Rexroth Releases New Flow-Sharing Valve for Mini Excavators

February 1, 2015

Jean L.

The new Rexroth RS15 flow sharing control block for mini excavators features an increased flow capacity of 30%, while significantly reducing energy wasting pressure losses.

Bosch Rexroth took advantage of bauma China to launch a new size for its RS valve platform, the RS15, which the company says was in reaction to an “upwards spiral” in the market for mini and compact excavators. The higher their performance and versatility, the wider their field of operation, which in turn leads to higher requirements from end users in terms of productivity and fine control for the operator.

The RS control block platform is the successor of the SX series from Rexroth, which claims to have pioneered flow sharing (LUDV) in the mini excavator market, raising the share of this technology from 5% to approximately 50% in the last 15 years. Compared to the successful SX14 valve, the new Rexroth RS15 features an increased flow capacity of 30%, while reducing energy wasting pressure losses. The maximum operating pressure is 350 bar (5075 psi). With these specifications, the RS15 covers the requirements of excavators from 9 to 12 ton (8 to 11 t).

Like its predecessors, the new RS valves are designed to work in harmony with axial piston variable pumps from Rexroth such as the A10VO or A7VO. This combination allows OEMs to fully exploit the benefits of the LUDV design in terms of energy savings, machine performance, and cost efficiency.

The RS12 main valve, which is suitable for excavators from 3 to 7 ton (2 to 6 t), has successfully been implemented by a number of Chinese OEMs. It improves machine performance and reduces fuel consumption by up to 15%. With the new RS15, the RS control block platform from Rexroth now meets the application requirements of excavators from 3 to 12 ton (2 to 11 t).

In addition to valves blocks and axial piston pumps for flow-sharing systems, Rexroth offers radial piston motors for slewing and travel drive, as well as hydraulic and electronic joysticks and compact hydraulics valves.

As China is one of the leading markets for concrete machinery, Rexroth had on display at bauma China a number of solutions for that particular segment, including series 40 of the A4VG axial piston variable pump for a higher pressure level up to 450 bar (6500 psi) in concrete pumps. The DHC (diesel hydraulic control) for concrete mixers is said to provide gains in energy efficiency as well as noise reductions.

Rexroth has also recently added a new control unit and two new sensors to its mobile electronics modular BODAS portfolio. BODAS is a finely scalable system including all hardware components, application software, and engineering tools required for the electronic control of a variety of equipment.