Photo courtesy of Volvo Construction Equipment.
Volvo Construction Equipment (Volve CE) says it has worked with Finland-based Norrhydro to develop a digital hydraulic actuator that increases productivity while “radically” cutting fuel costs and CO2 emissions. If widely adopted, says Volvo, the actuator could help industries that use excavators and large material handlers “meet sustainability ambitions while at the same time improving machine performance.”
Volvo CE says it has used a EC300E 30-ton excavator as a test model. The firms say the “full details of the revolutionary technology are closely guarded,” but the Norrhydro patented system, known as NorrDigi, uses a multi-chamber digital hydraulic actuator.
The technology removes the need for a main control valve – the heart of a traditional hydraulic system – along with excessive pump capacity, piping and hoses, according to Volvo CE. An excavator or material handler with the actuator thus “uses less energy and offers the prospect for downsizing the engine capacity,” states the firm.
“This is a prime example of how partnerships with outside experts can accelerate our own sustainability journey through technical innovation,” says Thomas Bitter, head of technology at Volvo CE. “In research so far, the system shows greatest benefits in larger machines – in the case of excavators, those 30 tons and above. However, in the future, the technology could also be used in electric machines, where its much greater hydraulic system efficiency would effectively extend the battery life and operating window.”
Testing of the technology has shown that with CO2 emissions reduced, the actuator is making a significant cut in the machine’s carbon footprint, say Volvo CE and Norrhydro. The two firms have signed a multi-year agreement through which Volvo CE will continue to develop the technology in partnership with Norrhydro. Volvo CE has exclusive rights to its use in its products during the development process.
Unlike traditional cylinders with two chambers – one pushing, one pulling – the digital hydraulic actuator uses four chambers that can be connected in up to 16 different permutations, depending on the load required by the desired operation. “It’s a bit like a 16-speed linear transmission,” says Peter Stambro, vice president of business development at Norrhydro. “Multi-chamber cylinders have been around for a while, but what makes our ones exceptional is the way they have been combined with advanced electronic control systems, whose complex algorithms and computational speed allow for instant response, but using only a fraction of the energy for the same machine maneuver or action compared to a traditional system.”
In trials with the Volvo EC300E 30-ton excavator, the technology has passed its initial proof-of-concept phase and durability tests, and is now moving to a field test period, where prototypes are used in real world applications by selected customer partners, say the firms. The companies are forecasting the system will be offered on Volvo CE excavators by 2024 at the latest.
“The ability to develop this radical technology in partnership with a leading player in the construction equipment industry offers many advantages, including accelerating the time to market for commercialized products,” says Yrjö Trög, CEO of Norrhydro. “We will invest in a new multi-million euro world-class manufacturing facility in support of the launch, and I look forward to the market introduction of the NorrDigi system together with Volvo CE.”