A hydraulic system for a mobile rescue stretcher has a hydraulic cylinder, with first and second working chambers, a tank and pump. The first and second chambers are connected to the pump via first and second line arrangements, respectively, and can be pressurized by the pump. Hydraulic fluid flows out of the first chamber via the first line arrangement when pressure is applied to the second chamber. The first line arrangement has a first check valve which opens when pressure is applied to the second line arrangement. Hydraulic fluid flows out of the second chamber via the second line arrangement when pressure is applied to the first chamber. The second line arrangement has a first branch line connected to the pump and a second branch line connected to the tank. A pressure valve in the second branch line opens when pressure is applied to the second line arrangement.

Presented herein are systems and methods for attenuating certain pulsations in a hydraulic system comprising a pump and a hydraulic actuator. In certain aspects, an accumulator comprising an internal volume that is divided into a working chamber and a contained chamber may be utilized to at least partially attenuate propagation of certain pulsations in the system. The working chamber may be fluidically coupled to the pump via a first flow path and fluidically coupled to a chamber of the actuator via a second flow path. The system may be designed such that a first inertance of the first flow path is greater than a second inertance of the second flow path. Additionally or alternatively, the system may be designed such that a resonance associated with the first inertance and a compliance of the accumulator may occur at a resonance frequency of less than 90 Hz.

An electrohydrostatic actuator system comprising: a volume- and/or speed-variable hydraulic machine which is driven by an electric motor, for providing a volumetric flow of a hydraulic fluid; a differential cylinder with a piston side and a ring side; and at least one pretensioning source. The actuator system has a closed hydraulic circuit, wherein, during operation, the hydraulic fluid in the hydraulic circuit is pressurized by means of the hydraulic machine and/or the pretensioning source. Furthermore, according to the invention, the differential cylinder provides a power motion operating mode and a rapid motion operating mode. In order to balance a volume of the hydraulic fluid in the closed hydraulic circuit, according to the invention an expansion reservoir is connected to the piston side of the differential cylinder via a valve.

An electro-hydrostatic actuation system and a method for driving a hydraulic actuator, e.g. a hydraulic cylinder, are described, wherein the system comprising a leakage branch, and wherein preferably an additional pump is arranged. The system further comprises a source for providing hydraulic liquid; a high-pressure circuit to direct the hydraulic liquid to a hydraulic actuator, such as e.g. a hydraulic cylinder; a low-pressure circuit having several branches; a main pump for hydraulic liquid arranged in the high-pressure circuit, comprising a housing having a high-pressure section and a low-pressure section, separated by gap sealings, wherein the high-pressure section comprises a first outlet and a second outlet to provide the hydraulic liquid flow in the high-pressure circuit; and wherein the low- pressure section comprises a leakage outlet; an electric motor driving the main pump.

An electro-hydrostatic drive for realizing a rapid movement during a rapid movement phase, a force-building movement during a force-building movement phase. The apparatus comprises a hydro-machine with variable volume and/or rotational speed, driven by an electric motor, for providing a volume-stream of a hydraulic fluid, a first cylinder with a piston chamber, an rod chamber, and a plunger rod, a reservoir, a pressure source, a relief valve, a check valve, a fluid connection between the piston chamber and the hydro-machine, a fluid connection between the rod chamber and the hydro-machine, a fluid connection between the piston chamber and the reservoir, a fluid connection between the rod-chamber-side port of the hydro-machine and the reservoir, a fluid connection, through the relief valve, between the reservoir and the pressure source. The relief valve is for pressure safety of the reservoir, and the check valve has a fluid connection from the pressure source to the rod-chamber-side port of the hydro-machine, during the rapid movement phase, a first part of the hydraulic fluid is piped through the fluid connection between the piston chamber and the hydro-machine and the fluid connection between the rod chamber and the hydro-machine, and a second part of the hydraulic fluid communicates through the fluid connection between the piston chamber and the reservoir, during the force-building movement phase, a first part of the hydraulic fluid is piped through the fluid connection between the piston chamber and the hydro-machine and the fluid connection between the rod chamber and the hydro-machine, and a second part of the hydraulic fluid is piped through the fluid connection between the rod-chamber-side port of the hydro-machine and the reservoir.

