8/25/2019 Hydraulic Symbology 201 – industrial directional valves

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Hydraulic Symbology 201 – industrial directional valves

By Josh Cosford | January 15, 2019

This article is the third in my series on hydraulic symbology, this time going beyond the basics to discuss
symbols in higher detail. If you haven’t read Hydraulic Symbology 101 and Hydraulic Symbology 102, please
click the links and read them rst to gain the basics required for this article. If your basics are sound,
however, carry on learning the intricacies of industrial directional valve symbology.

I’m separating the lessons on directional valves between industrial, mobile and cartridge valve technologies.
Each uses symbology di erently because their valves are manufactured and applied individually based on the
needs of their industries. Through-center valves are not used with industrial applications, and 3-way valves
are only common with cartridge valves, for example. This article covers the basics of industrial valve symbols,
while Hydraulic Symbology 202 will cover the compound symbols used with industrial stack valves.

The above symbol shows the typical 3-position directional valve with the internal lineation removed. Each of
the square boxes depicts one of the three functional envelopes of which the valve is capable. The center
condition is referenced as position 0 because it’s the natural valve state prior to any actuation. The center
condition is important to consider because the type of pump needed is dictated by center ow conditions. If
the valve allows ow in neutral, a xed displacement pump is ideal, while a center condition blocking
incoming ow requires a pressure compensated, variable displacement pump.

The remaining two squares depict the operational envelopes of the second and third valve positions, which
are the functions of the valve. Envelopes are referenced with a or b to de ne the envelope pertaining to the
given actuation method. The reference can be located on either side of the valve symbol, and is generally

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manufacturer speci c, so ensure you use their documentation when interpreting symbols. What matters is
the a actuator operates the a envelope, for example.
that 

The valve ports are listed both above and below the center condition envelope. This not only provides clarity
on the port locations, but also de nes the at-rest position of the valve. For example, a valve may not have a
neutral center condition, but could be at rest in the a or b envelopes, such as with a 2-position valve.
Regardless, I’ve only ever seen the display order of A B on top with P T underneath.

The actuators, in function, are the electric or mechanical devices that shift the valve out of neutral to any of
the operational envelopes. There are myriad actuators, although with electronic technology advancing so
quickly, the forms of mechanical actuation are becoming rarer. Electric solenoid operation is by far the most
common for industrial valves, and is depicted by the same basic actuator rectangle with a diagonal line.
Although a line leaning to the left is meant to represent the coil pulling on the plunger, the right-leaning line
showing a coil pushing on the plunger is more common, regardless of axial direction.

The blunted actuator representing a physical actuation is the most generic representation of manual
operation. This symbol can technically represent any form of physical actuation but is non-descriptive. It’s
preferred to reserve this for only the manual override of a valve, and is often used in conjunction with the
solenoid operator (see below). For the strictly manually operation, the lever actuator makes sense, and can
be seen in forms varying from the one above.

It was previously common to do factory automation by way of directional control valves, but the practice is
less common in the current electronic age. However, you may still come across roller cam or plunger valves.
The roller cam is ideal for actuating a valve as a device moves perpendicular to the cam, pushing it down and
switching the valve. You can imagine this valve creating a functional series, as the extension of one hydraulic
cylinder at the end of stroke can actuate the next function. The same can be said of the plunger valve, which
is similar to the cam function but meant to accept only axial force against the plunger.

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 

Above is the same valve as previously shown, but with the internal lineation replaced. This is a complete
hydraulic symbol showing a closed-center, 4-way, 3-position, spring-centred solenoid valve. In the at-rest
position, all ports are blocked and the only ow that occurs is the result of leakage. The pump will be variable
displacement or with some sort of automatic unloading function. Flow to and from the actuator will be
blocked, but because of the leakage I mentioned, you wouldn’t use this for load holding. Firing the a coil
would provide ow paths from P to B and A to T, while ring of the b coil would allow ow from P to A and B
to T.

Other common center conditions for valves are shown above. The oat center spool is used in circuits where
both work ports are required to be open to tank while in the neutral position. It is used in conjunction with
load holding or motion control valves, which themselves necessitate draining of their spring chambers, a
function that wouldn’t occur with a closed center. These spools are also called motor spool because they
allow uid to pass through the center of the valve from one port of the motor to the other. This operation
allows a motor to spin down naturally under its own energy, rather than an abrupt stop as would occur with
a closed center. The oat center spool has its P-port blocked, so pressure compensated pumps are needed.

The open center valve provides the same bene ts as the oat spool, but can be used with xed displacement
pumps. The pump ow is naturally unloaded to tank, and the spool also provides a drainage ow path for any
accessory valves attached to the A and B work ports. The tandem center valve is also used for xed ow
systems where uid is unloaded to tank in neutral and work port ow is blocked. This spool is common on
gear pump systems operating cylinders with no work-holding requirement. Less common but worth mention
is the regen center valve, which opens pump ow to both work ports simultaneously. This counterintuitive
function allows a di erential cylinder to extend with twice the speed at half the force, and can be controlled

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electronically or hydraulically to provide full or part-time regeneration. There are dozens of other center

conditions for spool valves, but these ve make up ninety percent of what you’ll come across. 

There are auxiliary functions to every directional control valve, and these add utility to the valve. The spring is
used to center a 3-position valve, or to o set a 2-position valve. When no power is applied to a coil, the
spring force is su cient to center the valve to its at-rest position. Some occasions require that a valve is left
in an actuated state without any physical or electrical motivation to maintain position. A detent mechanism
can be added to either side of a valve to create maintained ow such as is required for some motor or
clamping functions. The manual override can be added to nearly any directional valve symbol, but when real
estate is limited, this function is typically added above the others, as shown. The method of physical override
is not spelled out, and could occur through knobs, handles or even hidden buttons.

If you look at the above symbols, you’ll notice something odd if you’re not deeply familiar with symbology.
How is it possible to have three distinct positions with a single coil? For that matter, how is it possible to have
ve distinct positions in any valve. The symbols here depict spool transitions. The closed transition example is
actually a 4/2 single solenoid valve, but if you look closely you can see a dashed lined in the center envelope.

The dashed line in directional valve symbology illustrates the transition of a valve; it’s the functional action of
the valve as the spool moves from being solid against the valve body, to partially open and nally fully open.
What happens in between has consequences on system performance. The closed transition shows us this
valve has no metering as it switches from P to B & A to T and then to P to A & B to T. Flow simply stops
abruptly, and then restarts the opposite direction.

In the open transition example, the valve spool has a metering e ect at all ports before nally providing the
directional function as listed above. Starting in neutral with P to T ow while the work ports are blocked, if we
switch to the left side envelope, A, B & P are metered into the center while the tank line bleeds directly to

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reservoir. As the spool shifts fully, P ows to B while A drains to T. This spool shifts smoothly, but because
has a temporary path to tank during transition, you must be careful to use load holding, if required,
uid
since the downstream actuator can drop its load for a fraction of a second.

Next time, I’ll discuss the methods of building pilot operated and stackable valves. Pilot operated valves are
required for system ows above 30-40 gpm, and these valves can be illustrated two ways. Modular stack
valves are a method of creating complete circuits using CETOP ISO valves, but their symbology is di erent
from normally drawn circuits.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Josh Cosford

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