Dominik Božič, Franc Majdič, Fakulteta za strojništvo, Univerza v Ljubljani

Abstract:
To control a hydraulic humanoid robot, it is necessary to design and optimize a hydraulic proportional valve with the lowest possible mass and size. The valve for the robot’s rapid movements must not only be compact, but also allow high flow rates while minimizing internal leakage. A seal on the control piston is used for better sealing and simplified fabrication. Numerical simulations of the basic characteristics of the valve were performed and the results were compared with measurements on the manufactured prototype.
Compared to conventional proportional valves, the newly developed rotary valve achieves significantly better results in terms of internal leakage and flow characteristics, and is smaller and easier to start.

Key words:
hydraulic, humanoid robots, proportional valves, rotary proportional valve, seals, controling with servomotors