The FluMeS Laboratory

The fluid power laboratory is the largest and best equipped in Scandinavia in its field. The installed electric power is almost 1 MW. The experimental resources form a firm basis for extensive research activities. There are two general-purpose test stands for evaluation of valves and motors.

We use measurement and control equipment from DSpace and National Instruments that can be moved between test stands and mobile machinery in a flexible manner. As software we utilize LabView and ControlDesk in combination with Matlab/Simulink and RealTime Workshop.

There is one heavy-duty test stand for drive trains for trucks and off highway vehicles. The supply and load torque to the hydraulic system tested is generated through two servo-valve controlled fixed hydraulic motors. The test stand can also be used for testing hydraulics with cylinder loads, such as wheel loaders. Two hydraulic motors are then connected so that they mimic a hydraulic cylinder. Two high-flow capacity valves can also be used to simulated cylinder loads.

There is one special purpose test stand including a full-scale mobile crane. The crane is connected to a rack of manoeuvre valves that can be connected to the crane through a flexible system. The crane is equipped with cylinder position sensors.

There is a unique test stand for investigations of periodic and transient flow and pressure pulsations in fluid power systems. Two piezo-electric pressure transducers are utilized to measure the pressures at two ends of a pipe connected to the tested object. From these pressures, the transient flow can be computed by using a mathematical description of the dependency between pressure and flow at the two pipe ends.

The skid-steered robot below is used for testing sensor fusion in combination with navigation and motion control. The focus is on range sensors like scanning laser and ultra-sound sensors.

The rear of a SAAB aircraft exist as a test stand in the lab. Wind forces can be simulated and applied to the various rudder surfaces by hydraulic cylinders. The control system is supplied by SAAB and permits simulating sensor failures etc that needs to be care of by the control software.

This test stand is used for evaluating new steering servo solutions. The road forces are simulated in software using realistic vehicle modes and are generated by a hydraulic cylinder. An electric motor runs the steering servo pump.

The truck is utilized in our undergraduate courses in which the students control the motion of the tool. The truck is equipped with a hydraulic system and CAN communication link.

The Volvo S60 is utilized in both research and in student project courses in which automatic parking is of interest.

The SIRIUS car has individual steering of all wheels through electric actuators. Throttle, brake and steering is performed by wire. Steering concepts can easily be studied with this platform. A time-triggered bus connects all units.

This "cradle" is employed for cases where high precision is needed in testing hydraulic valves and in control exercises.

The loader is equipped with energy-efficient hydraulics and is tested in realistic situations.