Artemis Intelligent Power Limited

Danfoss Power Solutions Gmbh & Co Ohg

Danfoss Power Solutions Aps

Sauer Danfoss Aps

Uwe Bernhard Pascal Stein

Niall James Caldwell

William Hugh Salvin Rampen

Stephen Michael Laird

Michael Richard Fielding

Daniil Sergeevich Dumnov

Alexis Dole

Robert George Fox

Stephen Hugh Salter

Pierre Joly

Alasdair Ian Fletcher Robertson

Jonathan Paul Almond

Onno Kuttler

Luke Wadsley

Gordon Paul Voller

Jack Samuel Lavender

Jeremy Edmondson

John Tearlach Campbell

Fergus Robert Mcintyre

Pierre Robert Joly

A piston ring () for forming a seal between a piston () and piston housing (). The piston ring () has first and second orthogonal axes () and a body portion () which is resiliently deformable in the direction of the first axis () and is substantially rigid in the direction of the second axis ().

Piston rings

A hydraulic pump () comprising: a housing () having first and second inlets () and first and second outlets (); a crankshaft () extending within the housing () and having axially offset first and second cams (); first and second groups () of piston cylinder assemblies provided in the housing (), each of the said groups () having a plurality of piston cylinder assemblies having a working chamber of cyclically varying volume and being in driving relationship with the crankshaft (); one or more electronically controllable valves () associated with the first and second groups (); and a controller () configured to actively control the opening and/or closing of the said electronically controllable valves () on each cycle of working chamber volume to thereby control the net displacement of fluid by the first and second groups (), wherein at least the first group () comprises a first piston cylinder assembly in driving relationship with the first cam () and a second piston cylinder assembly in driving relationship with the second cam (), and wherein the first group is configured to receive working fluid from the first inlet () and to output working fluid to the first outlet () and the second group is configured to receive working fluid from the second inlet () and to output working fluid to the second outlet ().

Controller for hydraulic pump

A method of operating a hydraulic apparatus comprising a hydraulic circuit region and hydraulic machine which is controlled to displace pulses of fluid of known volume into or out of the hydraulic circuit region, generating pulses of pressure in the hydraulic circuit region and torque in the hydraulic machine shaft. The response of parts of the hydraulic apparatus to these pulses is measured and used to determine properties of the hydraulic apparatus. The response of the pressure in the hydraulic circuit region to pulses at different pressures can be used to measure the hydraulic stiffness of parts of the hydraulic circuit region. It is possible to detect faults and to make measurements useful in subsequent operation of the hydraulic apparatus.

Measurement and use of hydraulic stiffness properties of hydraulic apparatus

The invention provides a fluid working machine comprising: a cylinder block () having an axial bore (); a crankshaft () which extends within the axial bore () and is rotatable about an axis of rotation (); and first and second valve cylinder devices () provided in the cylinder block () arranged about and extending outwards with respect to the axial bore (), the first and second valve cylinder devices () being axially offset from each other, the first and second valve cylinder devices () being offset from each other about the axis of rotation (), and the first valve cylinder device having an axial extent which overlaps the axial extent of the second valve cylinder device, wherein the first and second valve cylinder devices () comprise first valves () having respective first working fluid ports (), the said respective first working fluid ports () of the first valves () of the first and second valve cylinder devices () being in fluid communication with each other via a common conduit () extending within the cylinder block ().

Fluid working machine having first and second valve cylinder devices in fluid communication with each other via a common conduit

The invention provides a fluid working machine comprising: a crankshaft () which is rotatable about an axis of rotation (); adjacent first and second groups () of valve cylinder devices () spaced from each other about the axis of rotation (), one or each of the first and second groups () of valve cylinder devices having first, second and third valve cylinder devices () arranged about and extending outwards with respect to the crankshaft (), the first and third valve cylinder devices being axially offset from each other, the second valve cylinder device being axially offset from the first and third valve cylinder devices and the second valve cylinder device being offset from the first and third valve cylinder devices about the axis of rotation, wherein the second valve cylinder device has an axial extent which overlaps with the axial extent of one, or the axial extents of both, of the first and third valve cylinder devices.

Fluid working machine having offset valve cylinders

An injection molding system, water jet cutting machine or other industrial system has a synthetically controlled variable displacement fluid working machine which outputs hydraulic fluid to one or more fluid consumers, such as rams or hydraulic motors, through hydraulically stiff fluid retaining volumes and receives hydraulic fluid back from one or more fluid consumers through the same or other said hydraulically stiff fluid retaining volumes. Individual piston cylinder assemblies can be allocated to different outputs. There may be no valve between the machine and the consumers. A working chamber of the machine can be caused to undergo a motoring cycle to enable the machine to output more power than is received from a motor driving the machine. An accumulator can be used to provide a source of hydraulic compliance. The machine can be controlled using pressure control, flow control, feed forward control or variable power/variable power limit control.

Industrial system with synthetically commutated variable displacement fluid working machine

A fluid-working machine has a plurality of working chambers, e.g., cylinders, of cyclically changing volume, a high-pressure fluid manifold and a low-pressure fluid manifold, at least one valve linking each working chamber to each manifold, and electronic sequencing means for operating said valves in timed relationship with the changing volume of each chamber, wherein the electronic sequencing means is arranged to operate the valves of each chamber in one of an idling mode, a partial mode in which only part of the usable volume of the chamber is used, and a full mode in which all of the usable volume of the chamber is used, and the electronic sequencing means is arranged to select the mode of each chamber on successive cycles so as to infinitely vary the time averaged effective flow rate of fluid through the machine.

