Energy-saving cooperative position tracking control of electro-hydraulic servo systems

Electro-hydraulic servo-systems are used in numerous industrial and machinery applications, many of which involving position tracking control. Utilizing a fixed-displacement hydraulic pump along with a proportional directional control valve is a very common and cost-effective way of implementing position control. However, the specified system consumes excessive energy and produces a significant amount of heat, resulting from high-pressure discharge of the hydraulic fluid to the tank during slow movements and inactive stages. The objective of this research is to reduce power consumption by adding a proportional pressure control valve to the system. A cooperative multi-input-single-output control algorithm is proposed to control the proposed system. The performance of the controller is then verified by both simulation and experimental results. The proposed controller proves to be significantly effective in reducing energy consumption in the specified types of electro-hydraulic servo systems without adversely affecting position tracking performance.