We recently got a boom mounted flail mower, that has cable levers for controls. After a while operator fatigue is going to be an issue. The manufactures electronic joystick is just a ridiculous price. I have done a quick search, but I am not coming up with much. Anybody have a source for an electric 2-way joystick with 2 buttons on top, making a 3 valve control? This of course in a tractor, so I will need 12v. The only one I found was 110v?? Strange.
Electric Joystick Control Needed
- Thread starter toivo1037
- Start date
kennyd
Advertiser
This is above my pay grade for sure...but I don't think there is a "cheap" way to do this. A cheaper alternative may be to relocate the valve to eliminate the cable controls?
J_J
Super Star Member
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- Sep 6, 2003
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- JACKSONVILLE, FL
- Tractor
- Power-Trac 1445, KUBOTA B-9200HST
Are you saying the manufacture has an electronic joystick to replace the cable operated joystick. The electric joystick still has to operate a 12v solenoid, if that is correct.
What you have now is a manual valve, Something has to operate the valves remotely. and this was designed this way to simply the valve setup. It it probably not as bad as you think. However it is a repetitious operation that could tire out a new operator. Cables can wear out , dirt and crud can slow the up, cables may be pinched, etc. They have been using remote valves with cables for quite a while.
Their are two types of valves you could swap out for this, a pilot operated valve setup, and a 12v electric solenoid valve, both using a joystick. The electric joystick is simple electronic, and are readily available. The pilot operated joysticks are also available, and provides low hydraulic pressure to control the pilot operated hyd valve. You could round up all the parts by searching the INTERNET, Ebay, Hydraulic surplus, Baileys, and many more.
Pilot operated two spool valve.
https://www.surpluscenter.com/item.asp?UID=2009072705465562&item=9-4533&catname=hydraulic
Pilot operated joystick.
https://www.surpluscenter.com/item.asp?UID=2009072705465562&item=9-4533&catname=hydraulic
12v solenoid valve, one valve for each cylinder.
https://www.surpluscenter.com/item.asp?UID=2009072705465562&item=9-7311&catname=hydraulic
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kenstrac
Platinum Member, RIP
If you have to feather the controls on boom mower a standard on off valve may not work.
J_J
Super Star Member
- Joined
- Sep 6, 2003
- Messages
- 18,928
- Location
- JACKSONVILLE, FL
- Tractor
- Power-Trac 1445, KUBOTA B-9200HST
I believe there are electric valves out there that allow a feather touch with solenoid valves, by putting just enough signal/voltage to move the shaft inside the valve as much as you want. There is a name for that technique, but I can't think of it. Yes, I agree a regular electric valve is full on and off, and is sometimes jerky. However you could slow down the rate of hyd flow, using needle valves or, or something similar.
I figure it isn't going to be real cheap, but the manufacturer is pricing the upgrade at $6k. That is way out of the budget.
Sorry, should have been clearer. We have a bank of 5 single action levers, with cables that control a bank of valves mounted on the flail. I was thinking of replacing the 3 most used functions with an electronic joystick, similar to our loader stick which has forward/back, left/right, and 2 top buttons. And yes, it would have to be variable speed controls, restricting the flow rate is not an option. We need it to work as it is now, with a different control. I was thinking we could just plug off the 3 valves, and pipe in the new ones.
I did do some searches, maybe I wasnç't using the correct terms. I just tried "servo Valve" and came up with some different options on ebay. Continental Hydraulic Proportional Valve - eBay (item 150122371779 end time Aug-30-09 20:51:26 PDT) is Proportional Control Valves
It is starting to look like these are not do-it-yourself friendly items. I was hoping to find a fairly simple modular system, but not finding anything like that.
westcliffe01
Veteran Member
Using proportional valves is a mixed bag. Yes, the valves themselves are expensive. Yes, proper "industrial" joysticks are not cheap either. But, if you have these components as a given, the layout of the hydraulic system can be done very differently than with the open center controls.
Open center controls bacically run all of the circuits in series. Since the controls are in a confined space (near the operator) this means lots of hoses running in every direction from the controls. Using proportional control, you would run a supply and return the length of the machine. So for example, one supply and one return to the loader and in the opposite direction to the hoe. Now each seperate circuit taps into the supply and return but with the valves mounted in situ (valve for loader arm on loader arm, valve for bucket tilt on quick attach plate, valve for hoe boom on boom and valve for dipper on dipper valve for curl possibly on dipper to keep it out of the worst dirt). This makes for a pretty clean layout and can save a bundle on hoses.
The key difference is that proportional systems will typically operate at "system pressure" which trends to draw a constant load, whether you are using the system or not. It is possible to utilize a seperate pressure regulator which is "load sensing" and which reduces system operating pressure when no load is detected, but it is pretty certain that this type of system wastes more energy than the simple open center system used in less expensive equipment. Heavy machinery that will have proportional control almost always has to work hard to earn its keep anyway, so commercial operators will generally have other things to worry about if their equipment is idle or "loafing".
Open center controls bacically run all of the circuits in series. Since the controls are in a confined space (near the operator) this means lots of hoses running in every direction from the controls. Using proportional control, you would run a supply and return the length of the machine. So for example, one supply and one return to the loader and in the opposite direction to the hoe. Now each seperate circuit taps into the supply and return but with the valves mounted in situ (valve for loader arm on loader arm, valve for bucket tilt on quick attach plate, valve for hoe boom on boom and valve for dipper on dipper valve for curl possibly on dipper to keep it out of the worst dirt). This makes for a pretty clean layout and can save a bundle on hoses.
The key difference is that proportional systems will typically operate at "system pressure" which trends to draw a constant load, whether you are using the system or not. It is possible to utilize a seperate pressure regulator which is "load sensing" and which reduces system operating pressure when no load is detected, but it is pretty certain that this type of system wastes more energy than the simple open center system used in less expensive equipment. Heavy machinery that will have proportional control almost always has to work hard to earn its keep anyway, so commercial operators will generally have other things to worry about if their equipment is idle or "loafing".