Knowledge-based Control Systems Design for Fluid Power Systems

Hydraulic control systems are mainly applied to driving problems which require both a high power output and advantageous dynamic properties. A great number of components have to work together in order to perform the complex functionalities requested. Therefore, a huge effort has been spent in developing software solutions to support the engineer with the demanding and time-consuming task of hydraulic control systems design. There are numerous tools tackling the modelling, simulation, and analysis of hydraulic drives. The evaluation and especially the modification of the investigated system normally is left to the user. This paper elaborates on those aspects of the design procedure which are, up to now, not covered by software systems for hydraulic systems— contributing to ‘closing the gap’ in the iterative design cycle. In this context, human strategies are worked out, formalized and systematized following a knowledge-based approach.