system, the source energy enters at one central point, just like an electrical system. The energy is distributed through control mechanisms and conductors to the final motion devices, just…

Efficient– (of a system or machine) achieving maximum productivity with minimum wasted effort or expense. “Efficient.” en.oxfordictionaries.com. 2017. Sometimes a simple dictionary reference can explain better in a few words what may take me a paragraph or more. I think we can all agree on the definition of efficient, especially in this day and age, where cars,…

Reciprocating hydraulic pressure intensifiers generate higher pressure from a low-pressure hydraulic power source, helping to conserve energy, cost and space. By Anders Levinsen, Sales & Marketing Manager, ScanWill Hydraulic pressure intensifiers, sometimes referred to as hydraulic pressure boosters, generate a higher pressure from a low-pressure hydraulic power source. They always work powered by a pump, which is operating at a set…

Hydraulic reservoirs in a fluid power system primarily serve as a storage tanks to contain sufficient volume of hydraulic fluid and subsequently cater to the fluid demand by the pump during system operation. Additionally, the reservoirs account for the thermal expansion/contraction of the hydraulic fluid and also provide for acceptable levels of external leakage at the […]

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Often, users of hydraulic fluid will confuse a chemical analysis with a complete fluid analysis, which provides particle count of contaminants, amounts of water, and more. Oil samples that are sent off to a lab without specific instructions will return with valuable data but not all the data points you require. In most cases, the […]

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If you have one or more lubricated screw compressors that run partially loaded in load/unload mode, the size of the storage receiver is quite important to the compressor operating efficiency—and may affect its lifespan. If your compressors run in modulation mode, the least efficient way to run a screw compressor, the compressor efficiency is likely […]