Potential Energy Recovery and Direct Reuse System of Hydraulic Hybrid Excavators Based on the Digital Pump

Abstract

The potential energy recovery of hydraulic excavators is very significant for improving energy efficiency and reducing pollutant emissions. However, the more common solutions for potential energy recovery require more energy conversion processes before these potential energies can be reused, which adds to the complexity and high cost of the system. To tackle the above challenges, we proposed a novel energy recovery system for hydraulic hybrid excavators based on the digital pump with an energy recovery function. The new system could operate in three different modes: pump, energy recovery, and direct reuse. Based on the descriptions of the working principle of the digital pump and the whole energy recovery system, the mathematical models of the digital pump, the excavator arm cylinder, and the accumulator were established and the AMESim simulation model (combining mechanics, hydraulics, and electrics) was developed. The dynamic characteristics of the energy recovery system were studied under no-load and full-load conditions. The simulation results showed that this scheme could achieve 86% energy recovery when the boom was lowered and reused the recovered energy directly when raised, which could decrease the system input energy by 78.1%. This paper can provide an optimized solution for construction machinery or off-road vehicles and presents a reference for the research on digital hydraulics.