Fluid-working machine and operating method

A fluid-working machine has a working chamber of cyclically varying volume, high and low pressure manifolds, and high and low pressure valves for regulating the flow of fluid between the working chamber and the high and low pressure manifolds respectively. A controller actively controls at least one said valve to determine the net displacement of working fluid of the working chamber on a cycle by cycle basis. At least one said valve is a variable timing valve and the controller causes the valve to open or close at a time determined taking into account one or more properties of the performance of the fluid working machine measured during an earlier cycle of working chamber volume.

Fluid-working machine valve timing

A fluid-working machine for a renewable energy generation device, the fluid-working machine comprising a ring cam and a plurality of working chambers, the ring cam having an annular working surface extending around an axis of rotation of the ring cam, the annular working surface defining a plurality of waves, each working chamber having a piston, each piston in operative engagement with the ring cam working surface, the ring cam and working chambers being mounted to rotate relative to each other, cycles of working chamber volume being thereby coupled to rotation of the ring cam relative to the working chambers, characterized in that the individual waves of the ring cam working surface have an asymmetric profile.

Fluid-working machine with multi-lobe ring cam

In a method of detecting a fault in a fluid-working machine including a plurality of working chambers of cyclically varying volume, each working chamber is operable to displace a volume of working fluid which is selectable for each cycle of working chamber volume to carry out a working function responsive to a received demand signal. An output parameter of the fluid working machine, which is responsive to the displacement of working fluid by one or more of the working chambers to carry out the working function, is measured. It is determined whether the measured output parameter fulfils at least one acceptable function criterion, taking into account the previously selected net displacement of working fluid by a working chamber during a cycle of working chamber volume to carry out the working function.

Fluid-working machine and method of detecting a fault

A ring cam for a fluid-working machine is formed from a plurality of segments. The segments comprise a leading cooperating formation which has a piston facing surface which forms part of the working surface, at a trailing end, and which is recessed from the working surface at a leading end, and a trailing cooperating formation which has a piston facing surface which forms part of the working surface at a leading end, and which is recessed from the working surface at a trailing end. The segments having piston facing surfaces which are in compressive stress such as to partially or fully compensate for tensile stress arising from the action of rollers in use. The segments form a wavelike cam surface and attachment means are provided, through the working surface, on whichever of the leading or trailing surfaces thereof is subject to lowest forces from pistons in use.

Ring cam and fluid-working machine including ring cam

A fluid working machine comprises a controller and a working chamber of cyclically varying volume having an electronically controllable primary low pressure valve and a secondary low pressure port associated therewith, each of which is openable and closable in phased relation to cycles of working chamber volume to bring the working chamber into fluid communication with a low pressure manifold. At least the primary low pressure valve is under the active control of the controller to enable the controller to determine the net displacement of fluid by the working chamber on a cycle by cycle basis. The primary low pressure valve and the secondary low pressure port are openable concurrently and in parallel during a portion of at least some cycles of working chamber volume, including at the point in the expansion or contraction stroke where the rate of change of volume of the working chamber is greatest.

Fluid working machines and methods

A valve assembly for regulating the flow of fluid between a working chamber of a fluid-working machine and a fluid manifold. The valve assembly comprising a valve body comprising a valve seat, a fluid passage extending through the valve body, and a travelling member comprising a valve member and operable between an open position in which the valve member is spaced apart from the valve seat and fluid can flow through the fluid passage and a closed position in which the valve member is in sealing contact with the valve seat preventing fluid from flowing through the fluid passage. The valve assembly further defines a fluid flow path passing in a first fluid flow mode, between the valve member and the valve seat, and into the fluid passage. The valve assembly is characterized by a barrier upstream of the valve member, to the barrier reduces one or more forces which would otherwise act on the valve member as a result of the flow of fluid to urge the valve member towards the valve seat. Thus, one or more forces which would otherwise act on the valve member to urge the valve member to the closed position due to the flow of fluid past the valve member in the first fluid flow mode are reduced or removed. There is also disclosed a valve assembly in which fluid flowing along the said fluid flow path is incident on the downstream surface of the valve member at an angle of at least 80&#xb0; to the direction in which the valve member is operable to travel between the open position and the closed position.

Valve assembly

A valve assembly suitable for regulating the flow of fluid between a working chamber of a fluid-working machine and a fluid manifold. The valve assembly comprises a valve body comprising a valve seat, a fluid passage extending through the valve body, and a travelling member comprising a valve member, which valve member is operable between an open position in which the valve member is spaced apart from the valve seat and fluid can flow through the fluid passage and a closed position in which the valve member is in sealing contact with the valve seat preventing fluid from flowing through the fluid passage. The valve assembly defining a fluid flow path passing, in a first fluid flow mode, between the valve member and the valve seat, and into the fluid passage. The valve assembly is characterized by defining a fluid flow path including a constricted flow region and further comprising a reduced pressure chamber in communication with both a first surface of the travelling member and the constricted flow region, arranged to exert a force on the travelling member by way of a pressure reduction in the reduced pressure chamber when fluid is flowing along the fluid flow path, through the constricted flow region, which force acts to resist closure of the valve. Thus, a force is generated which opposes forces acting on the valve member due to the flow of fluid past the valve member.

Growing community of inventors

Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Uwe Bernhard Pascal Stein