A fail-safe actuation system comprising an actuator having first and second chambers, a working circuit with a motor/pump device configured to actuate the actuator in an operative state, and a safety circuit configured to move the actuator into the safety position in a failure state, the safety circuit having a tank that holds pressurized fluid and that, in the failure state, is automatically connected to the first chamber via a switching valve, and having a drain valve that, in the failure state, is moved into a through-flow position in order to drain fluid out of the second chamber, the safety circuit configured such that, in the operative state, an inflow into the actuator—in a manner that is decoupled from the tank—is established by the working circuit, and, in the failure state, an inflow from the tank into the first chamber—in a manner that is completely decoupled from the working circuit—is created by the safety circuit, whereby a short-circuit fluid connection is provided between the first and second chambers that, in the failure state, is through-connected in order to generate a short-circuit flow between the first and second chambers.

There is provided a driving device for a work machine, having a closed hydraulic circuit system for driving cylinders with hydraulic pumps, the driving device making the speed of operation substantially the same in both directions of piston rod extension and contraction. The driving device includes: a first hydraulic pump that has flow rate control device for controlling the flow rate and direction of hydraulic fluid to be delivered; a single rod hydraulic cylinder that is driven with the hydraulic fluid to drive one of work members of a work device on the work machine; a closed hydraulic circuit that connects the first hydraulic pump with the single rod hydraulic cylinder to form a closed circuit using flow lines through which the hydraulic fluid flows; a branch line that branches from the flow line between the first hydraulic pump and the single rod hydraulic cylinder; a first flow line of which one end is connected to the branch line; a tank to which the other end of the first flow line is connected; and a hydraulic fluid flow rate control device attached to the first flow line to control the flow rate of the hydraulic fluid flowing from the branch line to the tank or from the tank to the branch line.

A hydraulic fluid flowpath includes a first flowpath and a second flowpath. The first flowpath connects a first pump port and a first chamber in a hydraulic cylinder. The second flowpath connects a second pump port and a second chamber in the hydraulic cylinder. The hydraulic fluid flowpath forms a closed circuit between a hydraulic pump and the hydraulic cylinder. A bleed-off flowpath bleeds off a portion of the hydraulic fluid from the second flowpath. A control valve connects the second flowpath to the bleed-off flowpath via a throttle when an operation amount of an operating member for lowering a work implement is less than a predetermined operation amount so that a hydraulic pressure in second flowpath is maintained at less than a relief pressure. The predetermined operation amount is less than or equal to the maximum operation amount for lowering the work implement.

Method for controlling and damping the motion of a hydraulic actuator in an electro hydrostatic actuator (EHA) system comprising an electric motor, a hydraulic pump and a hydraulic fluid circuit connecting the hydraulic pump and the hydraulic actuator includes comprising: energising the electric motor to drive the hydraulic pump to supply hydraulic fluid to the hydraulic actuator through the hydraulic fluid circuit in an active mode of operation; providing a flow path between the hydraulic actuator and the hydraulic pump in a damping mode of operation such that hydraulic fluid can flow via the flow path through the hydraulic pump when the hydraulic actuator is driven by an external force; and determining a desired amount of damping to be applied to the hydraulic actuator in the damping mode of operation and providing the electric motor with one or more energy consuming means configured to provide the desired amount of damping.

The invention relates to a hydraulic device for driving an actuator to be hydraulically controlled or actuated, comprising a motor arranged in a motor housing, a compensating tank (31) for accommodating hydraulic fluid, and a hydraulic pump, which is arranged in a pump housing and driven by the motor, wherein the hydraulic pump is designed in such a way that the hydraulic pump permits conveyance of hydraulic fluid in two directions, namely in the forward direction and in the backward direction, wherein the hydraulic actuator comprises a drive cylinder, which has a first and a second cylinder chamber and a drive piston (3) arranged therebetween, to which drive piston a drive shaft (2) that can be displaced in the longitudinal direction is attached, wherein the device comprises a loading cylinder for an emergency closing spring (16), in which loading cylinder a loading cylinder chamber (12) and a loading piston (11) that can be coupled to the drive shaft (2) are arranged, wherein the emergency closing spring (16) can be loaded into a loaded or emergency-triggering readiness position by the loading piston (11), wherein the loading cylinder chamber (12) is connected to an outlet of the hydraulic pump in such a way that the loading cylinder chamber (12) can be filled with hydraulic fluid by means of the hydraulic pressure of the hydraulic pump and the loading piston can be transferred into a loading position as the emergency closing spring (16) is compressed and the loading piston can be locked there hydraulically by means of check valves (36, 37), and wherein a controlled seat valve (50) is connected to an inflow/outflow opening of the loading cylinder chamber, by means of which seat valve the emergency closing spring (16) can be transferred from the loaded readiness position into an emergency-triggering opening position, wherein both the hydraulic fluid that is contained in the loading cylinder chamber (12) and holds the emergency closing spring (16) in the readiness position and the hydraulic fluid contained in the first cylinder chamber can be discharged via the controlled seat valve (50).