A new converter for improving efficiency of multi-actuators fluid power system

This paper is concerned with the application of energy efficient fluid power in mobile robots system and proposes a new fluid power converter system which is analogous to a boost converter in power electronics. The fluid power converter system is based on the principle of pulse-width modulation. The fluid power converter has an effect akin to an electrical switched inductance transformer, wherein the output pressure or flow rate can be stepped up or down. Using an inductive reactance device (an inertia mass-block), the output flow and pressure can be varied to meet the load by a means that does not rely on dissipation of power (the resistance control). The simulation model based on the mathematics models of the components is built to analyse the performance of the fluid power converter. It is clearly shown that the fluid power converter has higher energy efficiency than conventional resistance control manners.