Electronification and electrification are two of the biggest trends taking place in mobile hydraulics. In this interview with Power & Motion, Enrique Busquets, director of engineering for Mobile Hydraulic Systems at Bosch Rexroth, discusses how these trends are influencing hydraulic system designs.
On the electronification side, software is playing a major role in providing hydraulic systems with new capabilities. According to Busquets, “The use of software unleashes the power of the hydraulics by adding additional functionalities and possibilities.”
Adding brains to the machine through the integration of sensors, software and electronic controls to traditionally mechanical systems like hydraulics opens up the possibilities of how the machine can be configured and function he said. In addition, software can help to simplify hydraulic systems.
To take full advantage of the benefits of software integration with mobile hydraulics, the entire machine lifecycle is taken into account from design to use and service out in the field. “It starts with the machine design," said Busquets. "It goes all the way to the life of the machine, the tuning and the simplification, all the way to service and and decommission of the machine. So we're looking at more standardized systems. We're looking at components that can be used in systems which otherwise, without the use of software, could not be used in different applications.”
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