ROBO 226

LAB 10: DOUBLE ACTING CYLINDER CONTROL

OBJECTIVE:
 Explored position and speed control for a double acting cylinder.
EQUIPMENT LIST:
 Two 3/2 pushbutton valves
 Cylinder A and B
 5/32” tubing
 5/2 double pilot valve
 2 flow control valves
LAB PROCEDURE:
PART ONE – USING 3/2 VALVES
 Identified the cylinder and two 3/2 pushbutton valves
 Used 5/32” tubing to connect the ports on cylinder A to the output ports on each 3/2
valve.
 Connected the air supply to the input port of each 3/2 valve.
 Gently pulled on each tube to ensure all connections were engaged properly.
 Pressed the pushbutton (PB1) connected to the cap end of the cylinder to extend the rod.
 Pressed the pushbutton (PB2) connected to the rod end of the cylinder to retract the rod.
 Pressed and held PB1. When the cylinder was fully extended, pressed and held both PB1
and PB2 down and made observations. Released PB1 to retract the cylinder .When the
cylinder was fully retracted pressed both PB1 and PB2 and made observations (below).
Released both pushbuttons and tried to extend and retract the cylinder by hand.
 Draw the circuit schematic.
 Turned the air supply off.

PART TWO- USIING DOUBLE PILOT OPERATED 5/2 VALVE

 Disconnected the tubes between the output ports of PB1 and PB2 with the cylinder.
 Selected the 5/2 double pilot valve, DCV9, from the backboard
 Connected the output of DCV9 to the cylinder ports, specifically port A to the cap end
and port B to the head end.
 Connected the output port of one of the pushbutton valves to pilot port A on DCV9.
 Connected the output port of the remaining pushbutton valve to pilot port B on DCV9.
 Connected the air supply to the pressure port on DCV9
 Gently pulled on each tube to ensure all connections were engaged properly.
 Tested the cylinder operation by pushing each of the pushbuttons to ensure PB1 extended
and PB 2 retracted the cylinder.
 Removed the mufflers on the exhaust ports of DCV9, and observed the noise effect while
the cylinder was under operation.
 Pressed and help PB1.When the cylinder was fully extended, pressed and held both PB1
and PB2 down and made observations. Released PB1 to retract the cylinder. When the
cylinder was fully retracted pressed both PB1 and PB2 and made observation. Released
both pushbuttons and tried to extend and retract the cylinder by hand.
 Drew the circuit schematic
 Turned the air supply off

PART THREE- SPEED CONTROL WITH IN LINE FLOW CONTROLS

 Located the two in line flow controls on the cylinder and ensured both were fully
open.
 Gently pulled on each tube to ensure all connections were engaged properly
 Adjusted the flow control connected to the head end of the cylinder and observed
the effect. Adjusted the flow control valve back to fully open.
 Adjusted the flow control connected to the cap end of the cylinder and observed
the effect.
 Drew the circuit schematic
 Turned off the air supply
 Fully opened both flow controls
PART FOUR- SPEED CONTROL USING SPEED CONTROL MUFFLERS
 Located the 5/2 valve (DCV 10) with speed control mufflers installed and ensured
the adjusting screws were fully open.
 Transferred all tubing from DCVV 9 to DCV 10
 Gently pulled on each tube to ensure all connections were engaged properly.
 Tested the cylinder operation to ensure proper functionality. Adjusted the muffler
on port A only and observed the effect (below).
 Adjusted the speed control muffler on port B, while port A was fully open, and
observed the effect.
 Turned off the air supply
 Draw circuit schematic
 Disassembled all tubing connections and ensured lab area was tidy.
CIRCUIT SCHEMATIC:
Please see attached drawing.

OBSERVATIONS:
1) While both PB1 and PB2 are pressed, the cylinder remained extended and did not
move. However, while the cylinder was retracted and both PB1 and PB2 are pressed,
the cylinder extended but did not retract. When both pushbuttons were released, I
was able to move the cylinder rod by hand.
2) When both mufflers were removed, there was no noticeable difference in the noise
level when the cylinder was under operation. While both PB1 and PB2 are pressed,
the cylinder remained extended and did not move. However, while the cylinder was
retracted and both PB 1 and PB2 are pressed, the cylinder remained extended and
did not move. However while the cylinder was retracted and both PB1 and PB2 are
pressed, the cylinder extended but did not retract. When both pushbuttons were
released, I was not able to move the cylinder rod by hand with the addition of the 5/2
valve.
3) When the flow control valve connected to the head was reduced, the retraction speed
decreased while the extension speed remained unchanged. However, when the flow
control valve connected to the cap end of the cylinder was reduced, the extension
speed decreased while the retraction speed remained unchanged.
4) When the flow control valve on port A was reduced the extension speed decreased.
However, when the flow control valve on port B was reduced the retraction speed
decreased.