Question about hydraulics and speed
 

I have a large truck I am building, which due to weight, I intend to put hydraulic steering on. The pump I have is 140cc/minute flow rate, and each of the 4 pistons is 10cc, obviously that gives me a very slow travel speed for the pistons, with 10 seconds to go from full-speed to the opposite.

I read about hydraulic accumulators and was wondering if anyone has had any experience in that area.

Re: Question about hydraulics and speed
 

Hydraulic steering is interesting. Not clear by your description of "each of the 4 pistons is 10cc". How many cylinders are steering and what is bore & stroke of them? How do you plan to plumb the circuit - what components are you using?

Ken

Re: Question about hydraulics and speed
 

4 cylinders, 10mm bore, 4mm shafts, 30mm stroke. 4mm hose coming down the upper links. The pump only has a 140cc flow rate. All four pistons are on the same valve.

Re: Question about hydraulics and speed
 

Maybe what is throwing you off is the 140cc/min verses the cylinder size in millimeters. 1cc = 1000 cubic millimeters. A 10mm x 30mm cylinder has a volume of 2355 cubic mm x4 cylinders is 9420 cubic mm. The pump delivers 140,000 c mm/min, so all cylinders could extend fully in less than 4 seconds. In a typical steering setup, pairs of cylinders work opposite of each other - one extends, one retracts - reducing the total volume needed since the rod side has a smaller volume. I would think steering speed should be acceptable since seldom do we need to turn lock-to-lock. Does this help? Let me know if I've misunderstood your specs or needs.
Ken

Re: Question about hydraulics and speed
 

I see...I did my math very wrong...I forgot to convert...so yeah, that's plenty fast enough. Thank you.

Re: Question about hydraulics and speed
 

And now I have another question: Hydraulic lines with T-couplers in them. Does anyone do this and/or know where I can get 2mm T-couplers? I have 4 sets of pistons running in parallel, and would like to do that with a single valve, instead of a whole bank of valves.

Re: Question about hydraulics and speed
 

You can probably order directly from SMC or find a local dealer

Here is the link to the SMC / M fittings catalogue which suits perfectly our activity.

PMD/Garden trucking also offers a wide range of smaller fittings and various accessories you could use for such small cylinders

Re: Question about hydraulics and speed
 

Thank you, I'll have to look into that when I've got my actual computer to do the order.